Gospel Reflection May 4 – Deacon Frank Iannarino
Sunday, May 4
Third Sunday of Easter
John 21: 1-19
Gospel:
At that time, Jesus revealed himself again to his disciples at the Sea of Tiberias.
He revealed himself in this way.
Together were Simon Peter, Thomas called Didymus,
Nathanael from Cana in Galilee,
Zebedee’s sons, and two others of his disciples.
Simon Peter said to them, “I am going fishing.”
They said to him, “We also will come with you.”
So they went out and got into the boat,
but that night they caught nothing.
When it was already dawn, Jesus was standing on the shore;
but the disciples did not realize that it was Jesus.
Jesus said to them, “Children, have you caught anything to eat?”
They answered him, “No.”
So he said to them, “Cast the net over the right side of the boat
and you will find something.”
So they cast it, and were not able to pull it in
because of the number of fish.
So the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord.”
When Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord,
he tucked in his garment, for he was lightly clad,
and jumped into the sea.
The other disciples came in the boat,
for they were not far from shore, only about a hundred yards,
dragging the net with the fish.
When they climbed out on shore,
they saw a charcoal fire with fish on it and bread.
Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish you just caught.”
So Simon Peter went over and dragged the net ashore
full of one hundred fifty-three large fish.
Even though there were so many, the net was not torn.
Jesus said to them, “Come, have breakfast.”
And none of the disciples dared to ask him, “Who are you?”
because they realized it was the Lord.
Jesus came over and took the bread and gave it to them,
and in like manner the fish.
This was now the third time Jesus was revealed to his disciples
after being raised from the dead.
When they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter,
“Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these?”
Simon Peter answered him, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.”
Jesus said to him, “Feed my lambs.”
He then said to Simon Peter a second time,
“Simon, son of John, do you love me?”
Simon Peter answered him, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.”
Jesus said to him, “Tend my sheep.”
Jesus said to him the third time,
“Simon, son of John, do you love me?”
Peter was distressed that Jesus had said to him a third time,
“Do you love me?” and he said to him,
“Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.”
Jesus said to him, “Feed my sheep.
Amen, amen, I say to you, when you were younger,
you used to dress yourself and go where you wanted;
but when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands,
and someone else will dress you
and lead you where you do not want to go.”
He said this signifying by what kind of death he would glorify God.
And when he had said this, he said to him, “Follow me.”
Gospel Reflection:
In this weekend’s Gospel, we are reminded that when we see imperfection or hopelessness, Jesus sees something that can be restored, much like a skilled architect or contractor can see the bones of an abandoned building and make it a masterpiece.
We hear that Jesus was on the shore; however, the disciples did not recognize him until after he helped them with fishing. They were not catching any fish until Jesus told them to cast their nets to the right side of the boat, and then they had more than they were able to drag into the boat. This was when one of the disciples realized that it was Jesus and Peter jumped into the water to meet him. Peter, the same man who had recently denied the Lord three times, was now swimming to shore as fast as he could to be with his Savior.
Jesus asks Peter an identical question three times. This seemed to frustrate Peter, but Jesus was reminding Peter what it takes to be a true disciple – a task that Peter had failed at before Jesus challenged him to do it again. The healing started happening once Peter was challenged to let his actions speak. Jesus saw that Peter was ready to move on from the past and truly follow him once again. Jesus also foreshadowed that Peter’s death would be a gruesome one. Peter could’ve remained frustrated or denied Jesus once again. Yet Jesus recognized that the restoration and healing had happened and commanded Peter to follow him.
Jesus always has the capacity to build something new, even amid the wreckage that we may feel. It is up to us if we want to be restored and truly follow him. The master builder has something beautiful in mind, even if we can only see part of the plan.
On a special note from our parish – Congratulations to our seminarian intern, Godfrey Ssebikyu, who will receive the Sacrament of Holy Orders as a Deacon by Bishop Fernandes on Saturday morning May 3rd. May the Holy Spirit continue to strengthen him in his ministry among God’s people.
Deacon Frank Iannarino
