Let Us Be Fed So We Can Feed Others!

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Seven of the twelve apostles were fishermen as we hear today (John 21: 1-19).  Fishermen have some characteristics that would make them very effective in ministry, in apostolic work with others.  They are very persevering.  They do not give up if the weather is bad; they remain at their task.  They work well in teams.  One person cannot throw the net by himself and drag it in at the right time.   They need to cooperate with one another and they are skilled in their trade.  For ministry the same skills are crucial.  I know many situations in this parish where people are much more effective when they serve on a team, and not by themselves.

The other apostles do not let Peter go fishing on his own.  They go with him.  It is a sign of charity and something we should do with those who are close to us or especially when someone in the family is sick.  Don’t let them go on their own.  Accompany them.  It may not seem like much but it is very important at certain times in life.

The apostles obeyed when Jesus told them to throw the net to the right side of the boat.   Perhaps the fish were on the left side and were just a few feet away.  Also for us it could be that fruitfulness is very close by and if we obey the inspirations from God we will reap the rewards.  St. Faustina at times slightly changed what God was asking her to do and she was reprimanded by him very strongly.  We are not nuns but as a Christian it is fundamental that we learn how to obey God as soon as possible.   Put that thing on top of our to-do-list.

Jesus feeds the apostles realizing that they had not eaten all night long.  He takes care of their physical needs and their spiritual ones.  We also have to be fed before we can feed.  What could you tell your children if you are not receiving something first from God?  We cannot give what we don’t have so come first to be fed and then it is very easy to feed those around you.  You will do so very naturally.  In my deacon class the guys were very surprised that what they read in the psalms in the morning helped them to give good advice later in the day to others.   Read a chapter a day from the New Testament and you will be surprised how it changes your thinking.

What was Peter thinking as he approached the charcoal fire Jesus made on the beach?  My guess is he recalled the fire that the servant girls saw him by when he denied Christ.  He might have recalled the feeding of the 5,000 when he saw the fish and the loaves or his reaction at his first catch of fish with Christ when he said, “Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man.”

It is not by accident that Jesus asks Peter three times if he loves him, but the third time Christ uses a different word meaning: will you love me totally, and unconditionally?  Peter responds: Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you.  What is more beautiful than that?  Peter’s public denial leads him to make a public expression of love, of unconditional faithfulness to the Lord.  Now that he is humbled he can love in a new way, with a new spirit.

Peter is called to be a fisher of men and a shepherd who feeds and cares for his sheep.   Brothers and sisters, if we love the Lord first, we will love his sheep.  If we pray for the people close to us we can truly love them as they are.  Let us ask to be good shepherds as Jesus reveals to us his way of being, which is totally different from ours.

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