Week 3: Jesus calls the disciples

O Lord open our lips.

That our mouths may proclaim your praise.

O God, come to our aid.

O Lord, make haste to help us.

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit,

as it was in the beginning,

is now, and ever shall be,

world without end. Amen.

Almighty God,

you have made us for yourself,

and our hearts are restless till they find their rest in you:

pour your love into our hearts and draw us to yourself,

and so bring us at last to your heavenly city

where we shall see you face to face;

through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,

who is alive and reigns with you,

in the unity of the Holy Spirit,

one God, now and for ever.

'As Jesus passed along the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net into the lake—for they were fishermen. And Jesus said to them, ‘Follow me and I will make you fish for people.’ And immediately they left their nets and followed him. As he went a little farther, he saw James son of Zebedee and his brother John, who were in their boat mending the nets. Immediately he called them; and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men, and followed him. 

'[...] Jesus went out again beside the lake; the whole crowd gathered around him, and he taught them. As he was walking along, he saw Levi son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax booth, and he said to him, ‘Follow me.’ And he got up and followed him.

'And as he sat at dinner in Levi’s house, many tax-collectors and sinners were also sitting with Jesus and his disciples—for there were many who followed him. When the scribes of the Pharisees saw that he was eating with sinners and tax-collectors, they said to his disciples, ‘Why does he eat with tax-collectors and sinners?’ When Jesus heard this, he said to them, ‘Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick; I have come to call not the righteous but sinners.’'

[Mark 1.16-20; 2.13-17]

It is surprising who Jesus calls to follow him, and to form his inner 12. We are told by the Gospels that he was a preacher and teacher who spoke with authority, and there seem to have been Scribes and Pharisees amongst those who follow him. But he does not select these, but rather fishermen, zealots and tax collectors. Hardly an auspicious foundation for a Empire toppling movement.

A perfect example of this unlikely call is that of St Peter., and in his revue 'Burning Questions', a series of sketches and songs about the Christian life, Paul Field has St Peter sing the song 'Stony Ground'. In the song, which St Peter sings just after he has denied Jesus for the third time and then caught his eye as he is led away to his trial, he reflects that he is 'stony ground', not a suitable foundation on which to build the Kingdom'! And yet Christ entrusts the keys of the Kingdom to St Peter, and its message to the other 10 disciples. Even more surprisingly he entrusts the Kingdom to us.

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In this image, The Calling of St Matthew by Caravaggio we see the nascent disciples sitting in his counting booth. (He is the one sitting on the far left, his head down counting the money; the one being pointed to by the older, bearded man.) Typical of  Caravaggio's artwork, there is a use of darkness and light: almost the whole scene is in darkness, other than the men at the table, who are lit up by a light coming from the outside. Even Jesus is in partial darkness, a reminder that at this stage Jesus identity is still in the shadows - as he teaches and ministers, so his identity becomes more widely known.

It has been pointed out that the way in which Jesus is pointing to St Matthew is depicted in a similar to the way in which Michelangelo's Adam reaches out towards God in the fresco in the Sistine Chapel.  A reminder that Christ is the new Adam come to undo the sin of the first Adam.

It is significant that Jesus points out and calls St Matthew. Tax collectors were the lowest of the low in 1st Century Judean society. They were collaborators with the hated Roman occupiers, and they used their position (which they'd bought from the Roman authorities) to line their own pockets through swindling those from whom they collected the taxes. We can see that St Matthew is used to luxury when we juxtapose the fine clothes he is wearing with those of Jesus and St Peter on the right of the painting.

But Jesus sees something in St Matthew, just as he did in St Peter and the other disciples, and just as he does in us. And so he calls us to serve him. Like St Peter we may feel that we are stony ground, but the call of Christ remains strong in each of us, and he calls us not despite ourselves, but because we are ourselves, God's beloved children.

For Reflection

- Take a moment to listen to Paul Field's song. St Peter is at his lowest ebb, but Christ continues to call him, and will readmit him to the fellowship of the disciples on a beach at Lake Galilee.  As you listen take a moment to think of a time when you feel you have failed Christ in some way. Now imagine that your sitting with St Peter and Jesus on that lakeside, and hear Christ's forgiving words.

- When did you first hear the call of Christ. and decide to make the faith your own? Other than yourself, who were the significant people in that story? Take a moment to give thanks for them.

- What is Christ calling you to today? (It's okay if nothing  comes to mind!) The monastic order of St Benedict has as its basis the call to 'stabilitas' (stability of life). Benedictines do not move away from their monastery unless instructed to do so. Our own call may be just that, constant prayer and stability of life.

Concluding Prayer

Let us pray.

Almighty and everlasting God,

by whose Spirit the whole body of the Church is governed and sanctified:

hear our prayer which we offer for all your faithful people,

that in their vocation and ministry

they may serve you in holiness and truth

to the glory of your name;

through our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.