Saturday February 5, 2011; Come Away and Rest Awhile; The Lord is My Shepherd

Scripture readings for today are here

It is also the feast of St Agatha. Her story is here 



Responsorial Psalm 23 is The Lord is My Shepherd 


R.  The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.
 
The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.

 
In verdant pastures he gives me repose.

 
Beside restful waters he leads me;

 
he refreshes my soul.



 
R. The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.

 
He guides me in right paths
for his name’s sake.

 
Even though I walk in the dark valley

 
I fear no evil; for you are at my side

 
With your rod and your staff
that give me courage.







Image source
 
R. The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.

 
You spread the table before me
in the sight of my foes;

 
You anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows. 


 
R. The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.

 
Only goodness and kindness follow me
all the days of my life;

 
And I shall dwell in the house of the LORD
for years to come.

 
R. The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.







Jon Foreman sings "The House of God Forever".



                            
Instrumental arrangement to the words of the Psalm 23.



Gospel Mark 6: 30-34

The Apostles gathered together with Jesus
and reported all they had done and taught.

He said to them,
“Come away by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while.”

People were coming and going in great numbers,
and they had no opportunity even to eat.


So they went off in the boat by themselves to a deserted place.

People saw them leaving and many came to know about it.
They hastened there on foot from all the towns
and arrived at the place before them.













When Jesus disembarked and saw the vast crowd,
his heart was moved with pity for them,
for they were like sheep without a shepherd;
and he began to teach them many things.

















REFLECTIONS

I think we can all empathise with how the disciples needed some space away from the thronging crowds and we can often skim over the fact that Jesus commands them to come away from their work and rest. 

He does this several times over to " re-charge the batteries" in between His powerful and frenetic bouts of ministry.


"What I want is to leap out of this personality
And then sit apart from that leaping
I've lived too long where I can be reached."


I think we all can agree with Rolheiser's comment :


"In a day of instant and constant communication, cell phones and emails, I suspect that we all fit that description. Certainly I do. I've lived too long where I can be reached."



Naomi Shihab Nye puts her slant on this as she reads her poem "The Art of Disappearing." It is a great reminder of the value of time and the importance of just being rather than doing. ( the sound is out of synch with the video)


Naomi Shihab Nye - The Art Of Disappearing by poetictouch

                                        

This is a wonderful resource on The Lord is My Shepherd



African Children's Choir: singing You Are My Shepherd-
  heartachingly beautiful !!



This is a wonderful song but the quality of this recording could be better. If anyone knows of a better one please let me know ...

You Say I am Your Shepherd, Why Aren't You Following Me ?


2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Who would have ever thought that sitting in a 'time out' chair would be a gift??? Great post Phil and I especially love, 'the art of disappearing'. I need to spend some time with these reflections. Thanks.
Andie

Blue Eyed Ennis said...

Ah Andie, I forgot that "time out" probably carries a slightly different meaning in America. i.e. it would mean an enforced and punitive command whereas in this context I meant it to convey a period for stopping and moving away from the daily treadmill and sititng still.
I'm glad you like the Naomi Shihab Nye poem. When I first read it a while back I was unsure what it was getting at and it sounded very cynical but watching her read it, I can see the wry humour in it much better.
Blessings