Luke
5:1-11
Many people today scroll quickly through the many
options they have in choosing how to identify themselves and live their
lives. It easier than ever before to try
out all kinds of choices and to disregard those that we do not find immediately
appealing or fulfilling. Not only has
our society formed us as consumers who want our immediate preferences satisfied,
the digital age has made it even easier to flit from this to that whenever we
experience just a hint of boredom, frustration, or disappointment. In such a
culture, we are all at risk of forming habits that compromise our faithfulness
to the way of Christ, which requires steadfast commitment and ongoing struggle
as we persist in taking up our crosses each day of our lives.
The Church directs our attention today to two
saints who provide powerful examples of what patient, selfless commitment to
the Lord looks like. St. Thekla is
remembered as a Great Martyr and has the title of “Equal to the Apostles”
because she accompanied St. Paul in founding churches and brought many to
Christ through her teaching and example.
Converted at the age of eighteen by St. Paul’s preaching, she is
remembered as the first female martyr because of her faithfulness throughout
many extraordinary sufferings, ranging from rejection by her family to trials
of fire, wild beasts, and physical assault.
The Lord delivered her from them all, and she lived her last years in
prayer and solitude, peacefully completing her earthly journey at the age of
90.
We also remember today St. Silouan, a monk on
Mt. Athos. He had received the gift of
unceasing prayer and knew great spiritual peace, but then endured fifteen years
of deep spiritual struggle which prepared him to receive the Lord’s teaching: “Keep
your mind in hell and do not despair.”
For the next fifteen years, he did precisely that, confronting and
experiencing the brokenness and sickness of his soul that separated him from sharing
fully in the life of Christ. Only then did he find healing for his passions.
Both of these saints are shining examples of
humble persistence in faithfulness to the Lord, regardless of the personal
challenges and sufferings involved. Both
could have easily abandoned their callings when the going got rough and did not
gratify their passions or preferences. No
one forced St. Thekla to refuse to renounce Christ in the face of lethal
persecution. No one forced St. Silouan to
undergo such bitter spiritual struggles.
But when such trials came, both saints kept taking up their crosses for
decades and trusting that the Savior would not abandon them. They both endured so
much in order to place loyalty to Christ above all else.
In this regard, they
have something in common with Sts. Peter, James, and John in today’s gospel
reading. They were professional
fishermen who had worked all night and caught nothing. They knew from experience that it made sense
to wash their nets, go home, and try again tomorrow. But the Lord said, “Put out into the
deep and let down your nets for a catch.”
Peter’s answer showed his frustration: “Master, we toiled all night and
took nothing! But at Your word I will
let down the nets.” When they did so,
they caught so many fish that their nets broke and their boats began to
sink. This unlikely and amazing scene
helped Peter catch a glimpse of the state of his soul, for he said to Christ,
“Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord.” The Savior responded, “Do not be afraid;
henceforth you will be catching men.” Then Peter, James, and John left their
boats and nets behind as they became His disciples.
Peter
was the head disciple, but he struggled mightily in faith. He denied the Lord three times before His
crucifixion and then ran away in fear.
He had earlier heard the stinging rebuke, “Get behind me, Satan!,” when
he had rejected the message that Christ would be killed and rise from the dead.
After His resurrection, the Lord restored Peter by asking him three times if he
loved Him and commanding him to “feed My sheep” in fulfilling his ministry. (Jn.
21: 15-17) Peter became the first bishop of the Church in Antioch and in Rome,
where he made the ultimate witness for the Savior as a martyr. At many points in his discipleship, he must
have been as frustrated as a fisherman who had worked all night and caught
nothing. He was obviously tempted to do
something other than following a Lord Who was lifted up upon the Cross. But despite his many struggles, Peter kept
letting down his nets and finding that the Lord continued to call and work
through him, despite his imperfections and failings. That is how he also became a great saint.
If
want to pursue the Christian life with integrity, then we must follow the
example of Sts. Peter, Thekla, and Silouan in persistently obeying our Lord’s
command. We must “let down our nets” in
obedience by doing that which will open our souls to receive His healing mercy. That
is not something to be tried once and then abandoned if we do not get the
results that we want. That is not
something to refuse to do because it would be easier in the moment to do
whatever we would prefer instead. It is,
however, something which must become a settled habit in our lives, a stable dimension
of our character, as those who dare to identify ourselves as followers of
Christ.
We must be prepared,
however, for our faltering steps of obedience to open the eyes of our souls to
the truth about where we stand before Him.
After letting down his nets and catching that great haul of fish, Peter gained
the spiritual clarity to know his unworthiness: “Depart from me, for I am a
sinful man, O Lord.” His reaction bears
some similarity to St. Silouan’s teaching: “Keep your mind in hell and do not
despair.” When we attempt even the smallest
act of obedience, we open our darkened souls to behold the brilliant light of
Christ. The darkness in our hearts will then
become all the more evident to us. Instead of being discouraged that we are
more aware of our spiritual weakness, we must then call all the more for the
Lord’s mercy as we struggle to remain on the path to the Kingdom.
We all have the
experience of falling into our familiar sins again and again. Instead of being disheartened to the point
that we no longer struggle against them or despair of ever finding healing, or
even give up completely on the Christian life, we must keep letting down our
nets in obedience as we mindfully seek to redirect the desires of our hearts
toward God. Instead of despairing that
there is no hope, we must humbly accept the truth about our spiritual state
that is revealed by our weakness before our besetting sins. While making no excuses for ourselves, we
must trust that our ongoing battles are necessary for us to receive Christ’s
healing. We may not be in an arena with
wild animals like St. Thekla, but we all face the arena of our passions, which
are every bit as fierce. St. Silouan
wrestled spiritually for decades and never gave up. We must do the same as we experience in our
hearts the tension between our current brokenness and the holiness to which the
Savior calls us.
Looking to the
example of the great saints we commemorate today, as well as to the model of those
holy fishermen, let us repudiate the superficial, self-centered tendencies
celebrated by our culture and undertake the daily struggle of obedience to
Christ. That means letting down our nets
in obedience at every opportunity as we cry out for His merciful healing of our
souls. That is the holy habit that we
must all cultivate if we want to become worthy disciples of the Savior.
1 comment:
Thank you Fr Philip for this homily. Praying all is well with you., m
Post a Comment