Thursday,
September 01, 2016 22nd Week in Ordinary Time
First Reading:
1 Cor 3: 18-23
Gospel Reading:
Lk 5:1-11
One day, as Jesus stood by the Lake of Gennesaret, with a crowd gathered around him listening to the word of God, he caught sight of two boats left at the water’s edge by the fishermen now washing their nets. He got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, and asked him to pull out a little from the shore. There he sat and continued to teach the crowd.
When he had finished speaking he said to Simon, “Put out into deep water and lower your nets for a catch.” Simon replied, “Master, we worked hard all night and caught nothing. But if you say so, I will lower the nets.” This they did and caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break. They signaled their partners in the other boat to come and help them. They came and filled both boats almost to the point of sinking.
Upon seeing this, Simon Peter fell at Jesus’ knees, saying, “Leave me, Lord, for I am a sinful man!” For he and his companions were amazed at the catch they had made and so were Simon’s partners, James and John, Zebedee’s sons. Jesus said to Simon, “Do not be afraid. You will catch people from now on.” So they brought their boats to land and followed him, leaving everything.
D@iGITAL-EXPERIENCE
(Daily Gospel in the Assimilated Life Experience)
“Life”, wrote James Barrie, “is a long lesson in humility” (The Little Minister). The lives of the disciples fit this description. As fishermen they knew how to catch fish. Yet they took instructions from a carpenter on a night of fruitless fishing.
Was it because this carpenter was the Messiah? No! They weren’t sure about his identity. Was it because they had nothing to lose anyway? No! A tired and desperate fisherman would be too irritable to be humble and take suggestion about fishing from a carpenter.
Faith? Yes! They were not sure of Jesus’ identity. But faith supplied the rest. “Faith… is the evidence of things not seen” (Hebrews 11:1). Though tired and probably irritable, they had the humility springing from faith to listen to Jesus.
Barrie’s maxim should be, “Life is a long lesson on faith in humility”. The disciples learned this lesson well. Having lowered their pride they had no problem lowering their nets at Jesus’ suggestion. The reward was immediate; they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break. Moreover, they also received the gift of mercy. Peter’s response was repentance. He said, “Leave me Lord for I am a sinful man.”
There is no better lesson to learn in this life than faith. But do we have the humility to learn it well? – Rev. Fr. Dan Domingo P. delos Angeles, Jr., DM, MMExM, MAPM, REB. Email: dan.delosangeles@gmail.com.
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