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3rd Sunday in Ordinary Time (常年期第三主日)

Gospel: Mt 4:12-23 （玛4：12-23）

When he heard that John had been arrested, he withdrew to Galilee. He left Nazareth and went to live in Capernaum by the sea, in the region of Zebulun and Naphtali, that what had been said through Isaiah the prophet might be fulfilled: "Land of Zebulun and land of Naphtali, the way to the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles, the people who sit in darkness have seen a great light, on those dwelling in a land overshadowed by death light has arisen." From that time on, Jesus began to preach and say, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." As he was walking by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon who is called Peter, and his brother Andrew, casting a net into the sea; they were fishermen. He said to them, "Come after me, and I will make you fishers of men." At once they left their nets and followed him. He walked along from there and saw two other brothers, James, the son of Zebedee, and his brother John. They were in a boat, with their father Zebedee, mending their nets. He called them, and immediately they left their boat and their father and followed him. He went around all of Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom, and curing every disease and illness among the people.

Preaching: A Light to the Gentiles

The first part of today’s gospel narrates a scene after the conclusion of John the Baptist’s mission. Jesus moved from Nazareth to Capernaum. Capernaum was a village of fishermen and farmers that stretched for about three hundred meters along the western shore of Lake Gennesaret (Galilee). Galilee was inhabited by Israelites regarded by all as semi-pagans because they were born from the intermingling of different peoples. They were considered as people living in darkness and ignorance.

It became the center of his activities for nearly three years. The change of residence—a very trivial fact—has been read by Matthew in its theological significance as the fulfillment of Isaiah’s prophecy: “The people who lived in darkness have seen a great light: on those who live in the land of the shadow of death a light has shone” (v. 16). With this choice, Jesus indicates who are the first recipients of his light, not the pure Jews，but the excluded, the distant.

In the second part of the passage, the calling of the first four disciples is narrated. It is more a piece of catechesis than a call narrative. The evangelist wants the disciple to understand what it means to say “yes” to Christ’s invitation to follow. It is an example, an illustration of what it means to be converted.

Matthew shows Jesus in constant movement. The one who is called must realize that he will not be granted any rest and there will not be any stop along the way. Jesus wants to be followed day and night and throughout life. There are no moments of exemption from commitments taken.

The answer, then, must be prompt and generous as that of Peter, Andrew, James and John who “immediately left their nets, their boat and their father, and followed him” (vv. 20, 22). The abandonment of one’s own father should not be misunderstood. It does not mean that anyone who becomes a Christian (or chooses the religious and consecrated life) must ignore one’s own parents. Among the Jewish people, the father was the symbol of the link with the ancestors and of attachment to tradition. And it is this dependence on the past that must be broken when it constitutes an impediment to welcome the novelty of the gospel. The history, the traditions, the culture of every people must be respected and valued. However, we know that not all the habits, customs, ways of life handed down are compatible with the message of Christ.

The demand of Jesus relates to the dramatic choice that the early Christians were called to do: choosing to become disciples they were rejected by the family, misunderstood by parents, expelled from the synagogues, and excluded from their people. For all, leaving the father implies the abandonment of everything that is incompatible with the gospel.

To the invitation to follow him, Jesus adds the charge: “I will make you fish for people” (v. 19). The image is taken from the work done by the first apostles. In biblical symbolism, the sea was the abode of the devil, of diseases and everything that opposed life. It was deep, dark, dangerous, mysterious, and terrible. In the sea, the monsters lived, and in it, even the most skilled sailors did not feel safe.

Fishing people means to get them out of the condition of death where they are. It means to pull them out from the forces of evil that, like the raging waters, dominate, engulf and overwhelm them.

The disciple of Christ does not fear the waves and courageously faces them, even when they are raging. He does not give up hope to save a sister or a brother, even when s/he is in a humanly desperate situation: a slave of drugs and alcohol, unbridled passion, irascible, aggressive and intractable character. In whatever situation he is he will be saved by the disciple of Christ.

证道：不停歇的耶稣，拯救万民的门徒。

今日福音的第一部分，在总结了洗者若翰的使命之后，叙述了一个耶稣从纳匝肋到葛法翁的事件。葛法翁是一个渔民和农民的小村落，在加里肋亚湖西岸绵延三百米。加里肋亚被视为半异教徒的以色列人居住之地，因为他们是从不同民族混合中诞生的。他们被视为生活在黑暗和愚昧中的人。

葛法翁成为耶稣近乎三年的活动中心。住所的变更是个微不足道的事实，却被玛窦的神学解读为依撒意亚先知预言的实现：“那坐在黑暗中的百姓，看到了皓光；那坐在死亡阴影之地的人，已有光明为他们升起”。因着这个选择，耶稣显示出谁才是首先接受他光的人，不是自认洁净的犹太人，而是那些被排斥和被疏远的人。

在这段福音的第二部分，叙述了第一批四位门徒的蒙召。它更像是一篇要理问答，而非一篇召叫的叙述。玛窦圣史想要门徒明白向追随基督的邀请说“是”的意义。这个例子，说明了皈依的意义。

玛窦展现的耶稣一直在行动中。那被召叫的人，必须意识到自己将会得不到任何休息，一路上将不会有任何停留。耶稣想要我们日日夜夜地终生追随他，没有任何时刻能免除遵守这份承诺。

因此，回应这份邀请必须要像伯多禄、安德肋、雅各伯和若望那样迅速和慷慨：“立刻舍下渔网、渔船和他们的父亲，跟随了他”（玛4：20，22）。抛弃某人自己的父亲，容易被人误解。这并不意味着某人成为基督徒，或选择修道奉献终生，就必须忽视自己的父母。在犹太人中间，父亲是与祖先和传统依恋关系的象征。当这种建基于过去的依恋对我们接受福音的新颖构成障碍的时候，就必须要打破传统了。虽然历史、传统和每个民族的文化都必须得到尊重和重视，但是我们也知道，并不是所有的习惯、风俗和流传下来的生活方式都能与基督的讯息兼容。

耶稣的要求与急切紧迫的抉择有关，初期基督徒被召叫这样做：他们选择成为门徒是被家人拒绝，被父母误解，被会堂驱逐，被犹太人不接纳的。为犹太人来说，离开父亲意味着放弃一切，而这是与福音不相容的。

跟随耶稣的邀请，耶稣补充了指示：“我要使你们成为渔人的渔夫”。这形象是从首批门徒所从事的工作而来。在圣经的象征中，海是邪恶、疾病和一切反对生命的地方。它是深渊、黑暗、危险、神秘和恐怖。在海中，生活着怪兽，并且在海中，即使再熟练的水手也不觉得安全。

渔人的意思是把人所在的死亡状态中挽救出来。这意味着要把人从邪恶的势力下拉出来，它就像狂怒的水，统治、淹没和压垮人。

基督的门徒不要惧怕海浪，要勇敢地面对海浪，甚至在海浪施虐的时候，也在所不惜。基督的门徒绝不会放弃挽救任何一个兄弟姐妹，甚至当他/她处于以下人类绝境状况中亦然：一个毒品和酒精的奴隶，放纵情欲，性情暴躁，咄咄逼人，倔强固执之人。不管兄弟姐妹在何种境况下，都将被基督的门徒所拯救。

文稿来源：雅颂福传