27 — St. Peter Hastens to Jesus. - The Bellarmine Forum

St. Peter Hastens to Jesus.

Read St. John xxi. 7.

[7] That disciple therefore whom Jesus loved, said to Peter: It is the Lord. Simon Peter, when he heard that it was the Lord, girt his coat about him, (for he was naked,) and cast himself into the sea.

1. When St. John’s instinct of love had recognized his Master, St. Peter’s impulse of love prompted him to throw himself into the sea and hasten to His feet. Through the waves and troubled waters, he made his way boldly to the shore where Jesus was calling him. So through the waves and troubled waters of life, the soul that loves Jesus makes its way to Him, following His call, even though it may lead through the waves of sorrow and amid the storms of temptation. He who fixes his eye on Jesus, and thinks only of coming nearer to Him, is always safe.

2. How different is St. Peter’s action now from the spirit he formerly displayed! On the occasion of the miraculous draught of fishes he cried, “Depart from me; I am a sinful man.” Now he hastens to Jesus. What has worked the change? Then he was honest, brave, faithful, but full of self; now his humiliation hast cast out self-love, and, instead of thinking of his own sins, he thinks only of Jesus. This is what Jesus loves — that we should forget ourselves, and think only of Him.

3. St. Peter casts about him the coat of the fisherman — the symbol of the authority of the supreme Pontiff. The official documents of the Holy Father are given under the seal of the Fisherman. None except those who wear the livery of the Fisherman are recognized by Jesus as fishers of men, or can expect the grace and help necessary for the conversion of souls. This is why the sermons, missions, Bible-readings outside the Church are so devoid of any influence for good; they are not stamped with the seal of the Fisherman, and so are sure to fail. I must thank God that I live a servant and a follower of the Fisherman.