Sunday January 22, 2017: Third Sunday In Ordinary Time “Come after me, and I will make you fishers of men.” 

Gospel – Matthew 4:12-23

When Jesus heard that John had been arrested, he withdrew to Galilee. He left Nazareth and went to live in Capernaum by the sea, in the region of Zebulun and Naphtali, that what had been said through Isaiah the prophet might be fulfilled: Land of Zebulun and land of Naphtali, the way to the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles, the people who sit in darkness have seen a great light, on those dwelling in a land overshadowed by death light has arisen. From that time on, Jesus began to preach and say, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” As he was walking by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon who is called Peter, and his brother Andrew, casting a net into the sea; they were fishermen. He said to them, “Come after me, and I will make you fishers of men.” At once they left their nets and followed him. He walked along from there and saw two other brothers, James, the son of Zebedee, and his brother John. They were in a boat, with their father Zebedee, mending their nets. He called them, and immediately they left their boat and their father and followed him. He went around all of Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom, and curing every disease and illness among the people.

 The Catechism of the Catholic Church

541 “Now after John was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying: ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent, and believe in the gospel.’” “To carry out the will of the Father Christ inaugurated the kingdom of heaven on earth.” Now the Father’s will is “to raise up men to share in his own divine life.” He does this by gathering men around his Son Jesus Christ. This gathering is the Church, “on earth the seed and beginning of that kingdom.

 From “The Great Crusade of Love” Testimony of Catalina Rivas (CL-182:7)

7) “Voice of the one who clamors in the desert: make straight the paths of the Lord!”  The manuscript is ready; it will be the Voice that will summon the assembly.  The messages have arrived at the port.  The messages of salvation are entrusted to the humble and the poor, the imprisoned and the sick.  These ones are always My preference, not those who have the means to conquer; but rather for those who, like Me on earth, live in poverty and in anguish.  To the shepherds I confided the Message of announcing the Good News, and to the fishermen, the founding of the Church. …..

 From “The Great Crusade of Mercy” Testimony of Catalina Rivas (CM-79:6-9)

6) Those persons resemble dirty miners who go down to the depths of the earth to wrest from it its riches.  This they carry to the light of the sun mixed with many other materials, so that only a small portion of the material that they extract can be considered of value.  In fact, they throw away a great deal of slag.  So those miners have greatly exhausted themselves; they have become dirty all over, and they have done very unproductive work as far as they are concerned personally.   

7) Instead, My other beloved resemble skillful men who submerge themselves in the bottom of the sea to wrest from it precious oysters that contain the very beautiful pearl that results from My Love.  They also struggle but they know how to carry something of great value to the light of the sun, and they will reap greater reward.    

8) What a difference between the dirty miner and the skillful fisher of pearls.

9) Today, I am speaking to you Apostles of the New Covenant.  I love all of you fishermen in My divine sea.  Submerge yourselves in Me, I tell you.  I contain the true riches which will give you the joy of Love.  To love Me is not to seek merits; to love Me is not to accumulate a great deal of territory with selfish desires, lustfulness and self interest. …..

Each week we will be presenting a portion of the following Sunday’s readings, and linking it to relevant parts of the Catechism of the Catholic Church and messages from the Testimony of Catalina.  Pay special attention to the italicized underlined sections. We hope this is inspiring and educational. Any comments you have are certainly welcomed.