| ||
 |
||
|
|
|
|
The Fifth Sunday after The Epiphany Luke 5:1-11 |
||
In 1964, when Pope John Paul VI stood on the shore of the Sea of Galilee, he had no chance to admire its beauty. Enthusiastic Palestinian Christians, who had waited a lifetime for this moment, pressed upon him and hailed him as "El Baba"—the Papa. Wading in the water, the freelance photographers and those representing the press snapped their candid shots, as thousands of admirers crushed in on the pontiff from the shore. Jesus was spared the photographers, but not the pressure of the crowd. It was the time of his greatest popularity; his mighty works and words spoken with authority had attracted multitudes to him. The program of his ministry which was proclaimed in the synagogue in Nazareth is being brought to fruition through his ministry in Galilee. The proclamation of the "acceptable year of the Lord" is unfolding, and the people are responding en masse. To escape from the crowd—an option John Paul didn't have—Jesus requisitions the boat that belongs to Simon Peter, a follower who, at this point, is still a commercial fisherman. When he judges that they have taken in about all they can hear in one session, the boat offers Jesus an easy way to dismiss the crowd. He tells Peter to raise the anchor and to head for deeper water. Peter could understand the purpose. As the boat turned and headed further away from shore, the people realizing that the teaching was over would disperse. But then comes another word that Peter does not understand: "Let down your nets." Jesus was a good friend, and as a religious teacher and a man of God, he had Peter's utmost respect. But Jesus was also a carpenter from land-locked Nazareth. Peter, on the other hand, had spent his entire life on the lake. He was a commercial fisherman, and he was well aware of the best ways to pursue his trade. He knew, for instance, that fish feed best at dawn or in the evening or through the night, but certainly not at mid-day. Peter would not presume to tell a rabbi how to teach, nor did he expect this rabbi to tell him how to fish. Whatever reverence Peter held for Jesus, he couldn't stifle a word of protest: "We have worked all night," he says, "and for nothing!" Nevertheless, out of reverence, and based on the authority of Jesus' word, Simon reluctantly tries again. Even when in doubt, he remains obedient. Simon's obedience to what Jesus has instructed him to do results in a miracle. Never before have these fishermen taken in such a haul. James and John bring their boat in to help, and the catch is more than both boats can hold. A night of profitless labor has been followed by a bounty of fish unprecedented in their experience, and Jesus is somehow connected. One can usually always find a way to reduce miracles to mere happenstance, or to explain away God's work in the world as some reasonable act of nature or human ingenuity. But to these fishermen, there is no way to think of what has happened as anything else. They have experienced power far beyond human understanding and human endeavor. Naturally, the experience makes Simon and his friends feel uncomfortable. They know of nothing in their lives that qualifies them for such a close association with God's activity. Peter speaks for the others who are overcome with awe and who would distance themselves from ultimate holiness: "Go away from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man." Nevertheless, the love of God doesn't give up. Jesus reassures the disciples and says to them there is something more important than catching fish: "From now on, you will be catching people." The word "now" seems to be a favorite expression of the Third Evangelist, and it signifies that the reality of God's redeeming presence is breaking into history with unprecedented power through Jesus. These fisherfolk are "now" to share in the agency of Jesus in bringing the good news of the kingdom of God. For the disciples, it will require a new form of "fishing" which will not be for commercial profit, but which will enable the people they "catch" to reach a potential in their relationship to God that they otherwise couldn't attain. Of course, the disciples aren't truly qualified or prepared for this evangelistic task. Neither are we. But, you see, that really doesn't matter. God has been making use of unqualified servants ever since the human race was brought into existence—and maybe even before that! The message here for the Christian community is that when we try to respond to God's call in our lives—when we offer ourselves for the Lord's use—we need to remember that the task is ultimately God's and not ours, and it is performed by God's engraced power, not our own. In a way, then, today's gospel lesson is a kind parable about God's work in the world and our part in it. It's a parable that tells us that evangelism depends on God rather than on us, and that God, who is the great Evangelist, is in the situation long before we ever arrive. But it also tells us that God willingly shares the task of evangelization. And our part in that task is the free and joyous telling of the good news of God's action on our behalf, through the saving work of Jesus Christ. As someone has aptly said, "Evangelism is simply sharing a joy received." And in that sense, Evangelism is a lot like fishing. For few are the fishers who can refrain from sharing with anyone, who will listen, the pleasures they have found in their experiences. They can't keep the joy to themselves. It must be shared with others. We should feel the same way about our Christian faith. In this morning's story, given the realization that it is God who ultimately evangelizes and "catches the people," just as surely as Jesus has drawn the fish to their nets, the disciples can in peace and confidence forsake everything they have to follow Jesus and join his "people-catching" ministry. As with those fisherfolk, the revelations that come to us concerning our part in God's work will take place within the framework of our daily lives. It is precisely as we fulfill our obligations in this world—as we show ourselves faithful in the first thing we are asked to do (despite personal doubt), that the call to a wider scope and ministry comes to us. This is the truth Jesus illustrates with the parable of the Gold Coins. When the king returns to find the slave he had entrusted with a small amount of money has acted faithfully, he says to him, "Well done, good servant. Because you have been trustworthy in a small thing, you will be given much." We may feel unworthy. We may feel inadequate and ask to be relieved of the duty. Yet, as with these fishermen, what we feel able to achieve is less important in the Lord's sight than the willingness to be constantly used by God to draw others to the Gospel. If we have faith enough and trust enough to cast our nets, God will provide a "catch" beyond anything we ever imagined. May our faith and love in God be our nets. And may Grace Cathedral be our boat that, with God’s help, is filled to overflowing, not just with people, but with fishermen willing to love and serve the Lord. In the Name of the father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
|
|
|