Chapter 7 - Galilee

And Immediately They Left Their Nets and Followed Him

Remains of a First Century Fishing Boat

Here’s the problem with the Gospels:  We’ve heard the stories so many times that it’s easy to overlook their overriding strangeness.  We’ve lost the ability to be surprised by them.. . . .they become like old coins, their edges smoothed away.  The Call of the First Disciples is one such story.  But if you read it with fresh eyes, it reveals itself as an unsettling tale.  How could four men walk away from everything—their jobs, their families, their entire way of life—to follow a carpenter who says only a few words to them? (Page 131).

Prior to reading this chapter, I tended to picture the fishermen on the shore of the Sea of Galilee as a motley crew of anonymous workers mending their nets.  It is more likely, given the busy and successful fishing industry located there in the first century, that Peter and Andrew, James and John were successful, hard-working local businessmen—successful enough to have had hired servants in their family business.

Like Peter, they were married (or,was Peter a widower at this point?)—people with families, working at a business that was handed on from generation to generation.

It is very likely that they were well-connected locally, successful and financially secure.  All the more surprising, then, that they left everything behind to go and follow Jesus.

In addition, Father Martin reminds us that Jesus was not a loner.  While, at times, he needed time alone and apart to pray the the Father.  He gathers a group of friends around him as he begins his public ministry.  From the start, we see the communal nature of the group which will become the church.  We are reminded that the Christian Church is not about “me and Jesus.”  It is fundamentally communal.  We are all, indeed, family.

And what about “The Call?”  Jesus calls people individually.  The call is personal.

On page 141, Father Martin writes, “Many people think that being called means hearing voices. Or they feel that since they have never had a knocked-me-off-my-feet spiritual experience that they have not been called.. . . .being called can be more subtle, manifesting itself as a strong desire, a fierce attraction, or even an impulse to leave something behind.”

God continually calls and invites us to drop the nets that entangle us in our old ways of doing things, ways that are no longer healthy for us, ways that keep us from being more loving.  It is not enough simply to know what Jesus said by the Sea of Galilee.  We must be ready to hear his voice in our own lives.

Steven Olson




Questions to Ponder:

1.  Why do you think Peter and the other fishermen said yes to Jesus?

2.  Jesus' invitation to the fishermen is open ended.  In other words, when Jesus says he will help them "fish for people," he doesn't say how.  Have you ever experienced an open-ended call?  Also, what "nets" prevent you from responding to God's call?

3.  Jesus says that he will "make" Peter and his friends fishers of people, a phrase that evokes a sense of a new creation.  What do you hope God will "make" of you?

Dear Readers,

Here are some ways to participate in our online discussion.

1. Simply get the book and read along.  To enhance your reading, reflections on each chapter together with discussion questions are posted on this blog every Sunday morning.  If you fall behind, all chapters/reflections are archived on the main page.  
2. Actively participate! Read along and then discuss the chapter by leaving comments below.  We encourage this.  
3. If you enjoy the book and our reflections/discussion, please evangelize by telling others about the book and our site. Thanks for stopping by!