Psalm 10.1-14
Why, Compassionate One, do you stand afar?
Why do you hide yourself in hard times?
In arrogance the wicked harass the poor;
let them be caught in the schemes they have devised.
For the wicked praise their [every] inmost desire,
extort gain and bless those who despise the Creator of All.
The wicked turn up their nose and do not seek [God];
There is no God in all their thoughts.
Their ways prosper all the time;
your judgements are on high, beyond them;
all their foes scoff at them.
They say in their heart, “We shall not be shaken;
nor [see] evil down through the generations.”
Cursing fills their mouths along with the deceit and oppression;
under their tongues are trouble and iniquity.
They sit in ambush in the villages;
in hiding places they murder the innocent.
Their eyes surveil the vulnerable.
They lie-in-wait that they ay snatch the poor;
they search the poor and drag them off in their net.
They stoop, they crouch,
and the vulnerable fall prey through their might.
They say in their heart, “God has forgotten,
she has hidden her face, she will never see it.”
Rise up, Faithful God; dear God, lift up your hand;
forget not the oppressed.
Why do the wicked despise God,
and say in their hearts you shall not find out?
You see, you regard trouble and grief,
to take [it] into your hands.
Upon you the vulnerable entrust themselves;
to the orphan you have ever [only] been their helper.
John 10.11-16 “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. The hired hand, who is not the shepherd to whom the sheep do not belong, sees the wolf coming and abandons the sheep and flees, and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. All because a hired hand does not care for the sheep. I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, just as the Shepherd-Of-All knows me and I know the Shepherd-Of-All. And I lay down my life for the sheep. And I have other sheep that do not belong to this fold: I must bring them as well, and they will listen to my voice, thus there will be one flock, one shepherd.”
Reflection Here is the secret about bullies. Bullies are people or nations driven by fear to project an image that they are special, superior and sinless. In a bearded effort to cover up their own weakness, smallness and vulnerability, bullies puff themselves up to exert power over others who seem weaker, smaller or more vulnerable.
Remember the swaggering giant Goliath (1 Samuel 17) armored in bronze and fitted with fine forged shield and spear? His looming presence sends the ordinary citizens of Israel fleeing in fear. Goliath was a bully. We face another Goliath as the Russian superpower deploys masses of money and military might to impose its tyrannical will and exile ordinary Ukrainian citizens. Here is the thing. When brazen superpowers appear to get away with their barefaced bullying, they boast about being exempt from the will of God. Cocksure and crowing, “the wicked turn up their noses and do not seek God.” They rant and rave, “We can get away with anything. What need have we for God?”
Meanwhile, drenched in dread the oppressed lament, “We cannot trust anything (the wicked) say, because “cursing fills their mouths along with deceit and oppression…” What are we to believe? What can we do?” Still, all is not lost if the subjugated do not give up on God. Truth be told, what else can they do?
A survey of people who identify themselves as nonreligious completed in the United Kingdom in 2018 found that “one in five atheists and agnostics pray on a regular basis in times of personal crisis. Atheists and agnostics reported that the most common reason for them to pray is during a tragedy, but 25 percent of these individuals admitted to also praying for comfort or simply out of loneliness.” **
When we are invaded by a superpower or for any reason come face to face with a bully, there is a good chance we will join the Ukrainians and the psalmist protesting , “Why is God not devouring the oppressors and rescuing us?’ Consenting to the reality that we are vulnerable we put our faith in God rather than ourselves. We implore God to take decisive action, “Rise up … lift up your hand”…do not forget us!”
Unlike bullies who act as if they were gods, the vulnerable never stop calling out to God. The vulnerable, even the atheist, pray, “Faithful God, “you see, you regard our trouble and grief, take it into your hands.” Faithful God, we entrust our selves to you.”
Consenting to the reality that we are not in control, the vulnerable and oppressed are blessed. As Jesus teaches in the gospel according to Matthew, “Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. “(Matt 5.5,6,8) Restored to hope, we join the psalmist and our Ukrainian sisters and brothers proclaiming, “Faithful God, to the orphan you have only ever been their helper.”
This is the Good News that points to the familiar gospel text known as the Good Shepherd. The sheep depend upon the Good Shepherd. The Good Shepherd never abandons the sheep, cares for the sheep and knows each one by name. Here is the tricky bit. The Good Shepherd is the Shepherd-of-All. All means all. The Shepherd-of-All has other sheep, “that do not (yet) belong to the fold.” The Shepherd-of-All is faithful to the oppressed as well as the oppressors, the Ukrainians as well as the Russians, because the Shepherd-of-All’s superpower is not forged in bronze nor deployed with fear.
Sending the disciples out “like sheep into the midst of wolves,” (Matt 10.16) like Ukrainians into the midst of Russians, like us into a world fraught with division and violence, Jesus offers counsel, “…have no fear… for nothing is covered up that will not be uncovered, and nothing secret that will not become known. What I say to you in the dark, tell in the light; and what you hear whispered, proclaim from the housetops. Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul… “
Here is the uncovered secret about bullies. Bullies are people or nations driven by fear to project an image that they are special, superior and sinless. In a bearded effort to cover up their own weakness, smallness and vulnerability, bullies puff themselves up to exert power over others who seem weaker, smaller or more vulnerable. In other words, bullies and reject their role as sheep assume the posture of Bloated Bad Shepherd.
Even Jesus is both, a vulnerable sheep known and cared for by the Shepherd-Of-All and Good Shepherd of his flock. We all are meant to be both, good shepherds extending our lives for the benefit of others and vulnerable sheep, known and cared for by the Shepherd-Of-All. The thing is, we cannot be one without also being the other. Sheep and Good Shepherd are two sides of one coin. Power held in check by humility.
I can think of no better counsel for the Ukrainians and every other person subject to the vulgar misuse of power by bullying tyrants who deny they are sheep. “Do not fear those who would kill the body but cannot kill the soul.” Though bombastic bullies may polish their armor and sharpen their tongues, we need not be afraid because as sheep we entrust ourselves to the One who has “ever only been our helper,” the Shepherd-of-All who knows our name and cares for us as we muddle along in the midst of bullies while doing our best to be good shepherds of others.
Have a listen to James Finley speaking about Sacred Moments of Vulnerability by clicking on image near the upper right of your screen.
**https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/jan/14/half-of-non-believers-pray-says-poll
