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Today, 27th of September, we celebrate
Saint Vincent of Paul
1 Cor 3:18–23
Brothers and sisters:
Let no one deceive himself.
If anyone among you considers himself wise in this age,
let him become a fool, so as to become wise.
For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in the eyes of God,
for it is written:
God catches the wise in their own ruses,
and again:
The Lord knows the thoughts of the wise, that they are vain.
So let no one boast about human beings, for everything belongs to you,
Paul or Apollos or Cephas,
or the world or life or death,
or the present or the future:
all belong to you, and you to Christ, and Christ to God.
Ps 24:1bc-2, 3-4ab, 5-6
R./ To the Lord belongs the earth and all that fills it.
The Lord's are the earth and its fullness;
the world and those who dwell in it.
For he founded it upon the seas
and established it upon the rivers.
R./ To the Lord belongs the earth and all that fills it.
Who can ascend the mountain of the Lord?
or who may stand in his holy place?
He whose hands are sinless, whose heart is clean,
who desires not what is vain.
R./ To the Lord belongs the earth and all that fills it.
He shall receive a blessing from the Lord,
a reward from God his savior.
Such is the race that seeks for him,
that seeks the face of the God of Jacob.
R./ To the Lord belongs the earth and all that fills it.
Lk 5:1-11
One day, as Jesus stood by the Lake of Gennesaret, with a crowd gathered around him listening to the word of God, he caught sight of two boats left at the water's edge by the fishermen now washing their nets. He got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, and asked him to pull out a little from the shore. There he sat and continued to teach the crowd.
When he had finished speaking he said to Simon, "Put out into deep water and lower your nets for a catch." Simon replied, "Master, we worked hard all night and caught nothing. But if you say so, I will lower the nets." This they did and caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break. They signaled their partners in the other boat to come and help them. They came and filled both boats almost to the point of sinking.
Upon seeing this, Simon Peter fell at Jesus' knees, saying, "Leave me, Lord, for I am a sinful man!" For he and his companions were amazed at the catch they had made and so were Simon's partners, James and John, Zebedee's sons.
Jesus said to Simon, "Do not be afraid. You will catch people from now on." So they brought their boats to land and followed him, leaving everything.
In Your Name
What does a carpenter know about fishing? How does Jesus dare to give fishing advice to experienced fishermen who have spent their whole lives doing this work? When Jesus advises casting the nets on the other side, Peter argues, but only a little: we’ve been working all night and haven’t caught anything… But he immediately says, “in your name, Lord.” A detail that may seem insignificant, but turns out to be vital.
We often think we know exactly what we’re doing because we’ve been doing it our whole lives. We may see that there comes a time when our efforts are ineffective, that we’re not getting anywhere. If someone, who’s not from our field, advises us to do things differently, we might look at them with disdain, wondering what that person knows. But Peter says, “in your name,” and the result is amazing. If we’ve ever experienced success, we might later forget about the “in your name” part and think it was all due to our own effort. Peter’s reaction is exemplary: he recognizes that he had nothing to do with the result, that he is a sinful man, and that the fruit of any effort is due solely to God.
Sometimes I wonder what would have happened if the effort “in your name” hadn’t produced such a spectacular catch. What happens to us when, despite entrusting our actions and work to God, they seem to have no result? It’s possible that we would say that, logically, Jesus (or the person who, in his name, may have advised us) has no idea about our profession… It’s possible that we lose confidence. Perhaps because we continue to think that the “in your name” was just a formula without any further reach or effectiveness.
The challenge presented to us today is unwavering faith that the “in your name,” the going deeper, always produces amazing results… even if we don’t see the fish immediately. God sees them because they are his, not ours, and that’s what’s important. Our part is to row further out and cast the nets, “in his name.”
Cármen AguinacoHoly God of our happiness,
you entrust your good news of life
to weak and fallible people.
Fill us with the strength of your Holy Spirit,
that we may be ready to speak your message
with the language of our life.
Let Jesus your Son work with us and in us,
that each of us may have the courage to say:
Here I am, Lord, send me as your messenger
to share your glad tidings of happiness
with all who are willing to listen.
We ask this through Christ our Lord.
First Reading Introduction
Paul warns again his people against relying on human wisdom rather than on the “foolishness” of God and against giving in to division.
Gospel Introduction
Simon Peter and his companions were amazed that an outsider could tell them where to catch plenty of fish when they, fishermen by profession, had been unsuccessful. This man with a striking message was indeed extraordinary. They were caught in his spell and followed him. Later, they would put out into deep water, that is, they would risk and dedicate their life for Jesus and "catch people" to put them in the spell of Jesus' message and life.
- Lord, attract people to you by opening their eyes and hearts to the beauty of your message of good news, we pray:
- Lord, attract people to you by your inspiring, loving personality, we pray:
- Lord, let your Church with all its communities attract people to you by serving them, we pray:
God our Father,
in these signs of bread and wine
we celebrate the central event
that sums up our faith
and gives meaning to what we are and do:
the death and resurrection of your Son.
Purify our lips and hearts with his body and blood
and send us to proclaim with our lives
that Jesus is our living Lord
and that you are our Father,
now and for ever.
Lord our God,
in your love you have called each of us
to a task in life and a place in your plan
which no one can fulfill for us;
you have chosen your Church, that is us,
to be the irreplaceable sign and witness
of the death and resurrection of your Son.
Make each and all of us
capable of our mission
and send us out into the deep
by the strength of the body and blood
of our unique Savior,
Jesus Christ our Lord.
The Lord entrusts to you his word and his body. Go now, speak his word and be his body to the world. May the Lord bless you, that you may be a blessing to all, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
