Sep 5 2024

First reading 1 Corinthians 3:18-23

The wisdom of the world is foolishness to God

Make no mistake about it: if any one of you thinks of himself as wise, in the ordinary sense of the word, then he must learn to be a fool before he really can be wise. Why? Because the wisdom of this world is foolishness to God. As scripture says: The Lord knows wise men’s thoughts: he knows how useless they are; or again: God is not convinced by the arguments of the wise. So there is nothing to boast about in anything human: Paul, Apollos, Cephas, the world, life and death, the present and the future, are all your servants; but you belong to Christ and Christ belongs to God.

Responsorial Psalm 23(24):1-6

To the Lord belongs the earth and all that fills it.
The Lord’s are the earth and its fullness;
the world and those who dwell in it.
For he founded it upon the seas
and established it upon the rivers.
To the Lord belongs the earth and all that fills it.
Who can ascend the mountain of the Lord?
or who may stand in his holy place?
He whose hands are sinless, whose heart is clean,
who desires not what is vain.
To the Lord belongs the earth and all that fills it.
He shall receive a blessing from the Lord,
a reward from God his savior.
Such is the race that seeks for him,
that seeks the face of the God of Jacob.
To the Lord belongs the earth and all that fills it.

Gospel Luke 5:1-11

They left everything and followed him

Jesus was standing one day by the Lake of Gennesaret, with the crowd pressing round him listening to the word of God, when he caught sight of two boats close to the bank. The fishermen had gone out of them and were washing their nets. He got into one of the boats – it was Simon’s – and asked him to put out a little from the shore. Then he sat down and taught the crowds from the boat.

When he had finished speaking he said to Simon, ‘Put out into deep water and pay out your nets for a catch.’ ‘Master,’ Simon replied, ‘we worked hard all night long and caught nothing, but if you say so, I will pay out the nets.’ And when they had done this they netted such a huge number of fish that their nets began to tear, so they signalled to their companions in the other boat to come and help them; when these came, they filled the two boats to sinking point.

When Simon Peter saw this he fell at the knees of Jesus saying, ‘Leave me, Lord; I am a sinful man.’ For he and all his companions were completely overcome by the catch they had made; so also were James and John, sons of Zebedee, who were Simon’s partners. But Jesus said to Simon, ‘Do not be afraid; from now on it is men you will catch.’ Then, bringing their boats back to land, they left everything and followed him.

____________________________________________

A fool for Christ

“…if any one of you thinks of himself as wise, in the ordinary sense of the word, then he must learn to be a fool before he really can be wise…” (1st reading). Are we ready to be fools for Christ? We try our best to fit in this world and to be liked and respected by people because we do not want to feel inadequate and excluded. Thus, we struggle to swim against the tide of the world and live the Gospel values of simplicity, forgiveness, honesty, selflessness, etc. Yet, today, Jesus needs people willingly and happily to follow Him and be His fools.

“…they left everything and followed him.” In today’s gospel, Jesus calls Peter and his friends to follow Him. They leave behind everything- their great catch in the nets and worldly securities- to catch people and bring them to God’s love. Each day, Jesus calls us to follow Him so that we will live our time here on earth, making a difference. Jesus draws us to Him so that we can bring others to Him. Let us be fools for Christ today.

Reflective question:
Am I willing to be a fool for Christ?

Acknowledgment: Reflections are based on “Prayer for Living: The Word of God for Daily Prayer Year B” by Sr Maria Jose FMVD.