Jesus invites Simon Peter and Andrew to become fishers of men. And Jonah warns the inhabitants of Nineveh to convert so as not to be destroyed; they do so and are saved. Today's readings, on this Third Sunday in Ordinary Time, which Pope Francis has made Word of God Sunday, can help us consider the power of this word to save. All of us, and not just priests, are preachers of this Word, because there is a daily preaching that is the example of our lives and our personal conversations with those close to us. And all of us have to fish for souls in order to save them.
With normal fish, to take them out of the water is their death. But in fishing for souls we must precisely take them out of the dark waters of sin and all the predators that could devour them - the devil and his hordes - in order to save them and then place them at the feet of Christ. Jonah, who after three days and three nights in the belly of a whale knew what it was like to be swallowed by a predator, would have understood this well.
Our conversations with our friends will generally be positive and encouraging, as is the word of God. As St. Paul writes: "For the Son of God, Jesus Christ, who was preached among you [...], was not yes and no, but in him alone there was yes."(2 Cor 1:19). But there will be times when we have to clearly warn others that this or that behavior will only lead to their destruction. We are fishing them in the waters of death. "From heaven he stretched out his hand and took hold of me, he drew me out of the mighty waters, he delivered me from a mighty foe, from adversaries stronger than me" (Ps 18:17-18). As today's Gospel shows, Jesus begins his ministry by calling people to repentance. The call to repentance remains an essential aspect of the Christian message. We cannot limit ourselves to confirming people in their sin.
But how can we avoid negativity and bitterness in our witness? By striving to be the first to repent, by living ourselves in a constant state of conversion. It is beautiful to see how, after Peter and Andrew, Jesus calls James and John while they were mending their nets. The Christian must always be attentive to mending the nets of his own soul, which has many tears and broken threads. And, like the apostles, we all have to leave things behind - possessions, security, perhaps even jobs and family - to follow Christ.
Homily on the readings of Sunday III of Ordinary Time (B)
The priest Luis Herrera Campo offers its nanomiliaA short one-minute reflection for these Sunday readings.
