In today’s first reading the religious authorities are annoyed with the apostles who, as far as they were concerned, were not educated in religious matters yet preached about Christ publicly. They summon them and ask them by whose power (or what authority) they speak. Peter jumps in and does not answer the question but reverts, it seems, to sermon mode. Notice
that the boldness of Peter is because he is ‘filled with the Holy Spirit’.
There is a stark contrast between Peter in the first reading and the gospel. In the gospel we meet Peter who seems defeated. His way of coping with the death of Jesus is to return to his former life as a fisherman. His companions share his sense of loss and so they too are easily convinced to return to their former ways. We can do this too when we feel tired, lonely or defeated. We can give
up on the journey we have begun and slip back into former ways of doing things.
Then Jesus appears on the scene – of course they don’t recognise him. The same happens to us when we feel tired, lonely or defeated. We too can easily not recognise the Lord in our midst. Notice how, despite their inability to recognise the Lord, he still acts by giving them an abundance of fish. The same happens to us. Even when we think God is absent, the Lord still gifts us. They catch
nothing alone, with Jesus they catch more than they could have ever imagined. Perhaps there is a time in your own life when, looking back, you see that the Lord has acted and gifted you despite your inability to recognise his presence.
Peter, when he hears it is the Lord, is emboldened and forgets his companions and the haul of fish and jumps into the water and races towards the Lord. He is now so focussed on the Lord that he forgets the task at hand and leaves his companions to do all the work. Notice how it is the beloved disciples who nudges Peter and tells him it is the Lord. In our lives too there are those who nudged
us and in so doing help us recognise the Lord when we cannot ourselves. Suddenly Peter’s hope has been restored, his sense of defeat has been overturned.
Notice how, despite the amount of fish caught, the text tells us that the net is not torn. God always gives in abundance, enough to ensure that we have all we need. God’s heart is ever-expansive. God cannot be outdone in generosity! The hundred and fifty-three can also be understood symbolically as the missionary success that the apostles will have in bringing people into the community of believers. No amount of fish, of all sizes and shapes, tear the net. There is room for everyone in the
Lord’s community. It is not the Lord that excludes but, so often, we who choose to keep others out. In these days of resurrection, who might the Lord be asking us to invite into the community of believers – perhaps those we have previously left out?
What do you do when you feel tired, lonely or defeated? Are you tempted to abandon your faith and slip back into former ways of doing things, ways you know are not helpful to you?
In these days of resurrection consider those who may have nudged you and helped you see the Lord when you did not recognise him. Can you name them? Pray for them today.
