***
Fishing nets are designed to scoop up everything in their path. They do not discriminate.
Naturally, when such a net is hauled into a boat, it contains all sorts of things: flapping fish, muddy twigs, and debris.
It’s up to the fisherman to decide what he wants to keep and what he doesn’t.
***
In the Gospel, Jesus likens the Church to a fishing net.
We’re meant to cast ourselves far and wide, gathering as many people as possible into the nets of the Church.
It’s not up to us to decide who does or doesn’t belong; that power belongs to Christ.
***
Yet how often are we tempted to play the role of the fisherman?
***
To discriminate; to judge. To decide who’s in and who’s out; who belongs and who doesn’t.
This doesn’t only happen in the Church.
We can also do this in politics, in our social circles, at work, even in our families. Many of us know a “black sheep,” for example, someone who doesn’t seem to belong.
***
Stop judging others, Jesus says. He’ll do that at the end of our lives.
Live the Golden Rule, instead. Welcome other people, just as we ourselves want to be welcomed.
There’s room for all.
***
