They left everything
The Bible in the Catholic Tradition
With this Sunday we officially begin to listen to the Gospel according to Matthew during Sunday liturgy of the ordinary time. During moments of common worship in the Catholic Church we listen to the Bible in a systematic manner. We avoid picking and choosing passages according to the preacher’s whims and fancies, though the church does allow choosing readings on some occasions. The Sunday readings are arranged in a three year cycle: Year A uses the gospel of Matthew (as is the case this year); In Year B we listen to Mark; and Year C uses the gospel of Luke. The gospel of John is read during Lent, Eastertide and some feasts. Similarly, the weekday readings are arranged in a two-year cycle. This systematic listening applies not only to the gospel readings but also the first readings during weekdays, and the second readings on Sundays. The first reading on Sundays is generally arranged in such way that it relates to the theme of the gospel passage.
In short, if someone goes to the church every day for three years, they would have listen to the most important parts of the whole Bible. If we concede that we do not know the Bible, perhaps it is only because we do not listen attentively to the Word of God during liturgy.
In the Catholic Tradition, we do not insist on bringing a Bible to church. This has its own significance. Let us remember that the original texts of the Bible were not written for individual reading, but for proclamation in assemblies where people listened to the Word of God. We thank God, since the invention of the printing press everyone has access to the written text of the Word of God and hence also to the possibility of individual reading for meditation and contemplation. Even as we read passages out of a printed text today, it is important to be conscious of what effect that text would have had if we only listened to it and didn’t have access to the printed text! Perhaps this listening-approach will prompt us towards a contemplation of the Word of God – ever being open to its newness. On the contrary, pure reading-approach runs the risk of an intellectual debating and argumentations – giving rise to a pride of claiming: “I know it all!” A contemplative approach to the Word of God would help us avoid problems that St Paul talks about in the 2nd reading of today: “Has Christ been parcelled out?”
The gospel text of today from Matthew narrates to us the beginning of the public ministry of Jesus. In December 2010, I had the privilege of making a pilgrimage to the Holy Land. It only humbled me to accept that even if I have read the Bible from cover to cover I still do not know the Bible. Prompted by the awareness of the need to be open to the newness of the Word of God, I would like to propose two important points that could help us see the socio-cultural context of the public ministry of Jesus, and on that basis then to appreciate a possible meaning of the text of today.
Capernaum: a flourishing town
One question that I asked myself while I was out there in Galilee was, why did Jesus carry out his public ministry around Galilee, and particularly in Capernaum? He would go to Jerusalem only annually around the feast of the Passover (as the Gospel of John clearly implies), and didn’t make Jerusalem the hub of his ministry. Why did he not just preach only around Nazareth, his home place – which was but a humble village?
Considered in the light of faith, I recognise the plan of God in all this. Can we say that when God planned the mystery of incarnation, He willed that He be born in the centre of the world – at least, of that time? The stretch of land along the Eastern part of the Mediterranean Sea – comprising of countries that are now called, Israel, Palestine, Syria, Jordan and even the upper part of the Egypt was the centre of the world for centuries. Controlling this stretch of land meant controlling the world, because it was the hub of most sea and land trade routes. That is why, this land has never known peace. Since time immemorial, powerful groups like the Egyptians, Israelites, Babylonians (from Iraq), Persians (from Iran), Greeks (led by Alexander the Great), Romans, Turks and even the English, have tried to establish their rule over this piece of land.
While Jerusalem was considered the centre for political and religious reasons throughout these centuries, it was Galilee that was the hub of economic activity. Proximity to seaports, access to fresh water bodies, and the fertile land made it an attractive location for trade. Capernaum was one of the principal towns around the lake of Galilee. (Tiberias may not have been accessible to orthodox Jews because it was a Roman town!) Capernaum was on the trade route between the southern nations (that included even Egypt) and the northern lands of Syria and even Turkey. The Romans had established a customs office at Capernaum and a garrison managed by a centurion. Traders had to give a large rate of tax for unprocessed goods like grain and olives. Therefore, it is possible that besides the fishing industry Capernaum had a lot of processing units where grains were milled into flours and olives pressed to extract oil. The number of millstones and olive presses, lying all over Capernaum today, stand as witness to this once flourishing town. It is interesting to note that it is this bubbling town that Jesus chooses as the headquarters for his three-year public ministry (Mt 4:12).
The first apostles: the entrepreneurs
The first apostles of Jesus – may be even most of them – come from around Capernaum. The gospel text of today talks about the call of the first four apostles: Simon Peter, Andrew, James and John. This must have taken place in Bethsaida, about 2 kms from Capernaum (Jn 1:44). It is surprising to note that Jesus encounters them in their work-places, not in a place of worship! And it is Jesus who goes out to meet and invite them. Is it not possible that Jesus could be coming out to meet us as we are immersed in our own daily toil? Secondly, Jesus’ first disciples were hard-working entrepreneurs, not a bunch of poor or lazy men! To refer to these four apostles as poor – in the economic sense of the word – is totally baseless. Illiterate? May be. Poor? No! Lazy escapists? Not at all!
I come from a fishing background myself. Until I was born, my father went out to fish in the Indian Ocean off the coast of Cape Comorin, with his colleagues in catamarans. Perhaps he was a poor fisherman, because he had no brothers or cousins to work with. I am not too sure if he had his own boat and nets, but for sure he had no hired men, on the contrary he was often hired by others.
Peter and Andrew, of today’s gospel, worked together (Mt 4:18); when brothers work together in fishing, it flourishes. It is not clear if James and John were old enough to go fishing. Today’s gospel text says, they were mending their nets with the father (Mt 4:21). The gospel of Mark has the same details in the call of the first apostles (Mk 1:16-20). But he adds another interesting detail: “Immediately he called them; and they – James and John – left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men, and followed him” (Mk 1:20). So it is also likely that James and John were just playing around as the father was mending the nets with the help of the hired men, or just running around supplying twine and buoys for the senior men who were mending the nets – as I did when I was a kid myself. Luke makes a further connection between Simon Peter and the sons of Zebedee, that they were partners (Lk 5:10). Now all these details just assure me that these first disciples were enterprising bunch of able-bodied men, perhaps very influential guys within their society, but for sure, owners of a very flourishing fishing industry that provided jobs.
Vocation: Leaving our comfort zones
Against this background, this sentence becomes very powerful: At once, leaving everything, they followed HIM (Mt 4:20, 22). They had plenty to leave behind. They were ready to move out of their comfort zones to join this itinerant preacher. Was it his piercing message that moved them? Or was it the powerful encounter that allured them?
Today’s first reading begins with these words from Isaiah: “The people who walked in darkness has seen a great light” (Is 9:2), and which is again quoted by Matthew to introduce the public ministry of Jesus (Mt 4:16). The apostles, despite their entrepreneurial skills, when they encountered Jesus perhaps realised that they were in the dark. So they leave everything to follow the Light. Following the Great Light demands courage to leave behind the darkness that we are comfortable with. Is it what the gospel is inviting me to? And what would this imply for me today?