Shikrot Mpwi - Sunday Synopsis with Fr. Justine J. Dyikuk

16^th Sunday of the Year, B – July 22, 2018.

Readings: Jeremiah 23:1-6; Ps 22:1-6; Ephesians 2:13-18; 

Gospel – Mark 6:30-34.

Theme – The Leadership Question: Jesus’ Model!

Introduction

Beloved in Christ, our liturgy today comes hard on the Shepherds of God’s flock because of their reckless style of leadership. As a result of their poor leadership approach, God promised to supplant them by promising to raise up a true Shepherd that would smell like the sheep. The Shepherd who comes from the Davidic dynasty is Jesus who displays unlimited compassion for the flock by feeding them with the word of God. Our reflection titled, “The Leadership Question: Jesus’ Model” shall briefly look at the background to the readings in the light of pastoral application and practical lessons.

Background & Summary of the Readings

In the first reading (Jeremiah 23:1-6), judgment is focused on shepherds of Israel. First of all, it is important to note that in the Ancient Near East, shepherds came from among the poor in society. However, the word was used to refer to a king. Secondly, it could be misleading to strictly apply the term “shepherd” to Old Testament priests and prophets as an exclusive reference to “pastors of souls” since the Israeli community ran a theocracy that made the king a religious leader. That can be used eisegetically (imposing meaning) or in terms of extrapolation. 

That being said, let us come back to the point at issue. The sacred text discloses that the kings of Judah who were responsible for providing protection and sustenance for their flock by defending them against marauders failed in their duty. They also did not make efforts to search for the lost sheep or rescue those in dander. This is why God accused them for both destroying and scattering his sheep. According to Solvang (2018), some of these shepherds who performed poorly were, Jehoahaz (who ruled for 3 months, 609 BCE – Jer. 22:11-12), Jehoiakim (609-598 – Jer. 22:18), Jehoiachin (who ruled for 3 months, 597 BCE) and Zedekiah (597-587 BCE – Jer. 21:3-7).

These kings failed to judge the cause of the poor and needy (Jer. 22:17) and execute justice to deliver the helpless out of the hand of the oppressor (Jer. 21:12). As a result, God’s divine judgment came upon these leaders. They came under heavy attack by God who accused them of being self-serving. He, therefore, promised a new leadership through the Davidic dynasty (Jer. 23:5 & 6). This points us to the gospel.

In the second reading, (Ephesians 2:13-18), St. Paul assures that we who were far of have been brought closer “by the blood of Christ.” He refers to Christ as “the peace between us – [who] has made the two into one and broken down the barrier which used to keep [us]  apart.” He maintains that this is to restore peace and unite us into one single Body and reconcile us with God. By so doing, it says, he killed the hostility and brought us the good news of peace through his Spirit as the way to the father. 

The theme of message first and second reading is amplified in the gospel where Jesus is presented as the true shepherd to displays compassion for his flock. Unlike the shepherds of Israel who were self-serving, Jesus proved himself as a compassionate saviour to the people. Although Jesus and his disciples wanted some time out for rest and food, the people kept following them. Since they trekked long distances to catch up with them, Jesus put aside his basic needs of rest and feeding so as to teach the people at some length. He took pity on them because he saw them like “sheep without a shepherd.”  

Pastoral Application & Practical Lessons

While God railed on the Kings of Israel who were supposed to be the true shepherds of the flock but failed, we shall draw a parallel between the shepherds of old and our own contemporary shepherds. This shall be done by highlighting some practical lessons from our readings as they relate to both our temporal and spiritual leaders. We shall distinguish our contemporary shepherds thus:    

1. Money-Bag Shepherds:  We are faced with shepherds who are only interested in money. The scripture says, the love of money is the root of all evil (1 Timothy 6:10). These kinds of leaders see their flock as Automated Teller Machines (ATM). In religious institutions, they think of the flock in terms of donations, cash gifts, tithes, launching, bazaars to mention a few. In politics, they see the electorate in terms of votes and Ghana-Must-Go that accompanies their victory. The traditional institution is not spared of this venom as some traditional rulers sale their people and integrity for a piece of pie.  

2. Lips-stick Shepherds: These are leaders who womanize with impunity. They turn their necks at the sight of any woman. They are hard with men but smile voraciously at the appearance of an infant female. If they are in charge of a committee, they advocate for gender sensitivity, all to their gain. Sometimes they claim to be feminist only to surprise their gullible victims at the slaughter. Fat, thin, black or white, they have no choice. Those who fall into this category, sadly abuse women and children. Truth is, they are found in the religious, political and traditional institutions.

3. Liquor-Shepherds: As the name implies, these are leaders who organize one kind of party or the other. In all these parties, the marriage of wine and wild music come to the fore as Delilahs are often seen relishing the moment while gunning for Samson’s soul. In their orgy, these kinds of leaders are brought sensitive documents to sign – The outcome? Your guess is as good a mine!     

4. Flip-flop Shepherds: Flip-flop shepherds are those who are often regarded to as accidental leaders. They are ill-equipped and not prepared for leadership. The question of competence, organisation and finesse are out of place because leaders of this type stumbled upon leadership. What they do with positions of authority is to always punish the people for their incompetence.     

5. Power-Monger/Political Shepherds: Power mongers wield power for the sake of power. Without good intension, they bulldoze their way to the top. They use crude power to get at their enemies and those who are critical of their administration. Their only contribution to leadership is wrong use of power, exerting of undue authority and taking unilateral decisions. These shepherds do not err and they don’t take correction. They are too perfect to make a mistake. In the end, both the system (governance) and the people suffer. The question is, where is the market for this kind of leaders?  

6. Ethnic/Religious-Shepherds:  These are leaders that got to the zenith of power using the ladder of ethnicity or religion. They see themselves as tribal champions who are representing their ethnic or religious nationalities. What is more, in their eyes, no one qualifies for anyone position except their kith and kin. In their estimation, the greatest dividends of governance must go to their tribe or religion. The easily use the tribal or ethnic card as a tool for divide and rule. Any who critiques their style of administration attacks their tribe/religion. While they punish others of wrongdoing, they turn a blind eye from those perpetrated by people from their ethnic group or creed. This is no doubt the biggest cancer eating up the body politic and religious institutions in Nigeria.  

7. White-Collar/Book-Warm Shepherds: The White-Collar or Book-warm leaders are those leaders who think that everything begins and ends with book-intelligence. While they were in school, they were reading for exams and not for life. They are excellent in reading or making speeches and could present facts like a literacy and debating champion. However, when it comes to implementation, it is zero. Leaders who fall into this category are quick to clime the podium but poor with the people because they are often far from the reach of the common man. At best, what they are often remembered for is beautiful grammatical expressions that decorated the pages of newspaper or the news bar.  

8. Manger-Shepherd/True Shepherd: Manger-shepherds are leaders who imbibe the biblical lessons that although Jesus was born in a manger, the smallest of places, yet he became the greatest of all leaders because of his simplicity of life and self-abnegation. These are servant leaders who realise servant leadership entails exercising authority on behalf of the people, allowing for participatory and sometimes collective decision-making and being accountable to the people; they accept constructive criticism and know that true leadership is not a self-seeking exercise but one which exists to serve the people bearing in mind that true shepherds often seek support by influencing people not through coercion (Ngara, 2004). 

Homiletic Points to Remember

1. Our liturgy today comes hard on the Shepherds of God’s flock because of their reckless style of leadership.

2.  It could be misleading to strictly apply the term “shepherd” to Old Testament priests and prophets as an exclusive reference to “pastors of souls” since the Israeli community ran a theocracy that made the king a religious leader.

3. Our liturgy reminds us that bad leadership often fosters cynicism and sometimes hatred for leaders by their followers.

4. We must all realise that leadership is a burden.

5. We must always learn to pray for leaders for God to use them to deliver on their mandate.

Conclusion

We are challenged to take the dramatic washing of his disciple’s feet which Jesus did (John 13:1-17) and the teaching that followed on Holy Thursday as a metaphor for service in the Church and larger society. We are equally charged to embrace humble service (Matthew 23:12) and servant leadership as the modeled kind of leadership epitomized by Christ who by his life and teaching was a servant leader par excellence. While our liturgy reminds us that bad leadership often fosters cynicism and sometimes hatred for leaders by their followers, we must all realise that leadership is a burden. As such, we must always learn to pray for leaders for God to use them to deliver on their mandate. God help us all!