Without Jesus We Are A Flock of Sheep Without A Shepherd!

Rev. Marcel Divine Emeka Okwara CSsR

Homily for the Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year B

St. Paul the Apostle Catholic Church

Baton Rouge, LA

July 22, 2012

Last Sunday, we read from the Gospel of Mark 6:7-13 of the sending out of the Apostles in twos by Jesus. Having completed their learning and tutorship under Jesus, the Lord decided it was time to send them out on their own without him (Jesus) following them physically. Today’s Gospel taken from Mark 6:30-34 tells us that when the Apostles came back from their mission, they reported to Jesus all they had done and taught. Jesus was pleased with their accomplishments. So, unlike many masters especially today, who view humans as money making machines, who do not value the importance of rest and do not think that rest is a fundamental human right, he told his Apostles: “Come away by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while.” 

Jesus valued the importance of rest and understood that every human worker is not just an instrument at the service of the employer. The worker is the very purpose of work. As such, his or her moral and physical well-being make periodic rest very important, and because the human conditionality is limited, no person can go on and on working without resting. Pope John Paul II in his Encyclical (An encyclical is a Pope’s letter to all the Catholics in the world) titled Laborem Exercens: On Human Work said that the human worker needs enough rest before he or she wears out too quickly. Pope Leo XIII in his Encyclical titled Rerum Novarum: On the Condition of Labor pointed out that the human person’s ability to work is limited, that there is a point beyond which each person cannot go. Every human worker, he argued, deserves rest for recuperation and leisure and also to attend to his or her spiritual needs. Jesus knew this all too well. So, as soon as his Apostles returned from a difficult and tasking mission, he saw their weariness. He noticed their need for rest and recuperation and then invited them to a quiet place where they can rest, eat and refresh. What a compassionate and caring Master! 

In today’s Gospel, we see the pattern of the Christian life. We see what the Christian life should be. It is a life which begins, first, with an experience of God; secondly, expressing the God whom we have experienced by way of conduct and finally communicating the God we have loved or rather the God who has loved us. As we live our lives in faith and carry out our daily activities in faith- faith rooted in God, we must remember to continuously be in the presence of God, so that from there, we can go into the presence of men and women. It is absolutely impossible to live the Christian life without spending some quiet time to be alone with self and with God. It’s possible our problems are largely caused by our refusal or failure to make out time to speak to God and to give God time and opportunity to speak to us. Some of us do not know how to be still, how to be alone, and how to listen, therefore, we do not give God time to refresh and recharge us with his spiritual energy and strength. We forget that Psalm 46:10 says, “Be still and know that I am God.” It’s not possible to deal with life’s troubles if we do not maintain a constant contact with the Lord of life himself. We have to come to him daily with an open mouth and with an expectant faith. After all, in Psalm 81:10, the Lord says, “I am the Lord your God...Open wide your mouth and I will fill it.” 

Our Lord Jesus recognized the weariness of his Apostles after they had accomplished the mission he sent them. He did not want to overwork them. He decided it was time for them to rest and recuperate: “So they went off in the boat by themselves to a deserted place.” But the rest that Jesus and his Apostles wanted was thwarted by the crowds who wanted to see Jesus. When the people saw him and his Apostles leaving with a boat, they knew where they were going. They hastened to the place on foot and got there before them. 

Now, when Jesus saw them waiting for him, he was not in anyway displeased or upset. Many of us would have been upset. The rest that he wanted for himself and for his Apostles was interrupted. But he did not resent them; he did not scold them. Some of us priests would have yelled: “Please I want to take a nap; it’s my siesta time. I am tired! Please leave and come back tomorrow during office hours.” But not Jesus! Yes, his Apostles wanted rest, but these multitude of people also wanted rest. His Apostles wanted bodily rest, but the crowds wanted the rest of mind; they wanted peace for their souls, and the rest and peace they yearned for can only be given by Jesus. Was it not Jesus who said in the Gospel of Matthew 11:28, “Come to me all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.” 

Seeing the crowds, the Gospel says “His heart was moved with pity for them, for they were like sheep without a shepherd; and he began to teach them many things.” What does it mean to be a sheep without a shepherd? The multitude of people like many of us were standing at a crossroad not knowing which way to take. But in Jesus they saw the Shepherd that can lead them safely home. You know, a sheep without a shepherd can easily stray way. Without a shepherd, a flock of sheep could easily be starved to death. A sheep without a shepherd may not be able to find greener pasture. The people were hungry and thirsty for something greater and more important than food and drink. In Jesus they saw a man who can satisfy their hunger and quench their thirst. Jesus is the living water. Jesus is the bread of life. Jesus is the food for the journey. Life is a journey. The material food we eat cannot sustain us for a longer period of time. After eating them, we are still unsatisfied and hungry. After eating them, we still feel hungry and unfed. They cannot give us the strength to withstand the troubles of life. They cannot give us the spiritual strength to engage in a spiritual warfare with the forces of darkness. They cannot give us the spiritual, emotional and even the physical strength to keep on going. Only Jesus, the Bread of life can. A sheep without a shepherd has no shield or defense against trials and temptations. It’s only in the company of Jesus that we can win. Without him, Jesus says we can do nothing. Without him we are most vulnerable. But with him, we are protected, secured, and safe. The crowds of people looking for Jesus knew these, and that’s why they walked a long distance to meet him.