Sheep and Goats
“And the king will say to them in reply, ‘Amen, I say to you, whatever you did for one of the least brothers of mine, you did for me.’” Mt. 25:41

The first known depiction of the Last Judgment in Christian iconography is a beautiful mosaic in the Cathedral of St. Apollinare Nuovo in Ravenna, Italy. It shows a seated Christ flanked by two large Byzantine-style angels. To Christ's right are three perky-looking sheep and on his left are three sober looking goats. Christ gestures with his right hand toward the sheep, and the angels too show their right hands but not their left.

Believers familiar with Scripture recognize in this mosaic the “parable” of the sheep and goats, only found in today’s gospel from Matthew. This one is preceded by other parables in Matthew comparing God's final judgment to separating grain and weeds, good fish and bad, wise and foolish virgins, profitable and unprofitable servants.

In today’s gospel, Jesus uses apocalyptic language similar to that of the Book of Revelation, to describe the Lord’s coming in glory at the end of time accompanied by angels, like a king on a throne, separating people into two groups, “…as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.” The sheep, who, in life, acted kindly toward others, go to his right and inherit the kingdom of heaven. The goats, however, who did not act kindly toward others, go to the left …damned to hell. The righteous are rewarded with eternal happiness; the not so righteous ….punished with eternal torment.

Young brothers and sisters, in light of this gospel might now be a good time to rethink being mean to a younger sibling? (Incidentally, as an aside, I wouldn’t read any particular significance into the choice of directions “right or left”, specifically as endorsing either a conservative or liberal religious preference.)

Interestingly, righteousness or goodness is assessed not according to what you believed, or how many rosaries you recited, or how many pilgrimages you made, or how many sins you didn’t commit, but only according to how well you loved others. The ultimate measure of an authentic Christian, then, under this divine judgment scenario, is neither creed, nor faith, nor biblical knowledge, but exclusively concern shown for those in need. The compelling proof by which we will be judged, in other words, isn’t love professed, but love actualized.

And note that in this heavenly court no one presents a case or argues an appeal. Apparently, if there are any former lawyers up there, their services aren’t needed. (I’m certain there are lots of former judges, however, but probably not too many car dealers!)

No questions are asked during the proceedings; no evidence requested. Our shepherd-king simply extends to one group the invitation, "Come, you who are blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you," then clearly explains the basis of his verdict. When members of the “sheep” group had the opportunity to help someone, they did. Nothing more is required to win the judge’s favor. It’s sobering to realize that Jesus identifies himself completely with the neediest among us, the least of his brothers and sisters. If you helped them, he says, you were, in effect, helping me; and if you ignored them, you were ignoring me.

The sheep who inherit the kingdom are the ones who responded to those in life who needed God’s intervention most. With the goats, however, it’s the opposite story. The seriousness of their not helping, of their ignoring the needy, is evident in the severity of language used to render their verdict. "Depart from me, you accursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels."

And let’s remember that many of these goats, no doubt, honestly thought they were sheep! They could, no doubt, point with pride, for example, to the moment they accepted Jesus as their Lord and Savior. They were, perhaps, scrupulously orthodox in their belief, church members in good standing, but by their lack of response to the pleas for help that came to them from every side, they stand convicted before the Lord as goats, false sheep, who never were sheep at all.

Nothing reveals more sharply the radical difference between God's method of judging and human judging than this parable of the sheep and goats. Even our treasured "good deeds" are shown up for what they really are in the probing light of divine judgment. Good deeds that are not the unconscious, automatic response of a heart in which Jesus dwells, are not truly "good" deeds. Rather these are planned deeds, contrived deeds, carefully performed for public display, or if in private, done in the hope that they will purchase merit or favor before God.

But God's judgment takes note primarily of the unconscious moments of our lives, the times when we’re off guard, when we’re unaware. It’s then we truly reveal our inner selves. The real test comes, not in our remembered actions, but in our unconscious ones, our instinctive, unplanned responses.

In August 2006, politically conservative cable network program, Fox News, featured a television special titled, "Can Rick Warren Change the World?" Throughout the show, reporters interviewed Warren concerning his blockbuster bestselling book, The Purpose Driven Life, his ministry at Saddleback Church in California, and his leadership in the church growth movement.

Also spotlighted were Warren’s attempts to move beyond U.S. borders and use a global network of churches to revolutionize the way we tackle what he believes are the five biggest problems facing the world today: poverty, disease, illiteracy, spiritual emptiness, and egocentric leadership.

As the interview progressed, a nagging question seemed to challenge the ambitious pastor's hope filled plan: Can it really work? Can one person —or one church, or one network of churches or one nation—really heal all of the hurts of the world?

Warren, however, was aware of the question and didn’t try to duck it. At the end of the interview, he answered it when he identified the four words he wanted written on his tombstone: "At least he tried."

Today is the feast of Christ the King. Jesus describes his radically unconventional kingdom quite simply: "I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me to drink, a stranger and you welcomed me, naked and you clothed me, ill and you cared for me, in prison and you visited me.” It is through our compassion, our reaching out to others and treating them as brothers and sisters, that we reflect the love of God who became incarnate in Jesus Christ. In short, you and I are called to build the kingdom on earth, a kingdom where we will be judged by how we treated the least among us.

Today’s parable reveals that when the final judgment comes, God is not going to conduct a trial. God will already know the verdict in each of our cases. God will know because of the way we treated him when he came to us in disguise.

So on that final judgment day, which will it be …to the right or to the left? Sheep or goats? Eternal life or eternal torment? You too be the judge.

Anthony J. Sciolino
Ezekiel 34:11-12, 15-17; 1 Corinthians 15:20-26, 28; Matthew 25:31-46. Our Lord Jesus Christ the King. November 23, 2008. (Cycle A)