And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. -Luke 2:8
Something that's been mentioned during my training is how useful the shepherd and pastoral images in the bible are to us today. In context the image makes a lot of sense, it's what the people knew and could relate to, but to us we might only think of shepherds in the context of their place in the nativity.
What image would would work for us today? The shepherds are supposedly at the birth to show this isn't the God of the the rich and privileged but of those at the bottom of the pecking order- in 2015 would the angels be inviting refugees or people vilified for surviving in benefits?
What of the image of a shepherd as one who lives amongst their flock, taking care of their every need? A classroom assistant? Care home worker? Customer service adviser?! I can't think of anything that works quite so well as shepherd.
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