The Big Picture
- The episode of Little House on the Prairie "The Lord is My Shepherd" focuses on tragic frontier living and family bonds.
- The episode delves into human trials, familial relationships, and spiritual faith.
- Melissa Gilbert, the actress who played Laura Ingalls, considers it her favorite, highlighting her connection with Michael Landon.
When looking back on classic television shows like Little House on the Prairie, there are plenty of stand-out episodes that make the heart swell. Whether Michael Landon's Charles Ingalls is wrestling with his girls or Melissa Gilbert's young Laura Ingalls has gotten herself into trouble, there's always something that we can look back on fondly in this Western TV series. Based on the self-autobiographical books by the real Laura Ingalls Wilder, Little House often tackled intense themes of grief, perseverance, and spiritual growth, but no episode best chronicles this than the Season 1 two-part episode, "The Lord is My Shepherd."
Little House on the Prairie
TV-PGDramaFamilyRomanceThe life and adventures of the Ingalls family in the nineteenth century American Midwest.
- Release Date
- March 30, 1974
- Creator
- Blanche Hanalis
- Cast
- Melissa Gilbert , Michael Landon , Karen Grassle , Rachel Lindsay Greenbush , Sidney Greenbush , Melissa Sue Anderson
- Seasons
- 9
"The Lord Is My Shepherd" Is a Tragic Look at Frontier Living
The opening of "The Lord Is My Shepherd" has Caroline (Karen Grassle) reveal to her husband that she's pregnant, with Charles elated at the results. From the get-go, they believe that, after their three girls, they're bound to have a son next. Sure enough, the episode jumps about half a year or so, and young Charles Frederick "Freddie" Ingalls, Jr. is born. Everyone is head-over-heels about the young Ingalls boy, especially Charles,but there's one exception: Laura. Unlike her sisters Mary (Melissa Sue Anderson) and Carrie (Lindsay and Sidney Greenbush), Laura struggles to accept her younger brother, who she believes is taking all of her Pa's attention off her. So when little Charles, Jr. suddenly gets sick, well, Laura refuses to say a special prayer for the boy despite her Ma's wishes.
Soon after, Charles and Caroline leave town to see a doctor, where they learn that there's nothing they can do for their baby boy. Charles, Jr. dies peacefully, and when Pa and Ma Ingalls return home to tell their girls, Laura is distraught. After consulting with Reverend Alden (Dabbs Greer), Laura runs off into the mountains to make a deal with God. Her terms are simple; she can go to in heaven, and her brother can come back and be with her Pa. But while up there, Laura meets an old man named Jonathan (Ernest Borgnine, another impressive Little House guest star), who teaches her some valuable lessons about making things right with God, with others, and with herself.
Distraught by Laura's disappearance, Charles and Mr. Isaiah Edwards (Victor French) search for days for Laura. Eventually, Charles finds a wooden cross with his daughter's name on it, sailing down the river. It turns out this is the same cross that Jonathan had whittled for Laura a day or so before, and in an act of remarkable providence, Jonathan convinces Laura to help him build an enormous bonfire that leads Charles straight to his missing daughter. Though Jonathan mysteriously vanishes, Laura is reunited with her father. Despite her actions, Charles couldn't be happier to see his daughter, who finally understands just how much he truly loves her.
Laura and Charles' Relationship Is the Bedrock of 'Little House'
Written and directed by Michael Landon, who helmed most Little House episodes, this episode puts the Ingalls family through it. While many episodes of the show dealt with personal tragedies, such as the Christmas-themed "Blizzard,""The Lord is My Shepherd" forces Charles and Caroline through their toughest battle yet. The series was well-known, like Landon's previous work on Bonanza, for dealing with the tough and distinctly human trials folks faced in the American West. Losing a child, especially one's only son, is a devastating tragedy, and this two-parter (often presented as a single hour-and-a-half episode) does well to embellish the real-life tragedy the Ingalls faced in losing Charles, Jr.
But, like so much of Little House on the Prairie, the success of this episode hinges on the impeccable bond between Charles and his second daughter, Laura. Though Laura is jealous of her brother for the first half, and generally absent from the family for the second, it's this relationship that forces the narrative forward. Unwilling and unable to let another one of his children die, Charles goes after his daughter, spending three days searching for her in the forested mountains that exist somewhere beyond Walnut Grove. His desperation as a father who has already lost a child is felt here, and Landon plays the role immaculately. Additionally, it's Laura's tenacity that makes us, and therefore Charles, forgive her so quickly when he does find her. Her desire to make things right due to her ill-perceived "wrong" feels very human.
It's no secret that Laura can often come across as selfish. Many episodes of Little House focus on her jealousy towards anyone gaining the affection she so craves from others (namely her father or her later husband Almonzo, played by Dean Butler). When her adoptive brother Albert (Matthew Labyorteaux) is introduced later in the series and quickly gains Charles' favor, she goes through this same experience again. Like any child, Laura is still learning patience, self-control, and generosity, something that's especially true back in Season 1. Nevertheless, there's no doubt that this experience on the mountain helped push Laura to get a better hold on her emotions, trust in her parents' love, and put others' needs before her own.
Jonathan's True Identity Is a Mystery, but He Is a Clear Symbol of Faith
Another reason this episode works so well is that it plays confidently with issues of faith. Throughout Laura Ingalls Wilder's books, she expresses her Christian faith in a way that acts as a part of her everyday life. The real Charles Ingalls, much like the televised version, preached frequently at their local church, and Reverend Alden was an actual friend of the Ingalls family who helped guide Laura in her youth. But one thing the Little House books (though not her biography) omit is the short life of young Freddie Ingalls, who died at only nine months old. So then, it's no wonder the show uses this tragedy as a framing device for Laura's crisis of faith.
Laura prays desperately for God to take her and bring back her baby brother. Instead, a messenger from heaven arrives to guide her through the troubled time. It's been debated for years whether Jonathan is meant to be an angel or even an incarnation of God. He offers Laura a cross with her name engraved, which later leads her father and Mr. Edwards to her. It's also his idea to set the bonfire that caught Charles' eye. In many ways, Jonathan represents the physical embodiment of God's will in Laura's life and ultimately reveals that she is meant to go home.
While we don't know for sure if Jonathan is meant to be a messenger from heaven or even God, there's one context clue from Michael Landon's greater filmography that might hold the answer. Following his decade-long stint with Little House on the Prairie, which somehow escaped the infamous rural purge that claimed the life of Landon's previous series, the television star partnered up with Victor French once more for a new series: Highway to Heaven. This show followed Landon and French as they played an angel and a cop, respectively. If you couldn't guess already, Landon's angel character on the show was named Jonathan, and the character traveled around the country in search of those in need. But Landon wasn't the only one who carried this episode with him beyond its initial airing...
"The Lord Is My Shepherd" Is Melissa Gilbert's Favorite 'Little House on the Prairie' Episode
Of all the episodes in Little House's impressive catalog, "The Lord is My Shepherd" is series star Melissa Gilbert's favorite episode. To this day, out of all the 200-plus episodes, it's the one that stuck with the actress the most, even 50 years after it originally aired in 1974. "I think because it is the clearest portrayal of my personal relationship with Michael [Landon]," Gilbert told USA Today in January 2024. It's easy to understand why an episode such as this would stick with the actress, who was only nine years old when she first played Laura Ingalls in the early 1970s, especially since she and Landon were close off-camera as well.
"Michael Landon was like a father figure to many of us, obviously, and a very, very important influence in my life," Gilbert told People in March 2024. "My own father passed away when I was 11, and I had been working with Michael for two years at that point, and he really sort of stepped in and kind of watched over me in a much more paternal way." Gilbert's family and Landon's were often together when the actress was growing up, and Landon sometimes found himself embodying the part of Charles Ingalls off-camera.
While Little House on the Prairie owes its success to the real-life Laura Ingalls Wilder, who penned the books based on her own life experience growing up in the Midwest, Melissa Gilbert considered Michael Landon the real MVP of the series. Michael Landon directed an impressive 89 episodes of the original series, plus the finale special Little House: The Last Farewell. He also wrote 48 of the show's 204 episodes. Few episodes best encapsulate Landon's Little House legacy better than "The Lord is My Shepherd," a story that continues to inspire even to this day.
Little House on the Prairie can be streamed on Amazon Freevee.
