Gospel Reflections for January 22 2017
Two Simple Words
Some people think faith is complicated, yet it could not be more simple, and today’s Gospel reveals all we need to know. The message of Jesus is summarized in just two words!
Jesus speaks them to fishermen on the Sea of Galilee near the town of Capernaum. He simply says, “Follow me.” They do …and so should we. Nothing complicated here. Authentic Christians simply follow what Christ says and does.
Yet, why did those fishermen suddenly drop everything and follow Jesus? Would those two words turn your life around if spoken to you by a stranger walking on the beach? Archaeologists have made some amazing discoveries about life at that time that sheds light on this question.
Jesus had lived in this town of Capernaum for some time. Therefore, these fishermen knew Jesus quite well and had already witnessed his words and behavior for some time. They knew Our Lord to be a wise man filled with the spirit of God. They knew His character and virtue. In those days, people would want to be associated with such a good and wise person.
However, archaeologists also recognized they had a problem. They had fishing boats …and that was not a small thing.
In 1986, archaeologists discovered an ancient fishing boat dated to the time of Jesus along the shore near the town of Capernaum. Detailed analysis revealed that it had been very carefully constructed with fine craftsmanship but was also repaired many times. If you repair something frequently it can only be because it is considered valuable and worth keeping. They concluded that fishing boats were considered very significant and highly treasured business assets. You would not just leave them behind casually. In addition, the Gospels indicated that some of the disciples even had several boats!
These were not poor fishermen after all but owners of significant and valuable business assets. If they were poor and had nothing to lose, then following Jesus would have represented no big risk. These archaeological discoveries indicate that these fishermen left a lot behind to follow Jesus!
Our Lenten Adult education program called “The University Series” (theuniversityseries.org) will offer many more insights about the life of Our Lord that can enrich your understanding of the person of Jesus and His message for you. The catalog of classes will be distributed next week. I hope they will also lead you to simply, “Follow Him!”
God Bless!
Fr. Dave
Hi Father Dave,
I am a long time listener to you and Joe on the Joe Sikorra show during which you and Joe are a wellspring of quips and reminiscences that are good for the soul. God bless you both. I met you at probably the last of the University series before you were assigned to St. Rose of Lima for the summer. I met Joe at an Elevate conference in Santa Clara. You both are as delightful in person as you come across on your show. The University series is nothing short of miraculous. Everyone should be sure to attend whether Catholic are merely a seeker. Thank yo so much for having developed such a wondeful series.
I very much want to Register for the Holy Land trip but find that resources do not allow though I continue to pray God will figure that part out. In the meantime, at my 50th re=union at Santa Clara University not all that long ago, one of my former roommates turned out to be an archeologist on one of the Israeli sites. I believe her husband may be in charge of some of it as well.
While your own contacts in the Holy Land are very impressive and you may in fact not have any reason to be in touch with them as a resource, I’d be happy to re-connect with them and introduce you. Just let me know and I will follow up.
Judith J. Tomsic, Esq. – Principal
Slingshot Press – Where David Meets Goliath in the Publishing Business tm
Yes, I would be very happy if you could join us one year on our Holy Land trips. I go every year without fail, so you can plan for the future. Thank you for being a faithful listener to Immaculate Heart Radio and our show. I am very interested in connecting with the archaeologist that you mentioned. Please feel free to have them connect with me here.
Love the words ” Come Follow me” for we are following our precious Jesus, the Son of our loving God who leads us in total love!!!!Beautiful Faith!!!! Beautiful Life~!!!! and its ours!! It doesn’t get any better than that!!!
How beautifully Blessed we are!!
Love yourfabulous University!! We continue to grow in love!!! We will be there!!!!
Have a beautiful day in Jesus and Mary’s Divine, precious overwhelming LOVE!!!
Loveeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee, Franca and Dick
Thank you fellow University Series Faculty member!
Interesting! I love learning from your wealth of knowledge! Look forward to seeing you at the University Series.
God bless!
Jennifer Corsetti
See you at the University!
Hi Fr Dave
Thank you.
Please update your web bio. It says you are still on Sabbatical, which we all know is over. 😞
See you at University.
God bless,
Claudia
Thanks for the reminder! I will update soon. I am now the Pastor at St. Bruno Catholic Church in Whittier.
Father Dave,
Rick and I signed up for your archaeology class at St. Peter Claver’s.. We are very much looking forward to hearing about other such biblical events which have been substantiated by science. Looking forward to seeing you, as well.
Yes, it is one of my favorite topics.