Word to the Wise
Sunday, January 22, 2012 - 3rd Sunday in Ordinary Time - B
[Jon 3:1-5, 10; 1 Cor 7:29-31; Mark 1:14-20]As he passed by the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting their nets into the sea; they were fishermen. Jesus said to them, "Come after me, and I will make you fishers of men." Then they abandoned their nets and followed him.....[Mark]
Great movements often start with a single person who has a cause or grievance to promote. They begin to talk about it with their families, friends and neighbors and eventually invite others to a meeting and the "movement" gets underway! Some will go to the meeting simply because they know the convenor, others because they have heard about it from a neighbor, others because they're curious, etc.. Later on, when the time comes to tell the story of the origins of the "movement," the initial founding may seem more spontaneous and quick than actually was the case because the story-teller wants to emphasize the importance of the movement by showing that people considered it so important they responded right away!
Religious movements are no exception to this process. The Gospel of Mark makes it seem as if Peter, Andrew, James and John had never known Jesus before. He begins his public ministry after his baptism by John the Baptist and after John the Baptist was arrested! He shows up at the fishing camp and calls the four first disciples who respond immediately! This call ("demand?") and response is the model of discipleship in the Gospel of Mark! In the Gospel of Luke, we know that Jesus cured the mother-in-law of Simon (Peter) before he called Simon as a disciple! In the Gospel of John, we know that Andrew met Jesus at a gathering with John the Baptist and was the "catalyst" in calling Simon, etc.
Why is any of this important? It seems to me a good question to ask ourselves when, how and why any of us became a disciple of Jesus? Is it because we were simply born to a Christian - more particularly a Catholic - family? Did we acquire our faith in the same way we acquired our name? Why do we continue to believe in Jesus, do acts of love and ministry in his name, worship him, follow him? If the response of Peter, Andrew, James and John seems a little too quick to us, we may want to look at our own before we judge theirs. Mark may be calling our attention to the importance of Jesus' "cause" and the seriousness of our own response! AMEN