Gospel of Mark, chapter 1:15

Can you hum a tune that has no rhythm or meter or notes? Can you appreciate a painting that lacks form or frame? The greatest melody needs musicians, notes, singers in order to be heard. The finest painting requires an artist, a canvas and a brush. Lacking these things; there is no art. It is the same with the Lord’s word; it needs someone to believe in it, and to put it into practice. Last Sunday’s scripture spoke of our vocation to serve God. Today, we find vocation explained in terms of conversion, and walking in the footsteps of Christ.

Jesus’s call to His first disciples required that they abandon their old way of life as fishermen, and follow Him. Imagine yourself leaving your home tomorrow to begin a totally new way of life that is not planned. Talk about conversion. The disciples obeyed Jesus’s call; they changed their way of living and, discovered a new whole new mission to their lives. They became fishers of men; that is, they led others to Jesus.

If a person willingly changes his or her life to follow Jesus, he or she will find the freedom promised to the children of God. Such a person will also find that very real gift we all seek: joy! The Christian need not be the brightest person on the block; the wisest person in the office; or the most successful person in town. All a Christian needs to do is abandon his old life to follow Jesus. That is what made Christianity thrive through the persecutions of the early centuries. That is why Christianity thrives today even under the burdens of poverty and abundance. The Christian mission does not promise worldly happiness. But, it does promise us true joy! It is the joy of knowing our purpose in life; the joy of possessing true peace within because we possess the Lord.

Fr. Hugh Duffy

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