“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd giveth his life for his sheep. But the hireling, and he that is not the shepherd, whose own the sheep are not, seeth the wolf coming, and leaveth the sheep, and flieth: and the wolf catcheth, and scattereth the sheep: And the hireling flieth, because he is a hireling: and he hath no care for the sheep. I am the good shepherd; and I know mine, and mine know me. As the Father knoweth me, and I know the Father: and I lay down my life for my sheep.” (John 10: 11-16)
People often ask me about my feelings towards the gay men and women whom I speak with during the Gay Pride Parades, or those that approach me during outreach in The Castro or other areas of San Francisco. First of all, I have no impression that these person are evil; on the contrary, I often find them to be very open and kind-hearted. Yet, behind the repeatedly frantic smiles, I indelibly sense a distinct aura of sadness; of loss; and of a discontentedly questing spirit. At these moments, the passages from The Holy Scripture that always come to mind are those about sheep without a shepherd. Because, when I am with active homosexuals, in their environs, they are restlessly wandering and aimlessly searching about: “Seeing the crowds, he was moved with compassion for them, because they were bewildered and dejected, like sheep without a shepherd.” It’s a strange phenomenon: imagine a large flock of little lambs all jumbled together in a field; they all have their heads down and are munching away; but, seemingly oblivious to their surroundings and to each other. Similarly, at gay gatherings, there is this atmosphere of rote instinct; swerving towards intense self-containment and individual satisfaction. It is a sort of pointless gorging that is essentially unsatisfying. And, the hirelings inside the gay community continually misdirect those under their change into danger; to only abandon them when things go wrong: this was most evident at the 2014 San Francisco Gay Pride Parade as witnessed by the detachment and disingenuous air of both Gavin Newsom and Nancy Pelosi. I can only compare it to the grand pretentiousness in the brilliant Gustave Caillebotte painting “Paris Street, Rainy Day.” They are posers; and, plainly don’t care. In contrast, this particular favorite image (see below) of Christ as The Good Shepherd is clearly not fine art, but, the stance and posture of Jesus are both evocative of Christ as the new David confronting Goliath: the helpless lamb protected under the shadow of the Savior; the crozier raised high in a simple gesture of strength. This is something lasting and indelibly real; and, a true place of safety and protection.
