An encounter with Jesus, the incarnate Son of God, demands a response and does not leave one unchanged. We see this when Jesus approached the disciples at the beginning of his ministry, asking them to follow Him, and we see it again in today\u2019s Gospel when Jesus approaches them after the events of His crucifixion and death. Following Peter\u2019s initiative the disciples have gone back to their labor. \u201cI am going fishing\u201d he says. Their sadness and discouragement are almost palpable and Peter\u2019s words have the feeling of being a reluctant resolution. They had left everything behind to follow Jesus. They had come to believe that He was the Messiah, the Christ. They loved Him. However, Jesus was now dead, and, as unexpected and devastating as the events of the Passion and Cross were, they needed to get back to their labor. The scene of the gospel promptly reminds us of that occasion at the beginning of Jesus\u2019 ministry when the disciples, at the Lord\u2019s command, lower the nets for a catch and pull in a large number of fish (Luke 5:1-11). Luke tells us that after that encounter with Jesus the disciples \u201cleft everything and followed Him.\u201d This encounter and the subsequent decision to follow Jesus is clearly engraved in their hearts because even though they do not recognize Jesus at first, the moment He gives the command and they catch a large number of fish, the disciple whom the Lord loved recognizes Him: \u201cIt is the Lord.\u201d These mere words give Peter such joy that he leaps off the boat and swims to Jesus. Back on the shore the disciples sit around the charcoal fire with Jesus. The scene that takes place again reminds us of a previous instance. The Greek word anthrakia used for the \u201ccharcoal fire\u201d is the same used in John 18:18 for the \u201ccharcoal fire\u201d around which Peter warmed himself during Jesus\u2019 trial and around which – upon being asked if he knew Jesus – he denied the Lord a second and third time. Now around the fire on the shore, the risen Lord asks Peter three times whether he loves him. In this beautiful dialogue we see each question and answer move deeper and deeper, allowing Jesus\u2019 mercy and love to heal Peter\u2019s guilt, but also demanding more and more of complete and unreserved commitment from Peter. The climax is reached with Peter\u2019s third answer \u201cLord, you know everything; you know that I love you\u201d and Jesus\u2019 command to feed His sheep and the prediction of what the very love Peter has just professed would ultimately demand of him. At the end, having thrice professed his love for Jesus, Peter is once again invited to follow the Lord. Being a Christian means being a disciple. It is not a matter of a single instance but of a life-long walk with the Lord. As we continue to walk on the road of discipleship let us not be discouraged by our sin and weakness, by the difficulties and hardship of life. Let us rather joyfully continue to place our trust in God\u2019s mercy and to keep in our hearts, and continually recall, all that He has done for us, especially those times we have encountered Him and experienced His love for us. Above all, in this Easter season let us be continually reminded of the new life which we have been granted in Christ, and let us confidently follow Him and with Peter say: \u201cLord you know everything, you know that I love you.\u201d<\/p>\n
Santiago Torres<\/strong> – St. Joseph Seminary, Edmonton, Alberta<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" III Sunday in Easter<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":2034,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[8,17,18],"tags":[197,198,171,196],"class_list":["post-2033","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blog","category-strona-glowna-najnowsze","category-strona-glowna-slider","tag-followed","tag-passion","tag-peter","tag-santiago_torres"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n