HOMILY: Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time (C)
Luke 5:1-11
9 February 2025
Fr. Ricky Cañet Montañez, AA
These days more than ever, I hear of people leaving the Catholic faith and joining other religions or simply ceasing the practice of the Christian faith. Just recently someone complained to me that her son left the Catholic Church to become a Born Again Christian because he said many Catholics were such hypocrites. Wow! If only perfect people could be part of the Catholic Church, all churches would be empty and there wouldn’t even be priests! All humans are flawed beings! I wonder where he will go next when he discovers the hypocrites in his new-found religious group. On the other hand, there are also those who feel extremely “sinful” and “unworthy” that they do not go to church anymore for fear of their imperfections being exposed. Could this also be the reason why people avoid sitting in the front pews? Or maybe you just don’t want to be caught dozing off or tinkering with your cellphones? (Just kidding.)
Our readings this Sunday echo the same feelings of unworthiness in the presence of the divine. In our First Reading, Isaiah believes he is going to die because he had seen God. He says, “I am doomed! I am a man of unclean lips living among men of unclean lips.” (Isaiah 6:5) In the Second Reading, St. Paul confesses, “I am the least of the apostles, not fit to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God.” (1 Corinthians 15:9). Then in the gospel passage, we hear that Simon shares a similar sentiment when Jesus performs a miracle for him. He says to Jesus, “Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man.” (Luke 5:8) Take note of Simon’s reaction to being chosen by Jesus to be His disciple. From his words, we see a man that appears to feel unworthy, self-conscious, and ill-equipped to accept Jesus’ invitation.
I am sure many of us can easily relate with the humanity of Simon and his hesitation in following Jesus. Like him, we are bound to be grossly aware of our inadequacies when confronted with our flaws and shortcomings. How many times have we told ourselves: “I can’t do this because I’m not good enough.” Or perhaps, “I didn’t attend a prestigious school so how can I be considered for this job?” Why do we shy away from an opportunity simply because it is new to us and we think ourselves unqualified? Quite a few times I was turned down by parishioners I have tapped to lead certain ministries because they believed they were “not holy enough” for this parish ministry role. This is sad because one doesn’t realise it is not he/she who brings holiness to the work but rather it is the Lord who acknowledges the work one does for Him, that makes him/her holier. In the case of Isaiah, God’s seraphim touches an ember to the prophet’s lips and says: “Your sin is purged!” (Isaiah 6:7) This is proof that God makes worthy those whom He chooses! St. Paul recognises that it is God’s grace that empowered him to accomplish more than his fair share in spreading the Gospel. He declares: “But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace to me has not been ineffective.” (1 Corinthians 15: 10)
One of my favourite theologians is Henri Nouwen. He is a Dutch priest. In his book, “Life of the Beloved”, he discusses what it means to be chosen by God. He explains that, “whereas there is a competitive element to being “chosen” in human terms, no such element is present when God chooses. God does so in a way that touches each person uniquely. Notice, also, that Jesus does not make the conventional choice based upon those we may elevate with special importance in human terms.” In today’s gospel, we hear how Jesus chooses fishermen as His friends, helpers and trainees — not the most exceptional and outstanding individuals by human standards. He sees a worthwhile potential in them that is invisible to ordinary people. We recall the words of St. Paul: “For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in the eyes of God…” (1 Corinthians 3:19)
When God calls, He often approaches us as we are caught in the busy-ness of our lives. He calls us to use our very own skills, talents and gifts in new and different ways, right where we are. He calls us as we are with all our flaws and shortcomings. We are told in the gospel passage that Jesus called Simon and his brother Andrew and James and his brother John, while they were washing their nets which was part of their daily work as fishermen. Jesus calls them amid their boats and nets; He calls them to use their gifts for fishing to serve Him, to be His companions in responding to the call of the Father in establishing God’s Kingdom. They, who are good at casting out nets, will learn to cast out nets in a new and different way. Just like the first disciples, Jesus calls each of us uniquely to follow Him, just as we are. When Christ calls us, He is not making a mistake. He knows exactly who we are and He is telling each one of us, “You are enough.”
As Christians, we are all called, despite our flaws, unworthiness and sinfulness, to carry out His message of hope and love to all our brothers and sisters. We all have the potential to collaborate with God in His work of redemption. Let us pray that we can discern God’s voice when He calls. Let us pray that we will have the courage to respond in faith and draw strength from the promise that God’s grace will sustain and empower us. Let us allow God to use us to manifest how great and transformative His power can be. Let us not be afraid! Let us place ourselves in God’s hands and trust Him to do wondrous things in our lives!
By Paulo Medina
Sunday Gospel Reflections 