A mother with a small child was walking in front of the store. It held her hand. But suddenly she let go and when she saw a lot of strangers around her, she cried profusely. A moment was all it took, the feeling that his mother was not holding his hand, and a loud cry followed. Then the mother turned and said: “I’m here, follow me, give me your hand, and don’t cry!” As if by magic, the child stopped crying, ran to the mother, and grabbed her hand even more tightly. We heard a similar call several times in this Sunday’s Gospel. Jesus addressed it to the future apostles – Simon, Andrew, James, and John. The evangelist adds that they left their father Zebedee on the ship with the day laborers and went after him. As Jesus walked along the shore of the Sea of Galilee, he saw large crowds and knew well what they were about. They wanted to know the truth about the kingdom of heaven. At first, Jesus solved their desire by getting into a boat and teaching, but after a while, he saw how the crowds were growing and would need helpers.
In simple words, he invites those he has chosen to follow him and does not explain to them who he is or whence he has the right to speak like this. There is no explanation for Jesus. At first, the apostles took his invitation as such and literally followed him. They did not understand well what he was asking of them, but they knew exactly that they had to follow him. So they became witnesses of his words, deeds, miracles… And when they saw what he was doing, it strengthened their faith and helped them to change their way of thinking and feeling.
Under the influence of faith, they began to have a different view of life and the world. They were already looking at everything with the eyes, reason, and feelings of Jesus. This was such a strong motive for them that they renounced nets and ships, parents and friends, wives and children for it. They even did not hesitate to sacrifice their own lives for Jesus: Peter was crucified upside down, Paul was beheaded, Philip was also crucified, James was stoned, and John was thrown into boiling oil. Now let’s think about our life.
My life also resembles the life of the apostles. There was also a moment in him when Jesus said to me: “Follow me.” – How did I react then? How would I react at this very moment? Jesus is waiting for me to follow him, even if I don’t understand everything. If I can do this, my faith will gradually grow, and become stronger, and I will be able to leave the things I love too much for Jesus. And in this way, step by step, I will become a fisherman who will catch new and new people in the nets of the heavenly kingdom.
An old legend tells of three women who went to a well to get water. An old man sat by the well and listened to their conversation. They talked about their sons. The first says: “My son is so dexterous that he surpasses all others in this.” The second: “My son sings beautifully, like a nightingale.” Only the third was silent. That’s why they asked her: “What is your son like, what can he do?” She replied, “He’s quite ordinary.” The women looked at her with a kind of irony and were about to make their way back. At that moment, three boys ran towards them. The first did acrobatic stunts, the second sang beautifully and the third ran straight to his mother, took her bucket full of water, and carried it home. The woman turned to the old man and asked: “What do you say about our sons?” The old man asked incomprehensibly: “For sons? But I see only one…”
If we want to be fishers of men and walk for Christ, let us leave strong words and boasting and do deeds of love to be a magnet for others. Let’s focus this week on catching as many as possible in our web of Christian love. Let’s use this Sunday to reflect on what Jesus’ offer is and my response.
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