THIRD SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME A

[cappie]

The Bible presents us with beginnings over and over again,   some of the beginnings in the Bible are known as call stories. A call story recounts how somebody was invited by God to begin something new and unexpected. God calls this person to begin, and not only to begin, but – and here’s the hard part – to persist, to persist so that another beginning can take place.

One day Andrew and Simon, James and John and their father Zebedee get up  walk down to the sea, and cast nets into the water, anticipating a catch of fish. It is a day like so many other days. Nothing special. These men have engaged in this same routine hundreds of times before. This is what they do, for they are fishermen.

Amid water and nets and fish, and boats, in the midst of this familiarity, for these four men, a beginning takes place.

Jesus turns up at the waterside.   Today, as he calls them, a beginning takes place. He glances out at these men with their nets and their catch and announces,   “ Follow me and I will make you fishers of men.” The four hear this as a challenge from this man on the shore.

Like every other call story in the Bible, this one is an adventure. According to G. K. Chesterton, “An adventure is, by its nature, a thing that comes to us. It is a thing that chooses us, not a thing that we choose.”

Other rabbis wait for disciples to come to them. This Rabbi Jesus goes out and finds his own.  

An adventure is something that comes to us, that chooses us. Discipleship is the great adventure, for the one who comes to us and chooses us is great beyond all measure. We are taken away from predictable lives, plunged into adventure.

 Are these four men – Andrew, Simon, James, and John – ready and equipped for the adventure that comes to them, that chooses them, this adventure of discipleship? Jesus at the waterside does not collect resumes; he does not check references. The personal histories of these four do not have the last word about their futures. Christ’s call means a new beginning. He takes a wide-open risk by inviting them. They do the same in their response.

Subsequent events do not demonstrate that they are particularly fit for their call. Simon, who will come to be known as Peter, betrays Jesus in an even more boldfaced way than all the rest. James and John nicknamed the Sons of Thunder, not the most agreeable pair to have around, indulge in dreams about their own enthronement, missing the point completely when Jesus announces that downward mobility is the path to his kingdom. Andrew rarely appears again on the radar. Maybe his flaw is playing it safe. Yet Jesus never withdraws his invitation to any of them to share in his adventure, and partners with Jesus is what they finally become.

  The call to discipleship of these four fishermen, the beginning their story represents, implies the breakup of their familiar world, the end of their safety.

They leave behind old securities: the waterside, the boat, the nets, those days of fishing that so resembled one another, and even old Zebedee, the father of James and John, standing astonished in the boat as his two sons suddenly walk away. The new beginning requires this. Disciples must walk away into the future. They may be afraid, but not so afraid that their faith does not lead them forward.

The Bible tells us of this beginning for the four fishermen. They are called out from their occupation about which they know a great deal, in order to fish for people, about which they claim no knowledge.

In the same way, our discipleship means a new beginning, one that appears before us again and again.   We find ourselves engaged in an adventure, for however strangely, however unjustifiably, Christ comes to us and chooses us and sends us out to be the next new beginning in the world. May we all pray that we, a people who walk in darkness, see the true light of Christ and become “fishers of men” for him to the ends of the earth. May every corner of our country know Jesus’ teachings, his healing and his love for people.

 

[yaoiniymalchik]

This story is such a powerful reminder that discipleship is an unexpected, ongoing adventure. The fishermen didn’t expect their routine to be interrupted, but Jesus invited them into something far greater than their familiar world. It’s a call to step out of comfort and into the unknown, trusting that even when we don’t feel ready or equipped, God’s invitation is the beginning of something transformative. Just like the disciples, we’re called to embrace that risk and let faith lead us forward.

[yaoiniymalchik]

Questa storia è un potente promemoria che il discepolato è un'avventura inaspettata e continua. I pescatori non si aspettavano che la loro routine venisse interrotta, ma Gesù li ha invitati a qualcosa di molto più grande del loro mondo familiare. È una chiamata penaltyshootouts.it a uscire dalla zona di comfort e a entrare nell'ignoto, confidando che anche quando non ci sentiamo pronti o preparati, l'invito di Dio è l'inizio di qualcosa di trasformativo. Proprio come i discepoli, siamo chiamati ad abbracciare questo rischio e lasciare che la fede ci guidi avanti.

[Luigi]

Abbastanza!