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Gospel: Luke 5: 1-11
While the crowd was pressing in on Jesus and listening
to the word of God,
he was standing by the Lake of Gennesaret.
He saw two boats there alongside the lake;
the fishermen had disembarked and were washing their nets.
Getting into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon,
he asked him to put out a short distance from the shore.
Then he sat down and taught the crowds from the boat.
After he had finished speaking, he said to Simon,
“Put out into deep water and lower your nets for a catch.”
Simon said in reply,
“Master, we have worked hard all night and have caught nothing,
but at your command I will lower the nets.”
When they had done this, they caught a great number of fish
and their nets were tearing.
They signaled to their partners in the other boat
to come to help them.
They came and filled both boats
so that the boats were in danger of sinking.
When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at the knees of Jesus and said,
“Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man.”
For astonishment at the catch of fish they had made seized him
and all those with him,
and likewise James and John, the sons of Zebedee,
who were partners of Simon.
Jesus said to Simon, “Do not be afraid;
from now on you will be catching men.”
When they brought their boats to the shore,
they left everything and followed him.
The Gospel of the Lord.
***
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It’s dawn on the shores of Galilee.
Peter is mending his empty, stinking, fishing nets. After having worked all night, he comes up empty-handed. His only reward are sore muscles and a bitter dose of disappointment.
Failure is never fun.
Suddenly, Jesus shows up and steps into Peter’s boat. Looking at an exhausted, unsuspecting Peter, he tells him to row his boat back out to sea – that is, to do the same thing he’s done all night one more time.
To Peter, it was a ridiculous – and perhaps slightly offensive – request. He not Jesus is the professional fisherman.
Besides, the best place to fish is not out in the deep, but along the shoreline, where the fish gather to nibble on underwater plants. After a brief protest, Peter gives in.
“Master, at your command, I will lower the nets.”
Suddenly, his nets are tearing at the seams, providing a good lesson for Peter and us: Jesus can turn failure into abundance.
***
While none of us may be professional fishermen, we all know what it’s like to fail, to stand idly, mending our broken hearts after having given our best at something, only to come up empty-handed.
Maybe we’ve poured ourselves into a marriage, into raising children, into ministry, a job, or a dream that’s dried up. Each in our own way, we can stand with Peter disappointed, out of luck, frustrated, mending our nets.
Sometimes, that’s when Christ issues the command: “Put out into deep water and lower your nets for a catch.” That is, do the same old, same old one more time.
With Jesus now at the center, our nets begin tearing at the seams.
Have you ever had that experience of Jesus stepping into your boat – into your heartache, into your failure – only to make things new?
If not, perhaps there’s a word in this for you today. God alone turns darkness into light; failure into abundance; nothing into something; death into life.
But first we must welcome him into our boat.
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Secondly, consider how Jesus fills Peter’s nets with fish.
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First, the Lord lets Peter exhaust himself.
Then, after a fruitless night of fishing on his own, Jesus makes a gentle, seemingly insignificant request – may I borrow your boat?
So, Peter allows Jesus to get in and push off, using his boat as a temporary, make-shift pulpit.
After preaching, the Lord pushes a little further into Peter’s life – first from his boat now into his profession. “Put out into the deep water and lower your nets for a catch,” Jesus says.
Once Peter’s nets begin tearing at the seams, he falls to his knees, and says, “Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man.”
***
Notice Peter changes how he addresses Jesus from Master to Lord.
“Master” is a title of respect, a bit like “sir.”
“Lord,” on the other hand, is a title of adoration, devotion, or divinity.
Much like Isaiah in our first reading, Peter now recognizes that he’s in the presence of the Divine and his first reaction is to push God away. “Depart from me, Lord.”
Peter cannot stand being in the presence of God yet, because his focus is still on himself.
As sinful as Peter may be, Jesus sees more of him – an experienced fisherman who understands the value of hard work; someone who isn’t afraid to work all night and come up empty, only to head back out to sea and cast his nets again.
Having revealed his power to Peter, Jesus drops the bomb: “Behold, I will make you a fisher of men.”
Following the Lord will not sever Peter from the work he loves, nor will his skills be underutilized; rather, as his disciple, Jesus will make Peter the greatest version of himself –a fisher of men and, eventually, the rock of the Church.
***
Often, the Lord uses the same strategy to hook us.
God’s primary motivation is to capture our hearts. When he has our attention, Jesus begins transforming us from “fishers” into “fishers of men,” from fragile believers into bold disciples.
Like Peter, have I had an encounter with Christ that’s changed my life? Have I become his disciple in heart and soul, a true “fisher of men”?
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May this Eucharist grant us all the grace to be like Peter – allowing the Lord to step into our failures, to pick up our nets and cast them again, to do the same old same old one more time.
Only now at his command.
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Image credits: (1) Scarsellino, Christ and Saint Peter at the Sea of Galilee, Harvard Art Museums (2) Britannica (3) Medium
