Office Of Readings | Week 24, Tuesday, Ordinary Time | From The Sermon Of Saint Augustine On The Shepherds | Paul’s Example

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Office Of Readings | Week 24, Tuesday, Ordinary Time | From The Sermon Of Saint Augustine On The Shepherds | Paul’s Example

‘Paul’s example.’

In his sermon, Saint Augustine turns again to the responsibilities of Christian pastors, drawing his example from the Apostle Paul. The passage is shaped by Paul’s words in his letter to the Philippians (Philippians 4:10–20), written from prison, in which he acknowledges the gifts sent by the community. Augustine highlights Paul’s dual emphasis: while grateful for material help, Paul’s deeper joy lies in the spiritual fruit shown by the generosity of the Philippians.

Paul demonstrates the model of a shepherd who does not feed himself but tends the flock. Although he accepts assistance, he makes clear that his motivation is not personal gain but the strengthening of the Church. His contentment in both plenty and want underlines his reliance on Christ rather than on possessions. Augustine reads this as an example of pastoral detachment: the shepherd seeks not his own satisfaction but the growth of those entrusted to him.

The imagery of lamps and oil provides Augustine with a vivid metaphor for pastoral ministry. A lamp placed on a stand gives light, just as preachers must make the word of God visible. Yet a lamp requires oil to burn, symbolising the charity of the faithful, whose support sustains the preacher’s work. If the preacher receives support but does not shine—neglecting the sheep rather than enlightening them—then the lamp is unfit for service. Augustine insists that pastoral ministry must be motivated by love of the Gospel, not by financial reward. The preacher’s true recompense comes not from the people but from the Lord, who alone grants salvation.

The sharpest criticism is directed against shepherds who take from the flock—the ‘milk’ and the ‘wool’—but neglect their care. Such leaders serve themselves, seeking their own cause rather than Christ’s. For Augustine, Paul provides a contrast: his willingness to work with his own hands, his contentment in hardship, and his focus on the fruit of his ministry all show what it means to shepherd in Christ’s name.

Augustine connects the material realities of ministry with its spiritual demands. Support from the faithful is legitimate and necessary, but it must be directed toward the service of the Gospel. What condemns a shepherd is not the receiving of sustenance but the neglect of the flock. The measure of pastoral ministry is therefore not what is taken from the people but what is given to them—the light of truth, the care of souls, and the witness of a life shaped by Christ.

From The Sermon Of Saint Augustine On The Shepherds | Paul’s Example

Once when Paul was in great need, in chains for his confession of the truth, his fellow Christians sent him what was necessary for his wants and needs. He thanked them with these words: You have done well to share in my needs. If is true that I have leaned to be self-sufficient in whatever circumstances I find myself. I know what it is to have plenty and I have learned how to endure privation. I can do all things in him who strengthens me. Still you have done well to send things for my use.

Just as this indicates in what sense they had done well, it also shows what Paul himself sought, namely, to avoid being numbered among those who feed themselves and not the sheep. For he does not so much rejoice at his own deliverance from need as he does at their generosity. What then was he seeking? I do not set my heart upon gifts, he says; all I seek for is the fruit of my labor. Not that I may be filled, he says, but that you may not remain empty.

As for those who cannot support themselves with their own hands as Paul did, let them take from the milk of the sheep, let them receive what is necessary for their needs, but let them not neglect the weakness of the sheep. Let them not seek any benefit for themselves, lest they appear to be preaching the Gospel for the sake of their own need and privation; rather, let them provide the light of the true word for the sake of men’s enlightenment. For they are like lamps, as it has been said: Let your belts be fastened and your lamps burning, and: No one lights a lamp and puts it under a bushel basket; rather, he puts it on a lamp stand, that it may give light to all who are in the house; so let your light shine before men in order that they may see your good works and glorify your Father who is in heaven.

Now if a lamp has been lighted for you in your house, would you not add oil to keep it from going out? Of course, if the lamp received the oil and failed to shine, it was obviously not fit to be put on the lamp stand and should have been discarded at once. But for the light to be kept alive it must receive fuel which is to be provided out of charity. Only let not the Gospel be for sale, with preachers demanding a price for it and making their living from it. If they sell it like that, they are selling for a pittance something that is of great value. Let them receive support in their need from the people, but payment for their stewardship from the Lord. No, it is not right for the people to give payment to those who serve them out of love of the Gospel. Payment is to be expected only from the one who also grants salvation.

Why then are they rebuked? Why are they accused? Because, when they took the milk and covered themselves with the wool, they neglected the sheep. They sought only to serve their own cause and not Christ’s.

Christian Prayer With Jesus

Lord Jesus Christ,
you called Paul to bear witness to the Gospel in word and in chains.
Strengthen all who preach your word,
that they may seek not their own advantage
but the fruit of your work in others.
Give your people generous hearts,
to support those who labour for the Gospel,
and grant that your ministers may shine like lamps,
giving light for the glory of your Father in heaven.
Amen.

Glossary Of Christian Terms

Paul – The Apostle to the Gentiles, who spread the Gospel through preaching, letters, and missionary journeys.

Chains – A reference to Paul’s imprisonment for the sake of the Gospel (cf. Philippians, Acts).

Milk of the sheep – Symbol of material support given by the faithful to those who serve them spiritually.

Lamp / Lamp stand – Biblical image (cf. Matthew 5:14–16) for faithful preaching that gives light to others.

Oil – Symbol of charity, which sustains the life and ministry of the preacher, just as oil keeps a lamp burning.

Stewardship – Responsibility given by God to pastors to care for the Gospel and the flock; they are accountable to him.

Payment from the Lord – Eternal reward, contrasted with earthly payment or profit.

Wool of the sheep – Benefits taken from the flock, representing comfort or advantage, which may be misused if the shepherd neglects the sheep.