Fishers of Men

" As Jesus walked beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net into the waters, for they were fishermen. 'Come, follow me', Jesus said, 'and I will make you fishers of men.' At once they left their nets and followed him." [Mark 1: 16-18].

This Scripture is probably one of the most well-known and beloved in the Bible. Jesus' dramatic call, "Come, follow me", is one of the quintessential elements of Christianity.

Jesus' call is the call to be healed, a call to follow the Way, that leads to love, to peace, to a gentle community. I have spoken before in this space about my dysfunctional, upside down family. I have spoken out about the violence against me, the teachings I received against God, against charity to others, against acceptance of others. I was called ugly every day, I was called a failure. I was told, 'You think of yourself first. We do not give to charity.' I was taught to be suspicious of others.

I ended up alone and scared. Even as a child, I knew that my family did not seem to be saying the right things. All that they said contradicted the love and the security that I craved. And so, at age ten, I decided to retreat. I took a vow to stop speaking. I had given up.

Where is Jesus' call in my life now? I would say to you that it is, first, simply hearing others speaking my name! Jesus is in others greeting me with expressions of  total delight! You see, in my childhood, it was much better, much safer to be invisible. But when someone actually sees me today, and does not look right through me, it means that I am not invisible. I DO exist and I do matter!

There is a thrill in my heart when someone calls me by name; a feeling of joy, that I think will never go away. It is the thrill that comes from the love we have for one another, which is also the love that comes from Jesus!

Sometimes, I still feel worthless and useless. If I imagine that I hear the call of God upon me, I am tempted to dismiss it, because I think, WHY would God call me?! I am No One, I am a Nobody. This circumstance reminds me of the story of Samuel last week. It did not occur to him that this voice calling out to him could be God. If we are so unassuming that we think we have no value, will we miss the call of God and Jesus in our lives?

I went through this when I received the call to convert. There was an insistent, persistent preoccupation inside, with drawing nearer to God. I kept "hearing" in my head, "I am the Way, the Truth and the Life" and, "Only say the Word and I shall be healed." It was an odd time for this call to come. I could think of so many other times when this call would have been so much more convenient. But it was there, and it was not going away.

I went to seek advice from a wise mentor. I asked, "Why would God call me? Why would I be called to come closer to Jesus by receiving the Eucharist? I am Nobody. I am only a woman, only a wife and mother. I am nothing special". I thought that, to be called, I had to somehow measure up. The mentor replied, 'Well, the first disciples were only fishermen! -- humble, uneducated, unknown at that time."

This is why, as we are called by Jesus, we need each other. We need to be in community. We can see Jesus best by His reflection in ourselves and in each other. If we cannot speak to one another about the call of Jesus in our lives, we might not recognize Him at all! It is in our prayers for each other, in our love for each other, that we truly recognize Jesus.

It is still painful and difficult for me to reach out. But if I want to expand the reach of Jesus in my life, I must challenge myself to embrace others, from all walks of life. We are called to treat everyone we meet as a son or daughter of God! 


We are all called to follow Jesus, yes. But we are also called to be "fishers of men", like Jesus. And so, I have become a Great Collector of People. Today, in my life, there is my house painter who is Russian, my carpenter who is Jamaican, the lady who comes to help me around the house who is Polish, my best girlfriend who is from Eastern Europe, two other best girlfriends who are each part Native American. I treat everyone as family.

There is some risk, and often a great deal of challenge in responding to the call of Jesus. In Mark 1: 19-20, James and his brother John, upon hearing Jesus' call, leave their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men, and follow Jesus. To follow Jesus, we must leave our comfortable life behind and "get out of the boat".

We may also have to leave our "fathers"-- that is, to leave our past behind, in order to become a follower of Jesus. Even as a young child, I was beginning to realize that my family had a very tortured sense of the world. As young as age six, I found myself wondering, 'What kind if family did I get?'

As I matured, I found that sometimes, I had to choose between my family's ways and Jesus' Way. That was painful. It still is.  I had to literally leave my father-- and my mother-- behind, and turn to a new Way. But I did not have to forge my way alone. I had Jesus to follow and emulate.

I also have God, who is always there! God, May I see Your gentle and loving ways in everyone I meet.

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