(Sorry that I’m VERY late with this one. Hopefully it will still help)
When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at the knees of Jesus and said, "Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man." Jesus said to Simon, "Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching men."—Luke 5: 8,10
The first reading, from Isaiah, and the Gospel passage, from Luke, both give us the stories of God calling people to service. In both cases fear is the great obstacle keeping those being called from saying yes. Isaiah and Peter are aware of their sinfulness and limitations as human beings. But they let this self knowledge become a millstone that kept them from moving forward and being the people God wanted them to be. They let fear paralyze them in the face of God’s call.
We are sinful and limited people. We should not fool ourselves. In a week we will begin the discipline of Lent where we will have the opportunity to examine our lives and set about on the path of reform with God’s grace. The fact that we are sinners should not keep us from perusing sanctity. As a matter of fact, this realization should drive us toward the way of holiness all the more, because becoming saints is what our journey on earth is all about. But we should not be afraid of what this entails.
To accept God’s call to reform means that we will have to abandon sin and the attachment to sin, yes. It will also mean giving up things that in and of themselves are not sinful, but may be an obstacle for me in following Christ. They could be material things, habits or even relationships that keep me from growing as a person. Christ never promised that following Him would be easy. He did not tell us that paradise would be now, but he did promise the cross. Through all this He told us also to not be afraid, that He would be walking with us on the journey of faith.
At the beginning of John Paul II’s pontificate he proclaimed this same message of Christ in this week’s Gospel: Be Not Afraid. John Paul had real reasons to fear in his life. By the time he was twenty-one his parents and brother had died. He was forced to work in a lime quarry and chemical plant during the Nazi occupation of his native Poland, all while studying secretly for the priesthood. For about the last year of the war he hid in the archbishops residence for fear of being arrested by the Nazi occupiers. Later under the communist government he would work, at times secretly for fear of government reprisals, with young college students. As Archbishop he publicly fought the government over the construction of a church building in a new housing development, a church eventually built and that he consecrated. As pope John Paul suffered an assassination attempt, illnesses and criticism, from both within and outside the Church. All the while the message was the same; be not afraid! He knew the transforming power of the Gospel, and the great things God does through those who remain faithful. Let the late pope’s example be a guide for us as we set upon the journey of Lent.
