The Bad Shepherd

(Sellotape this into a newpaper and read it out as an introduction to a sermon on the Good Shepherd)

HIRED LAD DOES A RUNNER

'Cowardy Custard' lets farmers down again

A savage wolf attacked hundreds of sheep yesterday, on the road to Bethlehem.

Farmers are furious that hundreds of their sheep have had to be destroyed.

In charge was a local lad, a hired hand, whose name we are not allowed to print for legal reasons.

He did nothing to protect the farmers' sheep and their new born lambs. He was not 'watching over his sheep by night'.

It seems he acted in a very cowardly manner.  Witnesses say that when he saw the wolf coming, he screamed, picked up his belongings (his harp and his packed lunch) and ran away, with not a thought for anyone or anything.

He has since gone in hiding after threats to his life. Farmers agree that he is not likely to show his face in these parts for quite some time.

It's this kind of picture Jesus presented to his listeners in our gospel reading today.

More to come soon…