A sermon preached by the Rev. Deana Frances Dudley

at Holy Fellowship Metropolitan Community Church, London, ON

and Christos Metropolitan Community Church, Toronto, ON

11 May 2003 – Easter IV (Year B) – Mothers’ Day

I know some of you, at least, have spent some time on farms. Do y’all know what a sheep smells like? Worse than a horse, but not as bad as a chicken coop? I thought about trying to arrange for some "scratch ‘n sniff" bulletins today to help make my point, but fortunately for you, I wasn’t able to do that. My point is this: Sheep stink. If you’ve ever been around very many sheep – or even one sheep – you may have noticed this.

Now, in both of the scripture readings that Margaret read today, we’re kind of invited to identify with sheep. We’re also invited to think of ourselves as shepherds, and God as the Good Shepherd of our lives. I’m not sure all that’s really a compliment. Because sometimes, sheep really, really stink.

Shepherds really stink too. A couple of years ago, Dr. Lynn Anderson wrote a book on doing ministry, entitled "They Smell Like Sheep." I glanced at it and just assumed that it was about church folks. But my pastor at the time corrected me. Oooooh noooo.... it’s about pastors. It’s about shepherds. They smell like sheep too. And they’re supposed to. A good shepherd gets down and dirty with the sheep.

That very first verse that was read from John’s gospel talked about how the Good Shepherd lays down life itself for the sheep. In the ancient Middle East, and in the Modern Middle East for that matter, a sheepfold was a three-sided enclosure, usually made of stone or thorny branches. And instead of a gate, it had a shepherd. At night, the shepherd would herd the sheep into the fold, and then just lay down across the opening. Arranging his life for the sheep. Living with them. Getting down and dirty with them. And they stink too, because the sheep stink. So you might want to think twice about identifying with sheep and shepherds. Because sheep really, really stink.

But then again, maybe it’s appropriate for us to identify with them, because sometimes, so do we. We stink too. And sometimes life just stinks. And sometimes we stink at life. And life itself is a journey towards death, which is the biggest stench of them all! OK, I think that point’s made. Especially to the people who are familiar with barnyard animals, or just with life. Sheep stink, and sometimes we stink, and sometimes life stinks, and sometimes we stink at life – on to the next point.

Actually, maybe I’d better not leave off there.... because having made the point that sometimes we stink and sometimes life stinks and sometimes we stink at life, it kind of begs the question... so what? We all know that, Pastor. Tell us something useful! Can you tell I was talking to myself a lot the other day, when I was writing this sermon?

OK.... so what would be useful to know in response to that? Given that everything stinks? I dunno.... I dunno.... And when I don’t have answers to something, I’ve found that a good tactic is to just change the subject.

Let’s talk about Mother’s Day. Mother’s Day’s kind of a North American thing. And traditionally, it’s a day to give mom breakfast in bed or take her out to brunch, and give her a day off. It’s a day to honour the sacrifices that many mothers make for their children. We can honour the mothers we had in our lives, who gave us love and guidance as we grew.

Now, it’s can be really touchy thing for ministers to preach on, because it’s a touchy time for some folks. That's especially true in our L/G/B/T community sometimes, where family relationships have sometimes been strained and fractured when we came out.  And while we all had mothers, it is a truth that not all experiences of mothers - on either side of the relationship - are uniformly wonderful. I’ll say right here, my mom was and is a wonderful mom. Anne’s mum is a wonderful mum. We’re very blessed that way. But I know that not everyone is. This day isn’t a day to berate mothers for all of the things that they cannot be, and tradition and society has laid a lot of heavy tasks on mothers, as well as on fathers.

And I also know that on this day, a lot of people are really missing their mothers. Maybe you’re mom is thousands of miles away. Maybe you’re separated by death. Maybe you’re missing the mother who gave birth to you and had to give you up for adoption. Maybe you’re missing the mother you never had, because the one you had really wasn’t the mother you needed. When we go looking for a mother to honour on Mother’s day, sometimes we need to honour the OTHER people who filled those roles in our lives, women or even perhaps men, those who were mother figures to us.

See why it can be a touchy subject? Partly because, sometimes, life stinks. See; I’ll bet you thought I was going to let you forget that subject.

And, you know, sometimes, life stinks for mothers, too. I’m not a mother. I skipped ahead to grandmotherhood. I totally missed the blessing of being a mother. But while I do know that being a parent is a great, great blessing, I also know that sometimes, it’s a mixed blessing. I suspect it has been for my own poor, long-suffering mother.

I know over the years I’ve been a bit of a trial to her. And yet, she’s always been loving, and giving. She’s been a good guide for my life. She’s caring and generous and she has a really, really strong sense of justice. She’s also sacrificed a lot for me over the years, to see that I had the things she thought I needed, and helping me with my education and then with my ministry. And I know it’s hard to believe, but I haven’t ALWAYS been a model child.

But one thing has been a constant in my life. My mother’s love. One of the things I remember most vividly from my childhood, is my mother telling me – usually right after I had done something I wasn’t supposed to do and right before I got punished for it – she would say, "Sometimes, Deana, the things you do may have consequences. And I can’t always protect you from them. You may have to pay the price for your actions. But one of the consequences will never, ever be that I will stop loving you." I know my mommy always loves me.

Now where was I? Oh yeah. Sheep. Shepherds. This passage from John’s gospel, and the 23rd Psalm are, in many ways perfect passages for Mother's Day. Mothers often have a special shepherding kind of role in our lives. You may have heard it said that "it takes a village to raise a child." Well, it takes every member of the Christian community working together to make a healthy Christian community. It takes people prepared to make sacrifices for one another, like a mother, like a shepherd. It takes people who will love one another and care for one another, like a mother, like a shepherd, even when we stink.

Now, I can stand up here and tell you that God’s love is much like a mother’s love. The Bible is full of examples of God’s "mother love." God is constantly feeding and nurturing God’s children. God is the one who gave us life, whose spirit breathed us into existence, just as our mothers birthed us into this world. And God is constantly giving for our benefit. The image of God as Shepherd is a good example of this. God cares for us as a good shepherd. God provides for our every need. God takes us to green pastures and leads us beside still waters. Like a mother God prepares a table before us in the presence of our enemies. When others would flee, God remains steadfast. Just like a mother who stands by her child even though others betray, and even crucify.

God’s love is greater than any love a human can produce. "Mother love" is only an analogy that helps us understand God's love. Even "Good Shepherd" is but an analogy to help us understand both God’s love and God’s calling in our lives. But they’re good analogies. They help us understand how loving and giving God's love is. And the Bible is full of this. Check it out. Psalm 131 is a short psalm that says that being calmed and quieted by God is like being a child at a mother’s breast. The Song of Moses in the Book of Deuteronomy (Chapter 32) depicts God as like a mother eagle, who stirs up her young ones to leave the nest and learn to fly. You’ve probably even sung that. There’s a song we sing in MCC called "Our God Is Like An Eagle," and it’s based on that passage. It goes "Just like a mother eagle, who helps her young to fly, I am a mother to you, your needs will I supply; And you are as my children, the ones who hear my voice, I am a mother to you, the people of my choice."

And have you ever heard or sung the song "El Shaddai?" I think Amy Grant did that a few years back. Well, "El Shaddai" usually gets translated as "God almighty," (eg. Ex. 6:3) or the "all sufficient God." Well, you know what it means literally? The God of many breasts. The God who can nurture ALL of us.

How on earth did I get from stinky sheep to breasts? Oh yeah..... A mother’s self-giving love, and the self-giving love of the shepherd who lays down life itself for the sheep, are the most unconditional examples of human love that I can think of. So to say that God loves us more than that at least gives us a frame of reference. More than that. OK?

Now, to tie all this up, if I can. If I recall correctly, just before I changed the subject for the first time in this sermon, I was trying to figure out what good it is to us to know that sheep stink, and sometimes we stink, and sometimes life stinks, and sometimes we stink at life.

Well maybe here’s something useful. Maybe that’s why Jesus came. Because sometimes we stink at life and we totally mess up this wonderful gift from God. Jesus came to bring us hope and mercy abundant life, a life that doesn’t stink. A life that’s free even of the stench of death, because as we remember in this Easter season, Jesus Christ laid down life itself, like a good shepherd laying down across the sheepfold, living with the sheep, getting down and dirty and stinky with them, putting his life on the line, and in Christ God has overcome even death.

And maybe, also, that’s why God gave us the church. Church is a place where we can be in relationship with others who understand and have experienced that sometimes life stinks and sometimes we stink at life. But even more than that, we understand that there’s a place and a person to turn to when life stinks and when we stink at life. Because in church we find others who’ll get down and dirty with us because they, too, understand that you don’t have to be perfect to be a part of the rich fellowship known as the church. Thank you Jesus! What a fellowship! All we have to do is acknowledge that we need God’s help and forgiveness in Christ Jesus. We don’t have to be perfect. Thank God! God doesn’t want perfect Christians; God wants disciples who can be perfected by God’s love.

You see, God KNOWS what we smell like. Did you ever hear the expression "stinking to high heaven"? God knows that sometimes we not only resemble sheep but we smell like sheep, too. And God KNOWS that sometimes life stinks and sometimes we stink at life. And like a good shepherd, like our mothers, God loves us, even when we stink.

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