Reading of the Word of God
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
Christ is risen from the dead
and will die no more.
He awaits us in Galilee!
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
John 21, 1-14
Later on, Jesus revealed himself again to the disciples. It was by the Sea of Tiberias, and it happened like this:
Simon Peter, Thomas called the Twin, Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee and two more of his disciples were together.
Simon Peter said, 'I'm going fishing.' They replied, 'We'll come with you.' They went out and got into the boat but caught nothing that night.
When it was already light, there stood Jesus on the shore, though the disciples did not realise that it was Jesus.
Jesus called out, 'Haven't you caught anything, friends?' And when they answered, 'No,'
he said, 'Throw the net out to starboard and you'll find something.' So they threw the net out and could not haul it in because of the quantity of fish.
The disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, 'It is the Lord.' At these words, 'It is the Lord,' Simon Peter tied his outer garment round him (for he had nothing on) and jumped into the water.
The other disciples came on in the boat, towing the net with the fish; they were only about a hundred yards from land.
As soon as they came ashore they saw that there was some bread there and a charcoal fire with fish cooking on it.
Jesus said, 'Bring some of the fish you have just caught.'
Simon Peter went aboard and dragged the net ashore, full of big fish, one hundred and fifty-three of them; and in spite of there being so many the net was not broken.
Jesus said to them, 'Come and have breakfast.' None of the disciples was bold enough to ask, 'Who are you?'. They knew quite well it was the Lord.
Jesus then stepped forward, took the bread and gave it to them, and the same with the fish.
This was the third time that Jesus revealed himself to the disciples after rising from the dead.
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
Christ is risen from the dead
and will die no more.
He awaits us in Galilee!
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
After having abandoned their nets to become fishers of men (Lk 5:10), the apostles return to being regular fishermen. And now, when Jesus appears without them recognizing him, the same scene of the beginning repeats. Also this time they had fished the entire night in vain. It is the experience of a fruitless work, the experience of thoughts, worries and agitation that go nowhere. Without the light of the Gospel, it is difficult to work and bear fruit. We are abandoned to ourselves and our sterility. Instead, with Jesus, we get close to the dawn of a new day, a new time. It is the Risen One who gets close to the disciples. He always takes the initiative. They do not even realize it and in any event they do not recognize him. Though they are tired and understandably untrusting, they obey the invitation to throw the nets on the other side of the boat. Maybe in that voice they hear the echo of the one they listened to for three years that had so captivated them. They don’t believe, though, that the voice can speak again. Besides, how many times do we not believe that the Gospel is an effective word? This Gospel passage can help us understand the usefulness of not losing the habit of listening to it. Yes, let us not lose the habit of listening to it. The disciples, tired and mistrustful, maybe just by instinctthe instinct which comes from the habit of listening to the Gospelobey the words telling them to throw the nets to the other side. And then the miracle comes: the catch was abundant, beyond all measure. At this point they recognize the Lord. We could say that the effectiveness of the Gospel opens their eyes and hearts. Perhaps they understand better what Jesus had told them before: “Apart from me you can do nothing” (Jn 15:5). Only with the Lord does the impossible become possible. With the Gospel we can change our hearts and the world. The disciple of love understands this immediately. It is he who recognizes the Lord and immediately tells Peter, who, overcome with joy, throws himself in the water to reach Jesus. And on the shore the disciples relive communion with the Teacher. Jesus has already prepared the fire and waits for the fish caught in the miraculous catch. It is the banquet of the Risen Jesus with his own children. The words of the evangelist recall those of the multiplication of the loaves and of the Eucharist. And actually the celebration of the Eucharistic liturgy is the place where the community of disciples is built up, the space of the multiplication of love.
Prayer is the heart of the life of the Community of Sant'Egidio and is its absolute priority. At the end of the day, every the Community of Sant'Egidio, large or small, gathers around the Lord to listen to his Word. The Word of God and the prayer are, in fact, the very basis of the whole life of the Community. The disciples cannot do other than remain at the feet of Jesus, as did Mary of Bethany, to receive his love and learn his ways (Phil. 2:5).
So every evening, when the Community returns to the feet of the Lord, it repeats the words of the anonymous disciple: " Lord, teach us how to pray". Jesus, Master of prayer, continues to answer: "When you pray, say: Abba, Father". It is not a simple exhortation, it is much more. With these words Jesus lets the disciples participate in his own relationship with the Father. Therefore in prayer, the fact of being children of the Father who is in heaven, comes before the words we may say. So praying is above all a way of being! That is to say we are children who turn with faith to the Father, certain that they will be heard.
Jesus teaches us to call God "Our Father". And not simply "Father" or "My Father". Disciples, even when they pray on their own, are never isolated nor they are orphans; they are always members of the Lord's family.
In praying together, beside the mystery of being children of God, there is also the mystery of brotherhood, as the Father of the Church said: "You cannot have God as father without having the church as mother". When praying together, the Holy Spirit assembles the disciples in the upper room together with Mary, the Lord's mother, so that they may direct their gaze towards the Lord's face and learn from Him the secret of his Heart.
The Communities of Sant'Egidio all over the world gather in the various places of prayer and lay before the Lord the hopes and the sufferings of the tired, exhausted crowds of which the Gospel speaks ( Mat. 9: 3-7 ), In these ancient crowds we can see the huge masses of the modern cities, the millions of refugees who continue to flee their countries, the poor, relegated to the very fringe of life and all those who are waiting for someone to take care of them. Praying together includes the cry, the invocation, the aspiration, the desire for peace, the healing and salvation of the men and women of this world. Prayer is never in vain; it rises ceaselessly to the Lord so that anguish is turned into hope, tears into joy, despair into happiness, and solitude into communion. May the Kingdom of God come soon among people!
For the sick, in memory of the dead, for peace
