St. Peter's Faith and the Miraculous Draft of Fishes: A Lesson in Humility
Offertory
"Out of the depths I have cried to thee, O Lord: Lord, hear my voice..."
Summary of Headings
- Introduction to St. Peter's Humanity and Faith
- The Miracle of the Draft of Fishes
- St. Peter's Reaction and Human Weakness
- The Call to Humility and Faith
- The Power of God to Transform
- Recognizing Everyday Miracles
- Concluding Call to Action
Introduction to St. Peter's Humanity and Faith
Amen. We have to love the human, the humanity of St. Peter, his reaction when our Lord tells him what he wants him to do. First and foremost, St. Peter, from the beginning, we know was at the very least a casual follower of St. John the Baptist. He at least admired him and followed him from time to time. Obviously not spending too much time with him. So he was already recognized as a pious man. But he was also a very hardworking, pragmatic man.
The Miracle of the Draft of Fishes
And so, he had spent the entire night fishing because at that time, it would have been much more fruitful for fishermen to go fishing at night. The practice at the time was that they would hold candles above the water and the fish would come to the light. Then they cast their nets and bring in all the fish that they could. And this was the most efficient way, especially with the heat during the day, the fish would go lower and would hide from the heat. And so therefore, it was harder to trap them. So as a result, when our Lord tells him to cast out into the deep and to drop his nets, he had already been fishing all night and he hadn't caught anything.
St. Peter's Reaction and Human Weakness
So obviously he was tired. He was frustrated, probably more than a little cankerous and was ready to be, was ready to just go home and rest. But here is our Lord preaching in his boat and then telling him how to do it. And he says, I will do his trade. And St. Peter very naturally grumbled. I've been all the night fishing. We haven't caught anything. And then he seems to correct himself and says, but at thy word, I will do what thou commandest.
The Call to Humility and Faith
And then he goes out to, he goes out into the deep and he catches this great draft of fishes. And he's of course overwhelmed by what, by what has just happened because he recognizes one very simple thing. Our Lord had performed this miracle and it was a testament to his act of faith that even though he didn't really believe our Lord was going to do anything or would it make any difference or he wasn't going to make any, he wasn't going to catch any fish. At the same time, he recognized the fact that, he recognized the fact that our Lord wanted to do something. And even if it was just to humor him, he would do so.
The Power of God to Transform
So just that very minuscule, very grudging act of faith was rewarded with a tremendous miracle, something which, which helped him and sustained him, but also taught him a lesson about who controls nature. Not him, not even the fish, but our Lord himself. And so when, when he saw that, he had another very natural human reaction. He fell on his knees and said, depart from me for I am a sinner, oh Lord.
Recognizing Everyday Miracles
We can see so much of ourselves in St. Peter in this moment. There are times where it is difficult for us to follow the will of God. He tells us to do something and we grumble, we get upset, we're annoyed, we're tired, we're sick, we've been, we've been doing too much lately, it's just too hard. There are so many things that demand our attention. Why this? Why right now? Any number of reasons for us to grumble and complain. But so long as we can say, despite all of that, I will still do what thou commandest, which, which our Lord commands. So long as we can say that, it is sufficient for the grace of God to function within us.
Concluding Call to Action
God does not demand much of us. He doesn't demand that we are truly, objectively and completely sorry for our sins before we go to confession. He demands only the most imperfect of all contrition. Fear. That's all he asks of us. Nothing else. Fear, guilt, basic remorse. Nothing else. Now that's only a stepping stone though. He doesn't want us to stay satisfied with that. And so the response of St. Peter afterwards is a recognition of something greater happening within us.
In the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Ghost. Amen.