Is
9:1-4; 1Cor 1:10-13, 17; Mt 4:12-23
Al Catraz Island
was the first long term Army Prison in America. It is an island surrounded by
freezing waters and hazardous currents. This prison had many types of cells.
The underground cells were dark dungeons. The rooms were dark. The only
sustenance thrown to that darkness
was a little bread and water. Several prisoners were kept in the darkness hand cuffed. In that darkness men lost the concept of days, weeks and years. Their only companion was darkness.
In 1934 work was
begun to give the military prison a new face and a new identity. So, a
delegation was sent to improve the conditions of prisoners in Al Catraz Prison.
There in the pitch dark underground cellars they found certain types of men who
were afraid of light. When they were brought out they couldn’t stand the
brightness of the sun. The light made them frantic. They wished to take refuge
in darkness.
The first
reading from the book of Isaiah
proclaims that the people who walked in darkness have seen a great
light; those who lived in a land of deep darkness – on them light have shone.” (Is
9:2). This has been fulfilled “When Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in
the synagogues and proclaiming the Good News of the Kingdom.”
At His coming
into the world, Jesus found it enveloped in thick darkness, the darkness of
sin; all men groped in it, searching for light, for joy and for freedom. In this darkness man was not able to see the
path leading to God, took for God what
he himself had fashioned, looked for happiness where it could not be found and
went on sinking deeper and deeper into sin. John the Baptist perceived this
danger, and his message was decisive and demanding. He addressed the crowd,
Brood of wipers…..Produce fruit to fit repentance. John continued his message
with a threat and a promise.
Jesus took over
where John the Baptist had left. Jesus gave the substance of his message in a
sentence. “Repent, for the kingdom of God is at hand.” There are certain
characteristics to be identified in the message of Jesus.
Jesus voice had
a note of certainty. There was no doubt about his message. Jesus preached with
certainties. He spoke to his listeners about the need for immediate action. The
conviction that reflected in the words of Jesus captivated His listeners and
silenced His enemies. So Jesus’ words pierced through the heart of men. When
the Pharisees tried to attack Jesus, He told them that they were wrong. He
challenged their false beliefs and meaningless customs. He taught them that
the law was instituted for man and not man for law.
Our lives should
be proclamation of certainties. A man cannot make others sure of that about
which he himself is in doubt. There was an Unknown Rebel at the 1989 Tiananmen
Square Protests. Little can be verified about the lone protester who faced-off
with the tanks of the People’s Liberation Army on June 5, 1989. As the column
of tanks drove down Chang’an Avenue to quell the Tiananmen Square protests, a
single unarmed man in a white shirt blocked their path and continually thwarted
their attempts to manoeuvre around him by stepping in their way. Eventually
onlookers pulled the student back into the crowd, where he disappeared. Yet
despite his anonymous, brief appearance, the media coverage of his nonviolent
act resounded throughout the global community. The Unknown Rebel was listed as
one of the 100 most influential people of the 20th century.
The Apostles,
saints and martyrs shared the conviction of Jesus. Their conviction transformed
them into brave men who are remembered throughout history. Today, the church needs
us to share the same conviction and to be heralds of Jesus’ message.
Secondly, Jesus’
voice had the note of authority. He laid
down and announced a king’s command and executed a king’s decision. Jesus
taught with authority. “They were all
amazed, and they kept on asking one another, "What is this? A new
teaching--with authority! He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey
him." – (Mark 1:27) There was no doubt in their experience that he was no
ordinary teacher. They were amazed at how different his teaching was:
It is one of the
sad things about us that we tend to make allowances for modern ways of
thinking. Instead, we should dare to our prophetic authority to the present
situation.
Thirdly, Jesus’
message came from a source beyond Himself. It was not the expression of one
man’s personal opinions, but it was the voice of God transmitted through one
man to the people. When Moses was sent as a mediator God assured him, “Now go,
I will help you speak, and will teach you what to say.”(Ex.4:12) The same
assurance was given by Jesus to His disciples too, “But when they arrest you do
not worry about what to say or how to say it. At that time you will be given
what to say.”
The message of
Jesus offered light, joy and freedom.
Therefore, large crowds followed him. But, Jesus picked up a few from
among them, to continue his work. In
today’s Gospel Mathew gives an account of the calling of the first disciple.
Jesus called the fishermen, Peter, Andrew, James and John, to be fishers of
men. There is a story that the Greeks used to tell how Xenophon became
Socrates’ disciples. Socrates met him in a narrow lane and barred his path with
a stick. Socrates showed him certain things one after another and asked him
where he could get them. Xenophon gave
him correct reply. Finally Socrates asked him, “Do you know where men are made
good and virtuous?” “No” said the young Xenophon. “Then, follow me and learn,”
said Socrates.
God’s call, come
to men from a source beyond, in extraordinary ways. Fabien was Roman layman who
came into the city from his farm one day as clergy and people were preparing to
elect a Pope. Eusebius, a church historian, says a dove flew in and settled on
the head of Fabien. Seeing this, Fabien was chosen the pope, unanimously. He
accepted call, led the church for 14 years and died a martyr’s death during the
persecution of Decius in AD 250.
Jesus called the
fishermen, Peter, Andrew, James and John, to make them good and virtuous. God called Fabien to lead the Church, and
they accepted the call. Today, Jesus calls us too, to follow Him, and learn to
be good and virtuous. When we accept His invitation the message of Jesus will
reach us with the message of light, joy and freedom.
Satish