Thoughts for the Day

The Shepherds and the Angels

In that region there were shepherds living in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. Then an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, ‘Do not be afraid; for see—I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people: to you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, who is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign for you: you will find a child wrapped in bands of cloth and lying in a manger.’ And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God and saying,

‘Glory to God in the highest heaven,
and on earth peace among those whom he favours!’

When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, ‘Let us go now to Bethlehem and see this thing that has taken place, which the Lord has made known to us.’ So they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the child lying in the manger. When they saw this, they made known what had been told them about this child; and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds told them. But Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart. The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.

(New Revised Standard Version)

Thoughts

Today we move on from the birth of Jesus to see who comes to visit the Holy Family. Our lectionary remembers the first martyr, Stephen, however I have chosen to follow the account of the birth of Jesus, though we shan't get to the arrival of the wise men until Epiphany on the 6th January!

Two new groups of people enter the scene, angels and shepherds. Throughout the previous week angels have been at the centre of the story of the nativity. Just think who have appeared so far:

• To Zechariah (Luke 1.5-20)
• To Mary (Luke 1.26-38)
• To Joseph (Matthew 1.18-25), who will go on to have two more visits from an angel before fleeing with his family to Egypt.

However, the account of the angels is different in today's reading, for it will bring in outsiders - the word is spreading - and we also have more than one angel appearing. Despite our feelings about cuddly sheep and kind shepherds from artwork and the parables of Jesus, the reality is very different. 2,000 years ago shepherds would gather the sheep from the whole village and live for much of the year in the mountains. They were warriors protecting every sheep in their care from wolves and lions, They were also unable to observe the ritual of the law or attend worship, which meant they were treated by the religious leaders as beyond the pale.

But God has spoken! He has sent His messengers to the outcast and to the lowest of the low, for He sees the hearts of His people, and it is they who will be the first to carry the news of His Saviour to the world.

Heavenly Father,
we thank you that Your messengers, the angels,
were sent to ordinary shepherds,
who accepted the message of the good news
that Your Son had been born in Bethlehem
and went to find out for themselves
in order to worship him.
We thank you also that they had the courage
to spread the news of Jesus' birth,
and ask you to help us to be strong enough
to pass on the same good news today.
Amen.