Very Rev Paul Nadim Tarazi 

The Johannine statement that we have been chosen by God is illustrated by the image of God as the vinedresser, Jesus as the true vine, and of us as branches of this vine (Jn 15:1–2). A branch does not stand on its own ground; rather, its very existence is posited by the vine. In other words, it is the vine that is the basis for the branches being what they are. Earlier, in John 10, Jesus uses another metaphor where he presents himself as the good shepherd and the believers as his sheep. Whereas it is easy for us today to understand that branches do not exist apart from the vine, we find it difficult to see that the same applies to the metaphor of the flock. We tend to assume that the individual sheep exist on their own, prior to being part of the flock, the latter being simply the sum total of the individual sheep. This assumption cannot be farther from the truth of the matter.

In actuality there is no flock without the shepherd. It is the latter who “calls out” the sheep and thereby creates the flock—and, by extension, the individual sheep who enter into the flock created by him, as members of this flock.  Indeed, in the Middle East, a shepherd “calls out” his flock by walking ahead of it and making sounds recognizable to his sheep, sounds that keep the flock together as a flock.  This is precisely what John describes in 10:1–5:

Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door but climbs in by another way, that man is a thief and a robber; but he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the gatekeeper opens; the sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice. A stranger they will not follow, but they will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers.

On the other hand, this flock is not the sum total of the individual sheep. The flock, as a flock, is always complete, as willed by the shepherd. An individual sheep that is erring outside the flock is doomed to oblivion and death and thus ends up in nonexistence.  There will be no remembrance of it; it is as though it had never been. In other words, in the open ranges of the Middle East, an individual sheep outside of any flock simply does not “exist.” That is why Scripture uses the metaphor of scattered sheep to speak of exiles.  People who have been exiled from their homeland and who no longer exist as an actual city or nation are likened to “scattered” sheep.  Just as scattered sheep can be rescued from oblivion by the shepherd who brings them into a flock, so, too the exiles will be rescued from oblivion by being brought together into God’s flock.

My tent is destroyed, and all my cords are broken; my children have gone from me, and they are not; there is no one to spread my tent again, and to set up my curtains. For the shepherds are stupid, and do not inquire of the Lord; therefore they have not prospered, and all their flock is scattered. (Jer 10:20–21)

Woe to the shepherds who destroy and scatter the sheep of my pasture!" says the Lord. Therefore thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, concerning the shepherds who care for my people: "You have scattered my flock, and have driven them away, and you have not attended to them. Behold, I will attend to you for your evil doings, says the Lord. Then I will gather the remnant of my flock out of all the countries where I have driven them, and I will bring them back to their fold, and they shall be fruitful and multiply. I will set shepherds over them who will care for them, and they shall fear no more, nor be dismayed, neither shall any be missing, says the Lord. (Jer 23:1–4)

Hear the word of the Lord, O nations, and declare it in the coastlands afar off; say, 'He who scattered Israel will gather him, and will keep him as a shepherd keeps his flock.' (Jer 31:10)

Just as the flock is the reality within which sheep “exist,” so is Israel the reality within which God’s people exist.  In Scripture, it is called qahal (Hebrew) or ekklesia (Greek).  This term refers to the community that has been summoned into existence by God.  Put otherwise, in Scripture, the reality with which God deals are not the individuals, but His “people” or “all humanity” [Hebrew ’adam]. Notice how, according to Jeremiah 23:3, the sign that the scattered sheep are indeed back into the fold is the blessing “they shall be fruitful and multiply,” which is the same as the one that secures the existence of humanity itself: “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. And God blessed them, and God said to them, ‘Be fruitful and multiply’” (Gen 1:27–28).

The same reality is reflected in the choice of the metaphor “temple” or “building.”  The reality lies in the temple or building itself, not in the individual stones. The latter by themselves are just rubble, that is, not even stones! We find again this approach in the metaphor of “body.” The reality with which God deals is the body, not the members. A member on its own is not even a member, since a member is by definition a member of something. The close connection between the imageries of temple/building and body is reflected in the fact that each member of the latter is said to have been granted a “gift” unto the edification (which means “building up”) of the body. The word play is at its clearest in the Greek where we find the same word oikodome to speak of the edification of the church (1 Cor 14:3, 5, 12, 26) as well as of the community as an edifice (3:9).

This scriptural reality puts under question “mysticism,” which emphasizes the relationship of the individual with God, which is quite widespread among believers. Such mysticism undermines God’s work, which is to build the Church itself (Eph 2:10).  The building up of the Church is dependent on God’s command that the members of his Church walk according to His will (Eph 2:10), which in turn is summed up in the command to love the neighbor. It is thus through our openness to the outside world and commitment to it, and not into delving into our own self to preserve it, that God’s flock, as well as his will are maintained:

To him [the shepherd of the sheep] the gatekeeper opens; the sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice….  And I have other sheep, that are not of this fold; I must bring them also, and they will heed my voice. So there shall be one flock, one shepherd (Jn 10:3–4, 16).