April 10^th 2016.  Third Sunday of Easter

GOSPEL John 21:1-19­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­

Translated from a homily by Don Fabio Rosini, broadcast on Vatican Radio

Don Fabio’s reflection follows the Gospel reading ...

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GOSPEL John 21:1-19

Jesus showed himself again to the disciples. It was by the Sea of Tiberias, and it happened like this: Simon Peter, Thomas called the Twin, Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee and two more of his disciples were together. Simon Peter said, ‘I’m going fishing.’ They replied, ‘We’ll come with you.’ They went out and got into the boat but caught nothing that night.

It was light by now and there stood Jesus on the shore, though the disciples did not realise that it was Jesus. Jesus called out, ‘Have you caught anything, friends?’ And when they answered, ‘No’, he said, ‘Throw the net out to starboard and you’ll find something.’ So they dropped the net, and there were so many fish that they could not haul it in. The disciple Jesus loved said to Peter, ‘It is the Lord.’ At these words ‘It is the Lord’, Simon Peter, who had practically nothing on, wrapped his cloak round him and jumped into the water. The other disciples came on in the boat, towing the net and the fish; they were only about a hundred yards from land.

As soon as they came ashore they saw that there was some bread there, and a charcoal fire with fish cooking on it. Jesus said, ‘Bring some of the fish you have just caught.’ Simon Peter went aboard and dragged the net to the shore, full of big fish, one hundred and fifty-three of them; and in spite of there being so many the net was not broken. Jesus said to them, ‘Come and have breakfast.’ None of the disciples was bold enough to ask, ‘Who are you?’ they knew quite well it was the Lord. Jesus then stepped forward, took the bread and gave it to them, and the same with the fish. This was the third time that Jesus showed himself to the disciples after rising from the dead.

After the meal Jesus said to Simon Peter, ‘Simon son of John, do you love me more than these others do?’ He answered, ‘Yes Lord, you know I love you.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Feed my lambs.’ A second time he said to him, ‘Simon son of John, do you love me?’ He replied, ‘Yes, Lord, you know I love you.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Look after my sheep.’ Then he said to him a third time, ‘Simon son of John, do you love me?’ Peter was upset that he asked him the third time, ‘Do you love me?’ and said, ‘Lord, you know everything; you know I love you,’ Jesus said to him, ‘Feed my sheep.

‘I tell you most solemnly,
when you were young
you put on your own belt
and walked where you liked;
but when you grow old
you will stretch out your hands,
and somebody else will put a belt round you
and take you where you would rather not go.’

In these words he indicated the kind of death by which Peter would give glory to God. After this he said, ‘Follow me.’

The Gospel of the Lord: Praise to you Lord Jesus Christ

Kieran’s summary . . . What a beautiful Gospel for Sunday! It is all about recognition. The apostles fail to recognize Jesus standing on the shore. Then they obey what he says and cast out their nets on the other side. When they see the miraculous catch of fish, they realize who Jesus is. Then Jesus asks Peter three times if he loves him. This threefold asking reminds Peter of his threefold denial and makes us see how much God knows us to the depths of our hearts and yet forgives us. And this loving forgiveness – the fruit of the resurrection – empowers Peter to go and preach the Gospel fearlessly. In fact, in the first reading we see that the man who once denied Jesus now rejoices when he is flogged in Jesus’ name. Peter has come to the point of full development! More generally, we all consider ourselves fishers of men but we catch little or nothing because we fish according to our own designs. If we do things in our own way then we end up having to rely on our own power, but if we do things in God’s way then we act with his power. When we are obedient to the Lord and stop listening to ourselves, then we rediscover him - and we find ourselves too in the process! God is the stranger in our midst that we fail to recognize and comprehend. But it is he who recognizes and comprehends us. We must all follow the pattern of Peter. We must be led to recognize our own poverty so that we can experience the forgiveness of our sins and begin to respond to Jesus with authentic love. In the beginning our love is imperfect and we are ever ready to deny Jesus. At the end we can become like Peter and rejoice to suffer for the Lord’s name.

We consider ourselves fishers of men but we catch nothing because we fish according to our own designs. If we do things in our own way then we end up having to make do with our own power, but if we do things in God’s way then we act with his power

The reading from the Acts of the Apostles tells how Peter and John rejoiced when they were flogged for preaching the Gospel. What a remarkable kind of joy that accepts rejection because it means they were considered worthy to suffer for the Lord’s name! The Gospel contains a story about a miraculous catch of fish. This is a post-Easter event and is not to be confused with the miraculous catch of fish recounted by Luke at the calling of Peter. It is a story about recognition, about being caught up in one’s own failures and being unable to recognize the stranger in their midst. The stranger gives a new indication of how to catch fish, a new way of casting their nets to these men who had failed in their night time mission – all very symbolic of the mission of the Church. How often we undertake the mission of being fishers of men and we catch nothing! We continue with our projects, fixated with our own way of doing things, and we get nowhere. We need to listen to the stranger who appears in our midst and points out a different way of doing things, God’s way of doing things. To fish out of the “right” side of the boat signifies to fish from the side of faith, the side of the power of God.

When we are obedient to the Lord and stop listening to ourselves, then we rediscover him and find ourselves too in the process.

This post-Paschal story is highly relevant to the Church in all ages. Jesus has already risen but we continually lose him, continually fail to recognize him, though he is in our midst and speaking to us. We continue to fish in our own way, and continue to catch nothing. Just like Peter, we began our Christian life with Jesus but now we fail to recognize him. Then we experience the power of God, represented by the miraculous catch of 153 fish. The satisfaction and the completeness associated with this catch (there were 153 different types of fish known in that part of the world at that time!) are all the fruit of being obedient to the command of the Lord. But the fish are not of primary importance in themselves – rather they are a means of rediscovering the Lord. And we also end up finding ourselves, for we had become lost in the meantime.

God is the stranger in our midst that we fail to recognize and comprehend. But it is he who recognizes and comprehends us.

And Peter is truly led to rediscover himself in the dialogue in which Jesus asks him the same question three times using his old name – Simon son of John, the name he had before Jesus changed his name to Peter. In this dialogue there is much wordplay using verbs, but we don’t have time to discuss that here. When Jesus asks Peter the third time, “Do you love me?” this reawakens in Peter a holy and blessed sadness – for he has been prompted by Jesus to recollect the threefold denial. Peter remembers his sin and recognizes his own poverty. The Lord wished to awaken that sadness and it causes Peter to exclaim, “Lord, you know everything, you know that I love you!” We try to understand God by fitting him into our own limited categories but at some point we must recognize that it is he who comprehends us. This whole Gospel is about recognition. The stranger who is originally not recognized is finally rediscovered, but in the end it is he who recognizes who we are. There are few joys that exceed that of being understood by others, to feel known and comprehended. Peter feel that joy but also the sadness that his errors have been uncovered in full. The important point however, is that Peter can move on from that experience of sadness and is now ready to live as an adult. Jesus says to him, “When you were young you dressed as you wished and went were you wished. But when you are old someone else will dress you and take you where you do not want to go”. In order words, Peter will no longer do his own will but become obedient to the will of someone else. He takes on a new role and becomes a new person.

We must all follow the pattern of Peter. We must be led to recognize our own poverty so that we can experience the forgiveness of our sins and begin to respond to Jesus with authentic love. In the beginning our love is imperfect and we are ever ready to deny Jesus. At the end we can become like Peter and rejoice to suffer for the Lord’s name

Peter originally denied Jesus, but, as the first reading tells us, he is transformed into someone who rejoices to suffer for the name of Jesus. He is considered worthy to suffer for the one he loves. Now his relationship with Jesus is one of authentic love. Is the mark of true love the reward that comes with it? Is the mark of love the recognition and comprehension we experience? No, the mark of true love is when we rejoice to give our life for another. And Peter, for all his faults, has arrived at this stage of development. The Christian life must follow the pattern of Peter. It must go through the experience of annihilation, the discovery of one’s own poverty, to experience the true resurrection, the forgiveness of one’s sins, to feel oneself understood and not judged. From this springs true love, the joy of being considered worthy to suffer for the name of Jesus.