Open-ended, Life-centred,
Gospel-Focused Explorations of Australian Prayer Book Psalms.
Psalm 23...4th S of Easter... (A)
.... (For the
Gospel, please scroll)
INTRODUCTION: Psalms
are poetry for singing;
intensely
personal. PSs depend not on rhyme, but
parallelism: repeating an idea in
a different way, extending it, developing, contrasting, etc..A colon
marks where the change takes place. PSs date from pre-1000 BC (David)
to the mid 400s
BC. Today we find views
expressed in some PSs abhorrent. *
23 is based on the Hebrews' understanding of God as their true
Shepherd. In JN 10:11 Jesus personalises that to proclaim His
messiahship.
WARMING UP: Does 'shepherding' mean much to those of us
not from an agricultural background today?
TREASURES OLD & NEW:
Identify God at work in anything this week?
ENTERING INTO THE STORY:
1 Does living
in a democracy blunt any real understanding that 'lord-ship' means
total ownership? How does God's total ownership of us sit with us
within our overall more-or-less democratic life-style? Is one of the
issues driving clashes between extremists & liberals, Christians,
Muslims, & others the fact that hard-liners want to lord it over
everyone else with views based on selective understandings of God's
lordship? Does much of this involve genuine shepherding? Is whether a
faith is shepherding its people or not a litmus test of its
genuineness? If shepherding involves providing for the
shepherded, how does our God, our church score?
2-3 Does
the idyllic experience of green pastures & still waters translate
into something those (most of) us not from agrarian backgrounds relate
to except maybe for recreation? What about those on the land who are
ravaged by droughts, floods, famines, etc.? How do we 'promote' the God
of PS 23 to them? Does the answer to that lie in the next bit about
'refreshing our soul' & 'guiding us in right pathways'? Are
these aspects of God's shepherding we must cling onto when times are
bad, or are they simply escapism?
4
Why has darkness always been such a threatening
thing for humans? Is it still a primitive built-in fear we all carry
inside us? (But see 1JN4:18) Would any shepherd worth their salt lead
their flock into any kind of a dead end? Is that idea worth considering
as a practical aspect of Gospel? If God, our Shepherd is with us do we
need to be afraid of anything at all? Except fear itself? What kinds of
rod (= staff) can we imagine Jesus using to protect us as He shepherds
us through life?
5-6 If the lavishness of
God's provision here contrasts with the harshness of everyday life for
a then essentially desert / wilderness people, is it time for us
to re-envisage the needs we have deep down as distinct from
so many of us having most if not all our obvious needs met anyhow? Who
needs God when we have anything God could give us anyway? Is this why
we often seem to transfer this kind of imagery to the next-life (as,
e.g. in African-American spirituals)? Is transferring 'blessing'
imagery to the next life simply a cop out from wrestling with the hard
questions of this one? How does this shepherd imagery of God translate
to those who are 'doing it tough' in thses days of high interest rates,
unaffordable & unavailable housing, all that sort of thing?
On the other hand, what do we make of today's phenomenon in the USA
& Australia of 'success oriented' churches, often courted by
politicians, where people are encouraged to get more, make more, &
give more to prove God is blessing them? How does this sit with the
idea of a God who's a faithful shepherd to ordinary people? Or is that
kind of question just sour grapes from those of us who're not
particularly successful? What of those who ask of God, "Where is your
staff (rod) & all this good stuff when I need it?"
Websites: For those interested
in exploring singing the Psalms, there are many excellent free
web-sites available. Type 'Psalm Chants' into Google, or go to sites
such as: www.llpb.us/Canticles-Psalms/ (an amazing Lutheran site), or
www.cgmusic.com/workshop/psametre_frame
