Chapter four of the Gospel of Matthew begins with a beautiful story: the calling of the first disciples. Jesus is said to be walking by the Sea of Galilee, and He happens upon these two seemingly ordinary men, who are simply fishing. He calls them, and they leave their nets and follow. Further down the Sea of Galilee, Jesus also encounters two more ordinary men, James and John, who are mending their nets. He calls them, and they likewise respond. They follow faithfully, not knowing much about what they were going to see, experience, and do. To make this call even more intriguing, it does not simply last for the few years He was walking the earth, but through the rest of each of their lives. Jesus calling to them was enough to cause them to completely uproot themselves and change the rest of their lives.
In my own mind, though, this story prompts a question: is Jesus still “walking by the Sea of Galilee?” Is He still encountering ordinary people and calling them to do extraordinary things? Is He taking a leap of faith in asking simple and ordinary men and women to come and follow Him, and to be His disciples?
In short, the answer is “yes.”
While we may not see Jesus as we are casting our nets into the Sea of Galilee, we all have our own version of that in our day-to-day lives that we lead, whether we are in our homes, our professions, or even in the schools and activities we participate in. Jesus, though He may not seem to be visibly walking by our “boat” in the same way, still desires to have that encounter with each of us. He does not simply call disciples hundreds of years ago, but He really calls each one of us in this current age.
As we prepare to celebrate National Vocations Awareness Week, it is an opportune time to look in depth at what exactly is at the root of every vocation: God’s own unique way of calling each of us to be a disciple, be that in the priesthood, religious life, or married life. Being a disciple is not something reserved to only certain vocations, nor is it more present in one vocation over another. A vocation is not a battle of importance either but should rather be a personal and unique call to be a faithful disciple who follows our Lord, especially in that specific way.
A vocation in particular gives us that reminder that each of us should be a disciple, even if we aren’t Simon, Andrew, James, or John. As we enter National Vocations Awareness Week, we should consider our own individual path in being a faithful disciple. This path is, first, something we should always be open to if we have not found our vocation. Next, it is something to pray for, as we ask God to fill our need for faithful disciples as a Diocese and a universal Church, particularly in faithful clergy, pious religious, and holy families. Then, finally, we must remain faithful to our path of discipleship, not just in one moment, but throughout our entire lives.
We may not necessarily be fishermen on the Sea of Galilee, and yet, each of us are still today personally called by Christ to fill that role of being a faithful disciple.
