Christ as the Good Shepherd, by Clayton & Bell of London, 1917

The image of Christ as the Good Shepherd, was one of the most popular subjects for stained glass windows in the 19th and 20th centuries. The parable it comes from is about everlasting life, but the overall theme of a shepherd caring for his flock, even unto death, fits well with the picture of doctors (who care for their patients) depicted on either side of Christ in this three-light window. Christ is the center panel.

The parable of the Good Shepherd is in the gospel of John 10:1-16: ‘In very truth I tell you, the man who does not enter the sheepfold by the door, but climbs in some other way, is nothing but a thief and a robber. He who enters by the door is the shepherd in charge of the sheep. The door-keeper admits him, and the sheep hear his voice; he calls his own sheep by name, and leads them out. When he has brought them all out, he goes ahead of them and the sheep follow, because they know his voice. They will not follow a stranger; they will run away from him, because they do not recognize the voice of strangers.’ This was a parable that Jesus told them, but they did not understand what he meant by it. So Jesus spoke again: ‘In very truth I tell you, I am the door of the sheepfold. The sheep paid no heed to any who came before me, for they were all thieves and robbers. I am the door; anyone who comes into the fold through me will be safe. He will go in and out and find pasture. ‘A thief comes only to steal, kill, and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and may have it in all its fullness. I am the good shepherd; the good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. The hired man, when he sees the wolf coming, abandons the sheep and runs away, because he is not the shepherd and the sheep are not his. Then the wolf harries the flock and scatters the sheep. The man runs away because he is a hired man and cares nothing for the sheep. ‘I am the good shepherd; I know my own and my own know me, as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep. But there are other sheep of mine, not belonging to this fold; I must lead them as well, and they too will listen to my voice. There will then be one flock, one shepherd.”

The Rector of St. John's, The Rev. Dr. Leander S. Harding, worked as a shepherd in Maine, and he feels personally close to this parable and its imagery. Click here to read his words on the Good Shepherd

One of the characteristics of this window that is similar to other windows by the firm of Clayton and Bell of London is the style of the writing of the inscription. To the right of the words in the inscription "Good Shepherd," almost hidden by the metal framing around the window, is a small golden bell which is inscribed "London 1917."