Fourth Sunday of Easter, Year B
Donna G. Joy

Acts 4:5-12; Psalm 23; 1 John 3:16-24; John 10:11-18

Kate DiCamillo’s award winning book ‘The Tale of Despereaux’ tells the story of a village under a castle, inhabited by a whole community of mice; and in particular the story of Despereaux – a sickly little, undersized mouse with oversized ears – who likes to read more than anything else - and who refuses to learn how to scurry and be afraid like his elders who were trying to guide him and shape him; who were trying to keep him safe. This novel was published – I think – in or around 2004, and I am convinced that through the writing of this story, DiCamillo was offering a critique of the culture of fear in which we live.

Culture of fear, or climate of fear, is a term used by some scholars, writers, journalists and politicians who believe that some in society promote fear in the general public to achieve political goals.This is what Michael Moore was suggesting in Bowling for Columbine, which was the American documentary that examined what he believes to be the main causes for the Columbine High School massacre which took place in 1999.In this documentary he concludes that those shootings were rooted in a culture of fear; that is, fear for safety is intentionally promoted so that people will be convinced to purchase guns, which then escalates the fear for safety.And, now, since the Columbine and other similar tragedies which have followed, parents do experience some sense of fear as they send their children to school.

Marilyn Manson, in an interview with Michael Moore suggests that the American culture is grounded in fear and consumption.He says we are shaped by advertising which contain fear-based messages.The Colgate commercial which said, “if you have bad-breath [people] are not going to talk to you” is an example of such fear-based messages.In an article written by Wendell Berry, an environmental activist, he suggests that our obsession with germs has caused us to fear the very environment in which we live.

Of course, we cannot speak of the culture of fear in which we live without mentioning the fear - at so many levels - that has been perpetuated and intensified with 9/11. So, indeed, it seems that we are shaped by and live in a culture that promotes and perpetuates fear.Despite Michael Moore’s idealized view of Canadian culture, I think most would agree that Canadians, too, live within the context of this culture of fear.It is no surprise that anxiety and panic disorders are on the rise.

So, the question for us, here today, is how does our faith challenge this culture of fear; how does our faith confront, discredit, and transform this culture of fear? Walter Brueggemann is one of the most influential contemporary theologians of our time, and in a recent interview he was asked what his main message for church leaders would be today, he said, “…people who are committed to the gospel have to think carefully about how to critique that dominant system… and how to imagine alternative forms of life that are not defined by those corrosive pressures”. So, our responsibility as Christians, is to critique this culture of fear, and imagine alternative forms of life that are not defined by it; we are to imagine alternative forms of life that are defined by the teachings and experience of our faith.

We have been gifted this morning with an alternative form of life that transcends and discredits a culture of fear. We have been gifted with what is probably the most widely known and widely loved Psalm; the 23rd Psalm which compares God to a shepherd; an image that offers comfort, peace, courage and hope in the midst of fear, even in the face of death. And, of course, this Psalm is paired with that passage in John’s Gospel where Jesus refers to himself as the ‘good’ shepherd – where Jesus is seen as the fulfillment of this gracious and generous God.

The Old Testament translation that I like to use comes from the Jewish Publication Society:

The Lord is my shepherd; I lack nothing. He makes me lie down in green pastures; He leads me to water in places of repose; He renews my life; He guides me in right paths as befits His name.

The work of an Israelite shepherd was to take the sheep out of the village to a place where there was grass for them to eat. Often he had to walk with them five or ten miles over rocky dry ground, in order to find grass/green pastures. He would go in front of them to show the way and to protect them. In those days there were many wild animals in Palestine; when David was looking after sheep we are told that he had to fight a lion and a bear; indeed, it was very dangerous work. The shepherd had to go on looking after his sheep in the heat of the day and throughout the very cold nights. His job was to do whatever must be done in order to bring them back safely to the village.

So, to proclaim the Lord as my shepherd is a powerful statement indeed. And to trust that Jesus is the fulfillment of this image is – I think – beyond our full comprehension; that is, Jesus did what needed to be done – he died on the cross in order to bring us safely back to God, our one, true home.

The author of this psalm goes on to say:

Though I walk through a valley of deepest darkness, I fear no harm, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff - they comfort me.

Here we are reminded that a shepherd often had to lead his sheep through dark narrow places where sheep-stealers or wild animals might attack them. So, the point here is that God – now made known in and through Jesus – is present to give strength in the dark places of human beings lives, in the pain and fear and sadness, in the disappointments, in times of sin, danger, illness, loneliness, doubt, and in death. God does not promise to take believers out of these dark places; but what He does promise is to give them strength while they are there.

When we are stricken with any kind of pain, or grief, or disappointment, or fear, we can know that God did not make it happen; God may not take that burden from us; but God has promised to guide us through whatever that peril may be.

To compare God to a shepherd is to understand God as the One who will lead, direct, guide the flock (that is, us) through all of life’s journey; to understand God as the One who will do whatever must be done in order to offer us grace and strength in the midst of those dark places through which we often must pass.

And finally the author of this Psalm says:

You spread a table for me in full view of my enemies; You anoint my head with oil; my drink is abundant. Only goodness and steadfast love shall pursue me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord for many long years.

I shall dwell in God’s house for many long years, (or according to other translations - 'forever') and in God’s house I shall be fed through the sacrament that is Jesus. By saying or singing these words the worshipers were again expressing their trust in God. They were, in effect saying, “I believe that, in spite of so much fear, uncertainty and danger, I shall never be separated from the fellowship of God, nor from the fellowship of others who worship at the Temple, ‘the house of the Lord’, as long as I live.” For them, communion with God and in community with other worshipers went together. They needed to gather with other worshipers in order to maintain their confidence in God.

Walter Brueggemann, whose interview I cited earlier says in his book The Threat of Life:

Remember, Yahweh is my shepherd. Yahweh is my guardian and protector. In the most dangerous place, “I fear no evil.” This traveler has confidence, even in ominous places, because the travel is accompanied. “Thou art with me.” It is precisely the reality of God who is the antidote to our consuming anxiety. The poet has discovered that things on the journey are not as they seem when God is present. We are safe, more cared for than we imagined. It is the presence of God that transforms dangerous places and tough circumstances.

So, says the psalmist, let me tell you about the valley of the shadow of death, when God is present:

There, on the journey, we are comforted by God’s protective rod and staff, instruments of guidance. We are not on our own, but guided, guided by God’s presence and God’s Torah, safe from all that would rob us of life.

There, on the journey, we thought there were no resources, but in the very presence of need, fear, and hunger, God sets a table of generous food. It is like coming around the corner of deep threat, and there in the middle of the road a lavish table of marvelous food, water from the rock, bread from heaven.

There, on the journey, where we thought there was only scarcity, the God of generosity pours out precious oil on our heads, into our cup. Our lives brim over because of God’s inexplicable generosity, just where we thought God had no gifts to give.

The journey, with the power and purpose of God, changes the circumstances in which we live. Wilderness becomes home, isolation becomes companionship, scarcity becomes generosity. That is how the life of faith is. It is, to be sure, very different from the life where Yahweh is not at its core.

This Psalm, fulfilled in and through Jesus, indeed, discredits, invalidates, transcends the culture of fear in which we live. This psalm offers us a great place to start as we reflect theologically on this culture of fear. Again, in the words of Walter Brueggemann, it offers, “alternative forms of life that are not defined by those corrosive pressures.”

As this psalm so eloquently conveys, The Lord is our Shepherd, and we have nothing to fear. The God we worship is alive and living in our midst, offering courage, comfort, peace and hope in the midst of all our fears. God has shepherded His people through Abraham and Moses, and David and through each of the prophets. And, of course, the peak of His role in salvation history is found in Jesus, the Good Shepherd. Through the person of Jesus, God has come to us personally, taken us by the hand and now continues to guide us through all of life’s challenges and uncertainties and fears.

Of course we do not know how this culture of fear will unfold. Walter Brueggemann’s book The Threat of Life makes the point that the life-giving presence of God who dwells among us threatens to outshine any other threats or fears with which we may be confronted. So, no we do not know how this culture of fear may progress, but what we do know is that with the Shepherd leading us through this dark valley we need not be afraid. My hope is that we, the church, will focus on readings such as the 23rd Psalm and see them as an antidote to the fear that permeates the culture in which we live. And my hope is that we will share this good news in the midst of a culture that is rooted in fear. Throughout history the church has been a focal point for healing and hope. Identifying this culture of fear creates for us an opportunity to proclaim our message of healing and hope with a renewed sense of conviction. In that same interview I recently read with Brueggemann, he goes on to say, “…that’s a very demanding job, but I suspect that the gospel at its best has always been a summons to think about how the world can be practiced differently.

The Lord is my shepherd; I lack nothing. He makes me lie down in green pastures; He leads me to water in places of repose; He renews my life; He guides me in right paths as befits His name.

Though I walk through a valley of deepest darkness, I fear no harm, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff - they comfort me.

You spread a table for me in full view of my enemies; You anoint my head with oil; my drink is abundant. Only goodness and steadfast love shall pursue me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord for many long years.

This Psalm, fulfilled in/through Jesus offers an antidote to the fear that permeates the culture in which we live. Let us share this good news in the midst of a culture that is rooted in fear.