New Wineskins and vocational Freedom

(Lk 5:33-39)

Fasting is a regenerative principle that has a unique healing power, both detoxifying and essential. It activates the energies of humanity and at the same time of diversity.

This silent practice addresses the deep layers, the internal dimension, which becomes the guide and we risk ignoring.

Fasting was a sign of profound religiosity, therefore the disciples of Jesus - who did not fast, on the contrary their life had a festive character - were more or less assimilated to sinners.

Although there were no formal prescriptions, in observant circles it was pious practices that had become customary [linked to precisely marked days].

In Semitic beliefs, fasting was in particular expressive of the embarrassment and affliction of the devout man in the expectation of the Messianic times, which were delaying.

This is why Jesus associates fasting with mourning. It no longer has meaning in life as the unhindered wedding feast that He inaugurates.

Fasting remains as a sign of waiting for fulfillment, but now sadness no longer has any decisive relevance.

In the time of the Church that makes the Risen present, the renunciation of gorging is not a form of penance but of Hope (v.35).

And it serves to keep the hearts of Bridegroom’s friends clear of vanities, with a form of identification with the poor.

In other communities, the Judaizers tried to reduce the pure Faith - foundation and enthusiastic participation - to whatever beliefs and practices [that didn’t make everyone feel free and adequate].

In fact, a large part of the Jews converted to Christ were inclined to nostalgia that resulted in impediment.

Lk encourages the converts of his fraternities, coming from mixed and unregulated beliefs - to face the opinion of the strictest religious traditions.

Even today the Lord's proposal stands out - because it doesn’t claim to prepare the Kingdom, but rather welcomes and listens to it.

It will be Christ-in-us alone to nourish us towards an uninterrupted and growing way, in the commitment to start afresh in the task of finding ourselves and emancipating the world - in a climate of austerity, balanced.

The Call of the Gospels remains respectful, concrete and strongly prophetic at the same time, because it arouses attention to people, to reality, and our joy - much more than to unsolicited standards of improvement, or other patches (v.36).

By not overwhelming or imposing artificial loads on believers, the life of Faith brings freedom into play [and thus makes it known to us] so that we become aware and assume it in order to be able to invest as Grace, charge and resource of novelty.

The renouncing and mortifying mechanisms, of individualistic perfection, are alien from the start - unless they are designed for the sharing of goods.

Jesus doesn’t come to make a small group of followers seated on the chair of austerity, but to communicate that the relationship with God is a celebration.

Fasting pleasing to the Father lies in the lucid experience of one's own unrepeatable eccentricity and Call, in freeing oneself from the selfishness that holds back, and in bringing relief to one's neighbor.

For this reason the Church has almost completely abolished the precept of external fasting, while it intends to commit more to forms of limitation in favor of the uncertain, humble and needy.

To internalize and live the message:

Do you practice fasting? From what? And for what purpose?

[Friday 22th wk. in O.T.  September 6, 2024]

(Lk 5:33-39)

The old customs cannot always be combined with the Newness brought by the Lord; indeed, it is not infrequently necessary to know how to separate things.

Lk confronts the opinion of the few messianics in his communities, who wanted to take the Master's proposal back to the common Jewish roots from which they themselves came.

While appreciating the ancient custom, rich in attractive and even enchanting forms, he rather comforts his church members from paganism.

With his catechesis, the evangelist wants to prevent that in the small fraternities then in their infancy, the return of the seduction emanating from the old religious certainties could prevail over the full manifestation of the power of life inaugurated - in the authentic call of God.

Fasting has travelled through all religious and mystical traditions, because it is intended to bring women and men closer to their own profound essence - to listening to themselves, to the codes of the sacred, to the inner cosmos, to their own vocation, to the sacred pages - in the expectation of transformation.

One entrusts oneself to a different wisdom - less noisy - that can activate processes of metamorphosis, precisely by making a void from the intrusions of homologated thought, from external habits or conformisms that tend to overwhelm the personality.

By detaching, the torments will vanish, replaced by other interests and lucid dreams; aroused by the new breakthrough to our eternal side, and by that reliance on the core of being that is still creating us.

Psycho-physical and supernatural unity is a prodigious organism, which can clear away the fog and enhance its capacities with various forms of suspension and cleansing, even mental cleansing - which will take us where we need to go.

But in the specifics of the children of God, all this is aimed at sharpening the gaze in the sense of knowledge, discovery, surprise of unsuspected singular and missionary capacities and qualities. Those that flow from the discovery of the eminent Self, from one's own founding Relationship - to become uniqueness of exceptional relationship with others, in the Exodus that corresponds to us.

Fasting is a principle of regeneration that has a unique healing power, both detoxifying and essential. It activates the energies of one's humanity and at the same time one's diversity.

This silent practice addresses the deep layers, the inner dimension, which become the guide (and we risk ignoring).

But here, understanding dissimilarities remains indispensable. For us, it is a gesture of openness!

Other kinds of diets or athleticism are not infrequently deviant: their very nonsense brings sadness and even depression.

Fasting remains a sign of waiting for the fulfilment, but now the sadness is meaningless.

In the time of the Church that makes the Risen One present, the renunciation of gorging is not a form of penitence but of hope (v.35).

And it serves to keep the heart of the Bridegroom's friends clear of vanities, with a form of identification with the poor.

But Jesus does not come to make himself a group of followers sitting on the chair of austerity, but to communicate that the relationship with God is a feast!

In short, fasting pleasing to the Father lies in the lucid experience of one's own unique eccentricity and calling, in freeing oneself from the selfishness of grabbing for oneself, and bringing relief to one's neighbour.

It creates life, not diminishes it.

Fasting was a sign of deep religiosity, so Jesus' disciples - who did not fast, indeed their lives had a festive character - were likened more or less to sinners.

Although there were no formal prescriptions, these were pious practices that became customary in observant circles (here seriousness was everything) linked to precisely marked days.

In Semitic beliefs, fasting was in particular expressive of the devout man's embarrassment and affliction in the quivering expectation of the messianic times, which were delayed.

This is why Jesus associates fasting with mourning - which no longer has any meaning in life as the wedding feast without qualms that He inaugurates.

Where precisely there is no need for additions, no need for checks or imprints, marks or distinguishing characteristics.

Nor is the New Covenant a modernisation of moral practices or pious prescriptions that provide an external religious pass.

Everything is in relation to the real presence of the Bridegroom, who does not punish life.

Of course, he who proceeds on the path of emancipation and is not satisfied with a partial Jesus the Bridegroom, already knows in himself what awaits him...

Then (v.35) in the strident confrontation with the religious leaders - clinging to prestige - there is sadness and humiliation to no end. So much for fasting from food.

However, those who have decided to continue on their path of vocational freedom know that they must relive the same events of blatant conflict that pitted the Master against the mentality and authorities of his time; and finally, in such a real encounter with Him, experience the total gift of life (v.35).It will only be the Christ-in-us (even if it is centred and not definitive) that will nourish soul and body in an uninterrupted and growing way.

This with the commitment to start again in the mission of finding ourselves and giving breath to the world.

In an atmosphere of quiet austerity; without artificial brakes.

In the communities of pagan extraction addressed by Luke, there was a strong desire to free the Risen One from fetters (disciplinary fixations, timetables, calendar).

The believers perceived Him to be alive - an accomplice to the new humanising character they were experiencing day by day.

The evangelist wants to orient his assemblies in the Ephesus area [perhaps in the mid-1980s] not to cling to false securities.

They had to take a completely alternative position and not end up like the groups around them, of sectarian extraction.

But even the Judaizers were trying to reduce pure Faith - foundation and enthusiastic participation - to rigid beliefs and any number of practices.

Vicious circles that ended up transmitting old feelings of guilt instead of unusual relational insights.

Indeed, most Jewish converts tended towards nostalgias that were a hindrance and hindrance.

It was precisely such veterans who struggled to embrace the new habitus of freedom, and the full froth of the Gospel, in an enthusiastic manner.

Even today, the Lord's Proposal stands apart from all exclusivist doctrines, full of prescriptions and fulfilments.

His Presence shines through in spirit. And his intimates do not pretend to prepare the Kingdom, but welcome it and listen (with trust in life).

This is what is happening in the time of the pandemic, which is disposing to a less outward, more global fast - considerable but wise.

A fast that can lead humanity to sensitive perception, to a sense of communion, to silence and embrace; to less egocentric and dirigiste impetus. To a deepening - and wholeness.

The Tao Tê Ching (v) writes: "The space between Heaven and Earth, how it resembles a bellows!".

Master Wang Pi comments: 'If the bellows had a will of its own in blowing, it could not implement the intent of the one who makes it blow'.

And Master Ho-shang Kung adds: "Many endeavours harm the spirit".

In short, Christ treasures natural wisdom and does not reduce us to the measure of just any religion: he does not confine believers in "negotiations" through petty procedures of athleticism and individual perfection.

He does not insist on heroic mortifications, extraordinary renunciations, punctilious observance of sterile - one-sided - laws, unless they are designed in order to find each other, to humanise, to share goods.

The Call of the Gospels remains at once balanced, concrete and strongly prophetic.

A call that arouses attention to people, to reality, to our joy - far more than unsolicited (stoic) aseptic polishing standards or other patches (v.36).

By neither overwhelming nor imposing artificial burdens on believers, the life of Faith brings self-determination into play.

Thus it makes it known to us - so that we become aware of it and take it on in order to be able to invest it as Grace, charge (not diminish): a resource of newness.

The ascetical mechanisms of individualist refinement are alien from the outset: the goal is to create family, not to carve out a circle of hard and pure (all external and proud of themselves) who distance themselves from weaker brothers and sisters.

Then, self-satisfied, they become disloyal, usurpers, schemers: a history of flaws, equivocal plots and pastoral delays, behind an impeccable façade of cerebral doctrines, disciplines (in their own way) and resounding commemorations over the body of the 'poor departed'.

This is why the Church has almost completely abolished the precept of outward fasting, while it intends to make a greater commitment to forms of restraint in favour of the sick, marginalised, humble and needy.

The choice wants to remain clear: freedom is priceless.

And there is no love if someone (be it even God) cuts or overpowers the other, imposing artificial yokes, too much the same as always; unbearable, freakish, unhealthy.

So the old containers are no longer to be matched with the new ferment. The practice of patching damages both custom and the Newness of God.

Certainly, old wine and cassocks have a fascinating attraction for the senses and the vintage epidermal imagination...

That is why they continue to appeal [v.39: "The old is excellent!"]. Not a few want to combine him with the Lord (Mk 2:22; Mt 9:17; Lk 5:37-38).

The Master was not per se an opponent of the spirit of the old man, but he fought against its rinds, which in fact prevented the manifestation of an unseen Face of God, of a more genuine idea of a successful man - the germ of an alternative, fraternal society.

Realities well separated from the intimist or self-referential ones typical of official or do-it-yourself cults. All innovations that had to manifest themselves.The taste and aftertaste of old wine cloak devotional rites and seasoned customs with artfulness, affectation and evocative charm, but they plant us there and do not scratch life; they remind us, but they do not memorialise - that is, they do not re-actualise for us.

In the practice of the many provincial cults, in its catechetical endeavours without pastoral nerve, we have noticed for decades a mechanical pre-conciliar regurgitation, which stops at the great icons.

Wonders and memories of Salvation History... that's it. It seemed easier to local leaders to go back to customs and abbreviated catechisms than to face the educational risk (which the Magisterium itself would impose).

The immediate result was deemed palatable and profitable, for the (underneath) fundamentalist and astute sector - willingly supplanting the unknown effervescence of the new wine.

In fact, on the part of those who know 'how to be in the world', one still has to suffer a whole superficiality of retreats and habitual accommodations, which redeem no one and bring no joy, because they do not enter into human affairs.

Settling for the fish menu on Fridays. Genuine superfluity.

But those who stop at the past of mortifications and papier-mâché can never understand the Reformation that the Spirit proposes to edify each soul in the (authentic) fulfilment that holds us better to one another.

Thus the old containers are no longer to be coupled with the new ferment.

The practice of patching can on the one hand damage the customs, because they have their own refined and pronounced taste (pertinent in itself) - on the other hand it distracts and attenuates life in the change, in the Newness of God.

In short, the Lord does not intend for us a practice of mending and enclosing boundaries: rather, He wants to break cages.

To internalise and live the message:

Do you fast? From what? And for what purpose? Does it break the cages? Is it or is it not in order to know each other, find each other, and listen, heal, share, embrace, hold each other better?

What inner conflicts do you experience around religious practices that you feel still bring suffering to people and are not a spousal expression or a reason for emancipation for women and men?

What image of God and believing humanity is subject to preconceptions and prohibitions? How do you demonstrate the primacy of Jesus in every area of life?

In the New Testament, Jesus brings to light the profound motive for fasting, condemning the attitude of the Pharisees, who scrupulously observed the prescriptions of the law, but whose hearts were far from God. True fasting, as the divine Master repeats elsewhere, is rather to do the will of the Heavenly Father, who “sees in secret, and will reward you” (Mt 6,18). He Himself sets the example, answering Satan, at the end of the forty days spent in the desert that “man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God” (Mt 4,4). The true fast is thus directed to eating the “true food,” which is to do the Father’s will (cf. Jn 4,34). If, therefore, Adam disobeyed the Lord’s command “of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat,” the believer, through fasting, intends to submit himself humbly to God, trusting in His goodness and mercy.

The practice of fasting is very present in the first Christian community (cf. Acts 13,3; 14,22; 27,21; 2 Cor 6,5). The Church Fathers, too, speak of the force of fasting to bridle sin, especially the lusts of the “old Adam,” and open in the heart of the believer a path to God. Moreover, fasting is a practice that is encountered frequently and recommended by the saints of every age. Saint Peter Chrysologus writes: “Fasting is the soul of prayer, mercy is the lifeblood of fasting. So if you pray, fast; if you fast, show mercy; if you want your petition to be heard, hear the petition of others. If you do not close your ear to others, you open God’s ear to yourself” (Sermo 43: PL 52, 320. 322).

In our own day, fasting seems to have lost something of its spiritual meaning, and has taken on, in a culture characterized by the search for material well-being, a therapeutic value for the care of one’s body. Fasting certainly bring benefits to physical well-being, but for believers, it is, in the first place, a “therapy” to heal all that prevents them from conformity to the will of God. In the Apostolic Constitution Pænitemini of 1966, the Servant of God Paul VI saw the need to present fasting within the call of every Christian to “no longer live for himself, but for Him who loves him and gave himself for him … he will also have to live for his brethren“ (cf. Ch. I). Lent could be a propitious time to present again the norms contained in the Apostolic Constitution, so that the authentic and perennial significance of this long held practice may be rediscovered, and thus assist us to mortify our egoism and open our heart to love of God and neighbor, the first and greatest Commandment of the new Law and compendium of the entire Gospel (cf. Mt 22, 34-40).

The faithful practice of fasting contributes, moreover, to conferring unity to the whole person, body and soul, helping to avoid sin and grow in intimacy with the Lord. Saint Augustine, who knew all too well his own negative impulses, defining them as “twisted and tangled knottiness” (Confessions, II, 10.18), writes: “I will certainly impose privation, but it is so that he will forgive me, to be pleasing in his eyes, that I may enjoy his delightfulness” (Sermo 400, 3, 3: PL 40, 708). Denying material food, which nourishes our body, nurtures an interior disposition to listen to Christ and be fed by His saving word. Through fasting and praying, we allow Him to come and satisfy the deepest hunger that we experience in the depths of our being: the hunger and thirst for God.

At the same time, fasting is an aid to open our eyes to the situation in which so many of our brothers and sisters live. In his First Letter, Saint John admonishes: “If anyone has the world’s goods, and sees his brother in need, yet shuts up his bowels of compassion from him – how does the love of God abide in him?” (3,17). Voluntary fasting enables us to grow in the spirit of the Good Samaritan, who bends low and goes to the help of his suffering brother (cf. Encyclical Deus caritas est, 15). By freely embracing an act of self-denial for the sake of another, we make a statement that our brother or sister in need is not a stranger. It is precisely to keep alive this welcoming and attentive attitude towards our brothers and sisters that I encourage the parishes and every other community to intensify in Lent the custom of private and communal fasts, joined to the reading of the Word of God, prayer and almsgiving. From the beginning, this has been the hallmark of the Christian community, in which special collections were taken up (cf. 2 Cor 8-9; Rm 15, 25-27), the faithful being invited to give to the poor what had been set aside from their fast (Didascalia Ap., V, 20,18). This practice needs to be rediscovered and encouraged again in our day, especially during the liturgical season of Lent.

From what I have said thus far, it seems abundantly clear that fasting represents an important ascetical practice, a spiritual arm to do battle against every possible disordered attachment to ourselves. Freely chosen detachment from the pleasure of food and other material goods helps the disciple of Christ to control the appetites of nature, weakened by original sin, whose negative effects impact the entire human person. Quite opportunely, an ancient hymn of the Lenten liturgy exhorts: “Utamur ergo parcius, / verbis cibis et potibus, / somno, iocis et arctius / perstemus in custodia – Let us use sparingly words, food and drink, sleep and amusements. May we be more alert in the custody of our senses.”

Dear brothers and sisters, it is good to see how the ultimate goal of fasting is to help each one of us, as the Servant of God Pope John Paul II wrote, to make the complete gift of self to God (cf. Encyclical Veritatis splendor, 21).

[Pope Benedict, Message for Lent 2009]

1. "Sanctify a fast!" (Joel 1:14). They are the words that we listened to in the first reading on Ash Wednesday. They were written by the Prophet Joel, and the Church establishes the practice of Lent in conformity with them, ordering fasting. Today the practice of Lent, defined by Paul VI in the Constitution "Poenitemini ", is considerably reduced as compared with practices of the past. In this matter the Pope left a great deal to the decision of the Episcopal Conferences of the individual countries. They, therefore, have the task of adapting the requirements of fasting according to the circumstances that prevail in their respective societies. He also recalled that the essence of Lenten repentance consists not only of fasting, but also of prayer and almsdeeds (works of mercy). So it is necessary to decide according to circumstances, since fasting itself can be "replaced" by works of mercy and prayer. The aim of this particular period in the life of the Church is always and everywhere repentance, that is, conversion to God. Repentance, in fact, understood as conversion, that is "metanoia", forms a whole, which the tradition of the People of God already in the old Covenant and then Christ himself linked, in a certain way, with prayer, almsdeeds and fasting.

Why fasting?

At this moment there perhaps come into our minds the words with which Jesus answered the disciples of John the Baptist when they asked him: "Why do your disciples not fast?" Jesus answered: "Can the wedding guests mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them? The days will come, when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast" (Mt 9:15). In fact the time of Lent reminds us that the bridegroom has been taken away from us. Taken away, arrested, imprisoned, slapped, scourged, crowned with thorns, crucified... Fasting in the time of Lent is the expression of our solidarity with Christ. Such was the meaning of Lent throughout the centuries and such it remains today.

"My love has been crucified and there is no longer in me the flame that desires material things", as the Bishop of Antioch, Ignatius, writes in the letter to the Romans (Ign. Antioch,. Ad Romanos VII, 2).

2. Why fasting?

It is necessary to give this question a wider and deeper answer, in order to clarify the relationship between fasting and "metanoia", that is, that spiritual change which brings man closer to God. We will try therefore to concentrate not only on the practice of abstention from food or from drink

— that, in fact, is the meaning of "fasting" in the common sense — but on the deeper meaning of this practice which, moreover, can and must sometimes be "replaced" by another one. Food and drink are indispensable for man to live, he uses them and must use them, but he may not abuse them in any way. The traditional abstention from food and drink has as its purpose to introduce into man's existence not only the necessary balance, but also detachment from what might be defined a "consumer attitude". In our times this attitude has become one of the characteristics of civilization and in particular of Western civilization. The consumer attitude!

Man geared to material goods, multiple material goods, very often abuses them. It is not a question here lust of food and drink. When man is geared exclusively to possession and use of material goods

— that is, of things — then also the whole civilization is measured according to the quantity and the quality of the things with which it is in a position to supply man, and is not measured with the yardstick suitable for man. This civilization, in fact, supplies material goods not just in order that they may serve man to carry out creative and useful activities, but more and more... to satisfy the senses, the excitement he derives from them, momentary pleasure, an ever greater multiplicity of sensations.

We sometimes hear it said that the excessive increase of audiovisual media in the rich countries is not always useful for the development of intelligence, particularly in children; on the contrary, it sometimes contributes to checking its development. The child lives only on sensations, he looks for ever-new sensations... And thus he becomes, without realizing it, a slave of this modern passion. Satiating himself with sensations, he often remains passive intellectually; the intellect does not open to search of truth; the will remains bound by habit which it is unable to oppose.

It is seen from this that modern man must fast, that is, abstain not only from food or drink, but from many other means of consumption, stimulation, satisfaction of the senses. To fast means to abstain, to renounce something.

3. Why renounce something? Why deprive oneself of it? We have already partly answered this question. However the answer will not be complete, if we do not realize that man is himself also because he succeeds in depriving himself of something, because he is capable of saying "no" to himself. Man is a being composed of body and soul. Some modern writers present this composite structure of man in the form of layers, and they speak, for example, of exterior layers on the surface of our personality, contrasting them with the layers in depth. Our life seems to be divided into such layers and takes place through them. While the superficial layers are bound up with our sensuality, the deep layers are an expression, on the contrary, of man's spirituality, that is, of conscious will, reflection, conscience, the capacity of living superior values.

This image of the structure of the human personality can serve to understand the meaning of fasting for man. It is not a question here only of the religious meaning, but of a meaning that is expressed through the so-called "organization" of man as a subject-person. Man develops regularly when the deeper layers of his personality find sufficient expression, when the sphere of his interests and aspirations is not limited just to the exterior and superficial layers, connected with human sensuality. To facilitate such a development, we must sometimes deliberately detach ourselves from what serves to satisfy sensuality, that is, from those exterior, superficial layers. Therefore we must renounce every thing that "nourishes" them.

This, in short, is the interpretation of fasting nowadays.

Renunciation of sensations, stimuli, pleasures and even food or drink, is not an end in itself. It must only, so to speak, prepare the way for deeper contents by which the interior man "is nourished". This renunciation, this mortification must serve to create in man the conditions to be able to live the superior values, for which he, in his own way, hungers.

This is the "full" meaning of fasting in the language of today. However, when we read the Christian authors of antiquity or the Fathers of the Church, we find in them the same truth, often expressed in a surprisingly "modern" language. St Peter Chrysologus, for example, says.. "Fasting is peace of the body, strength of minds, vigour of souls" (Sermo VII: de jejunio 3); and again: "Fasting is the helm of human life and governs the whole ship of our body." (Sermo VII: de jejunio 1.)

And St Ambrose replies as follows to possible objections to fasting: "The flesh, because of its mortal condition, has some specific lusts: With regard to them you are granted the right to curb them. Your flesh is under you...: do not follow the promptings of the flesh to unlawful things, but curb them somewhat even as regards lawful ones. In fact he who does not abstain from any of the lawful things, is also very close to unlawful things." (Sermo de utilitate jejunii III.V.VII). Also writers not belonging to Christianity declare the same truth. This truth is of universal significance. It is part of the universal wisdom of life.

4. It is now certainly easier for us to understand why Christ the Lord and the Church unite the call to fasting with repentance, that is, with conversion. To be converted to God, it is necessary to discover in ourselves that which makes us sensitive to what belongs to God; therefore, the spiritual contents, the superior values which speak to our intellect, to our conscience, to our "heart" (according to biblical language). To open up to these spiritual contents, to these values, it is necessary to detach oneself from what serves only the consumer spirit, satisfaction of the senses. In the opening of our human personality to God, fasting

— understood both in the "traditional" way and in the "modern" way — must go hand in hand with prayer because it is addressed directly to him.

Furthermore, fasting, that is, the mortification of the senses, mastery of the  body, confer on prayer a greater efficacy, which man discovers in himself. He discovers, in fact, that he is "different", that he is more "master of himself", that he has become interiorly free. And he realizes this in as much as conversion and the meeting with God, through prayer, bear fruit in him.

It is clear from these our reflections today that fasting is not only a "vestige" of a religious practice of past centuries, but that it is also indispensable for the man of today, for Christians of our time.

[Pope John Paul II, General Audience 21 March 1979]

But what kind of penance and fasting does the Lord want from man? The risk, in fact, is of 'rigging' a virtuous practice, of being 'inconsistent'. And it is not just a question of "food choices", but of lifestyles for which one must have the "humility" and "consistency" to recognise and correct one's sins.

This is in short the reflection that, at the beginning of the Lenten journey, the Pontiff proposed to the faithful during the Mass celebrated at Santa Marta on the morning of Friday 16 February.

Key word of the meditation, suggested by the liturgy of the day, was "fasting": "Fasting before God, fasting that is adoration, fasting in earnest", because "fasting is one of the tasks to be done in Lent". But not in the sense of those who say: 'I only eat the Lenten dishes'. In fact, Francis commented, 'those dishes make a banquet! It is not changing dishes or making fish one way, the other, tastier'. Otherwise, one does nothing but 'continue the carnival'.

It is the word of God, he emphasised, that admonishes that 'our fasting be true. True in earnest'. And, he added, 'if you cannot do total fasting, the kind that makes one feel hungry to the bone', at least 'do a humble but true fast'.

In the first reading (Isaiah 58:1-9), in this regard, "the prophet points out many inconsistencies in the practice of virtue". And precisely "this is one of the inconsistencies". Isaiah's list is detailed: 'You say that you seek me, you speak to me. But it is not true', and 'on the day of your fasting you mind your own business': that is, while 'fasting is a little stripping', you are concerned with 'making money'. And again: 'Angariate all your workers': in other words, the Pope explained, while one says: 'I thank you Lord that I can fast', one despises the workers who 'must fast because they have no food'. The prophet's accusation is direct: "Behold, you fast amid quarrels and altercations and striking with unjust fists.

This is an inadmissible double face. The Pontiff explained: "If you want to do penance, do it in peace. But you cannot on the one hand speak with God and on the other speak with the devil, invite both to fast; this is an inconsistency". And, always following the indications of Scripture - "Do not fast any longer as you do today, so that your noise may be heard on high" - Francis warned against incoherent exhibitionism. It is the attitude of those who, for example, always remind us: 'we are Catholics, we practise; I belong to that association, we always fast, we do penance'. He ideally asked them: "But, do you fast consistently or do you do penance inconsistently as the Lord says, with noise, so that everyone sees it, and says, 'What a righteous person, what a righteous man, what a righteous woman'?" This, indeed, "is a trick; it is rigging virtue. It is rigging the commandment'. And it is, he added, a "temptation" that we have all felt at times, "to make up instead of being serious about virtue, about what the Lord asks of us".

On the contrary, the Lord "advises penitents, those who fast, to put on make-up, but seriously: 'Fast, but put on make-up so that people do not see that you are doing penance. Smile, be happy". Faced with so many who "are hungry and cannot smile", this is the suggestion to the believer: "You seek hunger to help others, but always with a smile, because you are a child of God and the Lord loves you so much and has revealed these things to you. But without inconsistency'.

At this point, the Pontiff's reflection went even deeper, prompted by the question: "what fast does the Lord want?". The answer comes again from Scripture, where first of all we read: 'Fold your head like a reed'. That is: to humble oneself. And to those who ask: "How do I humble myself?", the Pope replied: "But think of your sins. Each one of us has many. And 'be ashamed', because even if the world does not know them, God knows them well. This, then, 'is the fast the Lord wants: truth, consistency'.

There is then an addition: "Undo the unrighteous chains" and "remove the bond of the yoke". The examination of conscience, in this case, focuses on the relationship with others. To make himself better understood, the Pope gave a very practical example: "I think of so many maids who earn their bread with their work" and who are often "humiliated, despised". Here his reflection left room for personal recollection: "Never have I been able to forget a time when I went to a friend's house as a child. I saw my mother slap the maid. Eighty-one years old... I have not forgotten that'. Hence a series of questions ideally addressed to those who have servants: 'How do you treat them? As people or as slaves? Do you pay them fairly, do you give them holidays? Is it a person or is it an animal that helps you in your home?". A request for consistency that also applies to religious, "in our homes, in our institutions: how do I behave with the maid I have at home, with the maids I have at home?" Here the Pontiff added another personal experience, recalling a "very cultured" gentleman who, however, "exploited the maids". and who, when confronted with the consideration that this was "a grave sin" against people who are "the image of God", objected: "No, Father, we must distinguish: these are inferior people".

We must therefore 'remove the bond of the yoke, loosen the iniquitous chains, set the oppressed free, break every yoke'. And, commenting on the prophet who admonishes: "share your bread with the hungry, bring in the wretched, the homeless", the Pope contextualised: "Today we discuss whether or not we give shelter to those who come to ask for it..."

And the indications continue: "Clothe one you see naked", but "without neglecting your relatives". This is real fasting, the kind that involves everyday life. "We need to do penance, we need to feel some hunger, we need to pray more," Francis said; but if "we do a lot of penance" and do not live fasting in this way, "the sprout that will be born from there" will be "pride", that of one who says: "I thank you, Lord, because I can fast like a saint". And this, he added, "is the ugly trick", not what Jesus himself suggests "so that others do not see that I fast" (cf. Matthew, 6:16-18).

The question to ask, the Pontiff concluded, is: "How do I behave with others? Does my fasting come to help others?". Because if this does not happen, that fast "is fake, it is incoherent and leads you down the path of a double life". One must, therefore, "humbly ask for the grace of consistency."

[Pope Francis, s. Marta, in L'Osservatore Romano 17/02/2018]

XXI Sunday in Ordinary Time  B  (25 August 2024)

1. On this XXI Sunday of Ordinary Time the Gospel concludes the discourse on the bread of life that Jesus gave in the synagogue of Capernaum. St John does not narrate after the Last Supper the institution of the Eucharist as the synoptics do, but he develops here a long catechesis on the Eucharist probably addressed to the first Christian communities that were experiencing many divisions and contrasts internally, while from outside they were persecuted because of their conversion to Christ. The discourse closes with Jesus' invitation to make a decision and this constitutes an essential motive, a real provocation, similar to what we read in the first reading from the book of Joshua, where the people, having finally reached the promised land, are provoked by Joshua to decide: "If it seems evil in your eyes to serve the Lord, choose today whom you will serve". Similarly, the listeners in Capernaum are put to the wall by Jesus: surely what he says is hard to understand and take in, but one must choose whether to accept or reject, abandon him or follow him, trusting him totally. Here is the inescapable question that the Lord addresses to every believer because the mystery of the Eucharist constitutes the heart and the provocation of Christianity. We are at the paradox of faith: Jesus pronounces words that from a human point of view are incomprehensible and unacceptable, and yet they give life. What to do then? To leave and abandon him like so many, or to let oneself be attracted by Christ and, like the apostles, choose to follow him? Peter on behalf of all proclaims: "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have words of eternal life. We have believed and we know that you are the Holy One of God'. For the Christian, every Eucharistic celebration, ever present memory of Christ's sacrifice on the cross, is a provocation to renew this adherence of faith. To the term "Eucharistic celebration", which has now entered the language of contemporary theological discourse, must always be joined and underlined that of the sacrifice of the cross. The Protestant world willingly agrees with the term Eucharistic celebration but refuses to speak of the sacrifice of the cross made present and actual on the altar. And so, with the change in liturgical vocabulary, one could risk diminishing our faith as well. I have encountered priests who have unfortunately abandoned the Holy Eucharist as a sacrament, and the Mass for them is not the sacrifice of the Cross, but a service to the people to unify them and urge them to commit themselves to justice, solidarity and peace. It is necessary to return often to this page of John's Gospel that has guided the spirituality of centuries urging a simple and profound faith in the Eucharistic mystery before which one must let the words of Christ nourish and penetrate one's heart without pretending to be able to understand them and then explain them. This is the great lesson of the Eucharist: it is not in books that we can find the explanation of the Mystery. We can only welcome as a gift the bread of life without pretending to understand it all. By adoring and celebrating the Eucharist with faith we allow Christ to live in us and to lead us as and when he wishes into the heart of this mystery of Trinitarian Life that in the Eucharist totally envelops us and transforms us.

2. In truth one can easily realise that the whole of the fourth gospel revolves around the fundamental question for the Christian: do I believe or do I not believe? If Jesus is truly the promised Messiah, the Son of God, it is foolishness, even folly, not to welcome with wonder and gratitude the gift of himself that, without any merit on our part, God the Holy Trinity gives us in the consecrated bread and wine. Jesus had already insisted: 'My words are spirit and life; but there are some among you who do not believe' and - the evangelist specifies - 'Jesus in fact knew from the beginning who were those who did not believe and who it was who would betray him'. True, from that moment some, indeed several, abandoned him and it is at this point that Peter, on behalf of the Twelve, renews the adherence of our faith. All this takes place in Capernaum and one wonders why the evangelist considers it useful to specify it three times, in verses 17, 24, 59, if the paschal mystery, the betrayal, death and resurrection of Christ are consummated in Jerusalem. The reason is because it is precisely in Capernaum, in Galilee, on this occasion that Jesus announces his passion and the abandonment of some occurs that foreshadows and prefigures the drama of the cross. Jesus is rejected by many, the crowd of over five thousand who had witnessed the multiplication of the loaves and fishes leaves, and only the Twelve decide to stay with Christ.  Unlike the synoptic gospels, Saint John neither recounts Peter's profession of faith at Caesarea Philippi, nor does he report the announcements of the passion. There is, however, the equivalent here: the announcement of the passion is contained in these words: 'the bread that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world' while Peter's profession of faith is inherent in these words: 'Lord, to whom shall we go? You have words of eternal life. We have believed and we know that you are the Holy One of God".

4. The discourse closes with Jesus' dramatic announcement: 'Is it not I who have chosen you, the Twelve? Yet one of you is a devil!" And the evangelist comments: "He was speaking of Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot; for he was about to betray him, and he was one of the Twelve". When one thinks of Judas, one considers him to be thirsty for money and power, but one does not consider that the first time his betrayal is mentioned is precisely when Jesus announces the Eucharist and his story is linked to the Passover of the Jews: the first announcement of the Eucharist takes place on the occasion of the first Passover and the institution of the Eucharist takes place on the occasion of another, his last Passover. It is true: the first rupture in Judas' soul occurs when Jesus announces the gift of his body and blood as the food of life and the betrayal was fulfilled when during the Last Supper when Jesus instituted the Eucharist. The first time Judas appears as the betrayer is precisely when Jesus revealed himself as the bread of life. On that occasion, there were three types of abandonment and detachment from Christ: The crowd abandons him because Jesus refuses to proclaim himself as a king capable of ensuring material well-being and instead proclaims himself as the bread of life; many of the disciples also abandon him because they consider the Eucharist to be a scandal; the Twelve remain, but not all of them: Judas from that moment on enters into the diabolic plan. There is here a lesson not to be underestimated by us, priests at the service of the Christian people. The Eucharist is linked to the life and mission of the priest, his faithfulness and holiness as well as his fall and betrayal are connected to his relationship with the Eucharist. The first weakening of a priest's life begins when he begins to neglect the love, devotion, visible spiritual care with which he loves, adores, cares for and celebrates the Mass, when the sensitivity of his love for the Blessed Sacrament, of which he is the instituted custodian and faithful servant, fades to the point of disappearance. Let us pray for the fidelity of priests!

+ Giovanni D'Ercole

‘Fishing’ to life. Weekday Attraction and attention

(Lk 5:1-11)

The episode of the Call of the disciples in Lk indicates the attraction of the Jesus Word - which acts in us, as a sort of eminent Self.

In the relationship of Faith, friendship and spousal trust become more decisive than what the common mentality and normal beliefs suggest to the lower self.

Therefore, those who lead the Church must move away from the "shore" that they know, and have the obligation to lead «into the depths» (v.4) even of the waves.

In the Semitic culture the sea is a symbol of chaos, death, the demonic, the forces contrary to life. It’s the context in which one drowns.

The Mission is «to bring out alive» (v.10) men overwhelmed by putrid sewage, submerged by impetuous waves; dragged to the bottom, to abysmal depths, by the violence of inhuman forces.

The Greek verb doesn’t indicate «to fish» but rather «to capture alive», «take to keep alive», therefore «bring to life»: recover to the light, to the breath; being lifted up from polluted and suffocating depths.

Carrying on the work of the Master means helping people involved in deadly contexts, overwhelmed by eddies and waves that drag them down, so that they can dive into a water that is no longer cloudy, but healthy.

Work that is configured in the plural synergy of the ‘churches’, because none of them can be complete on its own (v.7).

Despite the uncertainties and the perhaps unsuitable hour, believing that the Word of Christ can accomplish the impossible is worth more than skill and opinion.

Ready or not, that Logos will make happen what it says.

Here is the manifestation of the strength and action of the Faith, not of common logic - when the Appeal of God becomes decisive in the choices.

A Call that bursts into chaos, with an humanizing charge and total novelty: it allows another ‘power’ to enter the world; discreet, but which does what says.

Here the solution of problems does not deny the human capacity, but rather tries to make it speak - in the discomforts of all, in listening to the symptoms, in giving him full voice: they are spies who already know in themselves what’s wrong (v.8).

Thus involved, we will understand why the Lord does not disdain the extravagances of the transgressors.

If even for us every day seems the same, by inserting this non-conformist Novelty of Light into frustrations and fatigue, we will breathe and make any work clear, marked and fruitful.

We will understand the vocation of Jesus, who teaches in every place and to each one - making inexplicable recoveries.

From «Master» (v.5) to «Lord» (v.8): the inner Friend becomes a presence, an intimate relationship, a system of recognition and self-esteem; support not external, and trampoline.

Principle and Engine of Peace, fullness of being, recklessness and following (vv. 10-11) - therefore Announcement, imagination, incisiveness and conciliation.

Without effort, we will be able to slip away the opinions conditioning nature and the Call itself.

To internalize and live the message:

What was the impulse that pressed you, and gave you fruit?

What has been your experience of expanded perspectives on the world, and inexplicable recovery?

Do you believe that all this can also happen in the time of the global crisis?

[Thursday 22th wk. in O.T.  September 5, 2024]

«Fishing», bringing to life. Attraction and attention (weekdays)

(Lk 5:1-11)

The episode of the Calling of the disciples in Lk indicates the attraction of the Word of Jesus - acting in us, as a kind of eminent Self.

The Call is manifested in a place and on a weekday, not within a sacred precinct, nor on a fixed date (of official and public rite).

The Message of Christ is not the same as the exclusive Message of the usual synagogue teachers, who addressed an audience of chosen people.

The Lord is for everywhere, and wherever there are unselected people - who wish to hear Him.

Then it is the Church leader himself who is called upon: first to set an example of trust. If so, all others will follow.

The boat is a symbol of the community, from which proclamation and attention to the Word is to be expected.

Strength that becomes an event - despite the fact that the Lord seems to ask for useless and senseless gestures.

In the relationship of Faith, Friendship and spousal trust become more decisive than what the common mentality and normal convictions suggest to the lower self [with the addition of meetings, assemblies, advice, plans, schemes, slavishness to the chain of command, conformist obedience alien to our quintessence; and propaganda, paper, notices].

In order to make the leap and give a blow of wings to reality and the dull man, better than organising and planning is the surrender to the Word, which vibrates in unison with the soul.

The experience of the recovery of others, of closeness - proximity to the divine condition in Jesus, in the power of his Word - makes us understand who we are, and meet ourselves in truth (v.8).

Here, problem-solving does not deny the human bearing, but attempts to make it speak, in the discomforts of all, in listening to their symptoms, in giving them full voice - for they are spies who already know in themselves what is wrong (v.8).

It is the inner fruit of the mission experience: a new and clearer self-awareness, now without removals, which restores naturalness, and in turn opens up new channels of communication.

Respect for common sense, and common opinions, conformist judgments, mechanisms, more logical intentions... does not have the spring of regeneration. This is true even in times of global crisis.

The new birth takes place in transforming that which is obscure or unfinished into that which makes us perceive and know ourselves and the intimate life of the Eternal, helping our brothers, living in symbiosis with the troubles of the people.

Therefore he who leads the Church must depart from the "shore" that he knows, and has the obligation to lead into the "depths" [v.4 Greek text] even of the waves.

In Semitic culture, the sea is a symbol of chaos, of death, of the demonic, of forces contrary to life. It is the context in which one drowns.

The fish are well in the water, and are not happy about being pulled out. But in the water, men are not so comfortable, especially when the sea is dark and rough.

The Mission is "to bring out alive" [v.10 Greek text] men overwhelmed by putrid sewage, submerged by raging waves, dragged to the bottom (to abysmal depths) by the violence of inhuman forces.

The Greek verb does not indicate a 'catching' but a 'catching alive', the 'catching to keep alive', hence 'to bring to life': to recover to light, to breath; to be thrust beyond the polluted abysses that suffocate the destitute awaiting compassion.

To be lifted out of the gloomy context of inner and outer impediments that bridle existence and dampen development.

To be guided where life neither attenuates nor drowns: grasped and raised to freedom and fulfilment; emancipated, placed in a pure, qualitatively relational sphere, animated by a spirit of integral well-being.

Carrying on the Master's work means helping people to exist intensely; recovering people caught up in deadly contexts, swept away by eddies and waves that drag down - so that they can dive into water that is no longer murky but healthy.

Alongside adherence to the Calling that corresponds to our deepest essence, it is this activity of recovery that enables us to overcome the sense of inadequacy, producing a superabundance of freedom and virtue.

A work that is configured in the plural synergy of the churches, because none of them can make itself complete on its own (v.7).

The common goal of mission for the benefit of mankind makes the particular denominations overcome any distinction or division, any conflict between fraternities of faith.

Despite the uncertainties and the perhaps unsuitable hour, believing that the Word of Christ can achieve the impossible is worth more than skill and opinion. 

Ready or not, on time or off the right time (and perhaps already unfulfilled by failure: v.5) that Logos remains the hinge of communion between different realities - and will make what it claims happen.Here, in fact, is the manifestation of the power and action of Faith going forward, with its different bearing with respect to common logic - when surrendering to God's Call becomes decisive in the choices, and launching oneself. 

A call that bursts into chaos, with a humanising charge, of total novelty: it allows another power to enter the world, one that is discreet but finally realises what it says.

It does not belong to the sphere of programmes or subsequent 'remedies'! We will then understand why the Lord does not disdain the extravagances of the transgressors.

If, for us too, every day seems the same, by inserting this Newness of non-conformist Light into our frustrations and fatigue, we will give breath and make any work sharp, marked and fruitful. 

We will understand the Vocation of Jesus, who teaches everywhere and to everyone - making inexplicable recoveries.

He continues to address not only 'his' audience of the elect, predestined to the sacred; seemingly all of a piece, undaunted and chosen. But who at times brood to only draw back and elevate themselves.

Let us therefore let slip the opinions conditioning our nature and vocation, by false sirens: it was quite another impulse that pressed us on, broadening our outlook on the world - and bore fruit.

Without effort, we will be able to slip away the opinions conditioning our nature and Calling itself.

On Thy Word, and the symptoms

(Mt 5:5)

The common man rejoices in his achievements, the religious man in his merits, but the person of Faith in his redeemed weakness.

It is precisely when we perceive ourselves to be insufficient that the experience of gratuitousness is an unparalleled source of Happiness.

If we face defeat, the gaze of Faith recovers humiliation into an opportunity for flourishing and better Wealth.

A spirituality that grew far from the balance of the Word of God relied on active virtues and personal voluntarism.

The Father's Dream, on the other hand, is that of the harmonious development of his children, creatures insufficient by nature, not by fault.

We do not have to annihilate ourselves in order to continually overstretch our limits, destroying the load-bearing lines of our personality - with the effort of continually crossing fences.

Sometimes we are unable to understand situations, sometimes we are unable to understand the ends and means to achieve a good result.

Often, even when we do understand what to do, we just can't bring ourselves to impose discipline; and here we all are (not hardened geniuses).

St Thomas said: 'Bonum ex integra causa, malum ex quocumque defectu'. Each creature needs help - we are not omnipotent in the good.

Understanding and implementing all correlations and evaluative balances is beyond our reach: escaping from chasms and uncertainties is pure Gift.

To "draw men up to life" [Lk 5:10: "to catch alive", Greek text] - people submerged by choking waves in poisonous waters - towards light and breath: it reveals God's Project and liberating Action on the whole of humanity.

In order to approach one's own being and that of others with a baptismal outlook, it is therefore appropriate to overlook the sorrow and mysticism of suffering, which in the past has supplanted the sense of acceptance of self, neighbour and events, contained in the Word.

Jacopone da Todi could express himself in a paradoxical way in the lauda 'O Segnor, per cortesia, manname la malsania' [Lord, please send me the sickness].

In his poem, the rigorist lists dozens of common infirmities, and (in spite of this) does not consider them sufficient atonement for our foolish ungratefulness - as if we were the ones who had to console the Eternal at least with a little sugar:

"My lord, it is not vengeance/ all the punishment I have committed:/ for you created me in your beloved/ and I have died to you in villainy".

Terms such as our ingratitude, penance, mortification... are unknown to the Gospels; on the contrary, they formed the fabric of religiosity that still stuns some practising crowds.

Unfortunately, we are talking about the most widespread platform of popular spirituality.

We priests often hear people of prayer ask why they have been punished with a particular thud in life that others do not suffer in such a way.

The Pharisees would remark (just like that): "Blessed is the Just Judge!". As if to say: 'imprudent and sinful have had their due punishment.

"Leave them to their fate, meanwhile let them purify themselves. Not only is it good for them, let us also avoid defiling ourselves!".

Only with Jesus is all this over.

Faced with the defilements, He never emphasised God's will, nor did He say: 'It is your cross...'.

He did not even imagine that someone in a future time might come to put in His mouth the pious advice to 'offer' one's humiliations to Heaven (incredible digression!).

It is the Creator Himself who in the events and in the help of our brothers and sisters offers Himself to us in order to give meaning to our growth, even on difficult terrain; even in moments of discouragement, indifference, failure.

The Father's design is not to crystallise heroes who are indifferent to trauma; die-hards who perfect themselves by exercising resilience.

All in difficulty, arriving at a sterilised - and discouraging - holiness that detaches these 'phenomena' from the earthly family to which we are united in flesh and blood.

The Project of redemption is that we become Sons through a gratuitous practice of Love similar to His; a unique one that discards nothing of our being, but rather recovers and expands it.

There is no religiosity or tactic comparable to the Incarnation; so that it comes to the aid of and transmits life-giving breath - near and familiar - to those who are submerged by waves of death.

With the burden of her extraordinary experience, Annalena Tonelli designated the marginalised and disadvantaged with the eccentric epithet of 'murdered Mozarts'.

Here, the solution to the problems does not deny the human being, but attempts to make him speak; in everyone's imbalances, in listening to their symptoms, in giving them full voice - because they are spies who already know in themselves what is wrong (v.8).

Only on the Word of Jesus will we make inexplicable recoveries - experiencing ourselves authentically.

And we will make the future blossom, "pulling up" those rinds (and the sides we have not given space to) that hide Pearls.

From "Master" (v.5) to "Lord" (v.8): the inner Friend becomes presence, intimate relationship, system of recognition and self-esteem; non-external support, and springboard.

Principle and Engine of Peace, fullness of being, recklessness and following (vv.10-11) - hence Announcement, imagination, incisiveness and conciliation.

As emphasised by Pope Benedict (Angelus 10 February 2013):

"We observe that, before this sign, Simon addresses Jesus calling him "Master" (v. 5), while afterwards he calls him "Lord" (v. 7). This is the pedagogy of God's call, which looks not so much at the qualities of the chosen ones, but at their faith, like that of Simon who says: "On your word I will cast the nets" (v. 5)".

"Dear brothers and sisters, may this Word of God also rekindle in us and in our Christian communities the courage, confidence and impetus to proclaim and bear witness to the Gospel. Let failures and difficulties not lead to discouragement: it is up to us to cast our nets in faith, the Lord will do the rest".

To internalise and live the message:

What opinions conditioning your nature and vocation have you yet to let slip away?

What was the impulse that pressed you on instead, and bore fruit?

What has been your experience of enlarged perspectives on the world, and inexplicable recovery?

Do you believe that this can happen even in times of global crisis?

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

In today’s liturgy, the Gospel according to Luke presents the story of the call of the first disciples, with an original version that differs from that of the other two Synoptic Gospels, Matthew and Mark (cf. Mt 4: 18-22; Mk 1:16-20) . The call, in fact, was preceded by the teaching of Jesus to the crowd and a miraculous catch of fish, carried out by the will of the Lord (Lk 5:1-6). In fact, while the crowd rushes to the shore of Lake Gennesaret to hear Jesus, he sees Simon discouraged because he has caught nothing all night. First Jesus asks to get into Simon’s boat in order to preach to the people standing a short distance from the shore; then, having finished preaching, he commands Simon to go out into the deep with his friends and cast their nets (cf. v. 5). Simon obeys, and they catch an incredible amount of fish. In this way, the evangelist shows how the first disciples followed Jesus, trusting him, relying on his Word, all the while accompanied by miraculous signs. We note that, before this sign, Simon addresses Jesus, calling him “Master” (v. 5), while afterwards he addresses him as “Lord” (v. 7). This is the pedagogy of God’s call, which does not consider the quality of those who are chosen so much as their faith, like that of Simon that says: “At your word, I will let down the nets” (v. 5).

The image of the fish refers to the Church’s mission. St Augustine says in this regard, “Twice the disciples went out to fish at the Lord’s command: once before the Passion and the other time after the Resurrection. In the two scenes of fishing, the entire Church is depicted: the Church as it is now and as it will be after the resurrection of the dead. Now it gathers together a multitude, impossible to number, comprising the good and the bad; after the resurrection, it will include only the good” (Homily 248.1). The experience of Peter, certainly unique, is nonetheless representative of the call of every apostle of the Gospel, who must never be discouraged in proclaiming Christ to all men, even to the ends of the world. However, today’s text is a reflection on the vocation to the priesthood and the consecrated life. It is the work of God. The human person is not the author of his own vocation but responds to the divine call. Human weakness should not be afraid if God calls. It is necessary to have confidence in his strength, which acts in our poverty; we must rely more and more on the power of his mercy, which transforms and renews.

Dear brothers and sisters, may this Word of God revive in us and in our Christian communities courage, confidence and enthusiasm in proclaiming and witnessing to the Gospel. Do not let failures and difficulties lead to discouragement: it is our task to cast our nets in faith — the Lord will do the rest. We must trust, too, in the intercession of the Virgin Mary, the Queen of Apostles. Well aware of her own smallness, she answered the Lord’s call with total confidence: “Here I am”. With her maternal help, let us renew our willingness to follow Jesus, Master and Lord.

[Pope Benedict, Angelus 10 February 2013]

6. The miraculous peaches are for the apostles and the church the "signs" of the fruitfulness of their mission if they remain deeply united to the saving power of Christ (cf. Lk 5:4-10; Jn 21:3-6). In fact, Luke includes in the narrative the fact of Simon Peter throwing himself at Jesus' knees exclaiming: "Lord, depart from me, for I am a sinner" (Lk 5:8), and Jesus' reply: "Fear not: from now on you shall be a fisher of men" (Lk 5:10). John in turn follows the narration of the fishing after the resurrection with Christ's command to Peter. "Shepherd my lambs, feed my sheep" (cf. Jn 21:15-17). It is a significant juxtaposition.

7. It can therefore be said that Christ's miracles, the manifestation of the divine omnipotence with regard to creation, which is revealed in his messianic power over men and things, are at the same time the "signs" through which the divine work of salvation is revealed, the salvific economy that with Christ is introduced and definitively implemented in human history and is thus inscribed in this visible world, which is also always a divine work. The people who - as well as the apostles on the lake - seeing the "miracles" of Christ ask themselves: "Who is . . . this one, to whom even the wind and the sea obey?" (Mk 4:41), through these "signs" are prepared to receive the salvation offered to man by God in his Son.

This is the essential purpose of all the miracles and signs performed by Christ in the eyes of his contemporaries, and of those miracles that throughout history will be performed by his apostles and disciples in reference to the saving power of his name: "In the name of Jesus Christ, the Nazarene, walk!" (Acts 3:6).

[Pope John Paul II, General Audience 2 December 1987]