Commentary on the Gospel of

NOVICE MASTER Fr. Johnson Joseph, cmf

In calling Andrew to be a disciple, Jesus reveals the mind of God in inviting people for His mission. Contrary to the practice of the Jewish rabbis, Jesus chooses his disciples rather than the disciples choosing the master. The Jewish rabbis accepted only the best and the brightest candidates as their disciples because it would bring them prestige, power and wealth in their lives.  Whereas Jesus chooses illiterate fishermen and offered them hardships, persecution and death. They gave an outright response and radical following. Leaving their boats, they renounced their worldly attachments and by leaving their father they surpassed the limits of family ties.

Chosen from an ordinary context, a disciple is entrusted with an extraordinary task. When Jesus walked by one day, John the Baptist pointed, “Behold, the Lamb of God.” It is then that Andrew made the decision to follow Jesus. Andrew along with his brother left everything and followed Jesus. Later, Andrew proclaimed the Gospel courageously and died on a cross as a martyr.  As one Greek Father comments: ‘The Lord chose them not because of what they are but because of what they can become; he does not choose their works but their hearts.’

Andrew lend his ears to the words of Jesus. He let the powerful words of Jesus change him. He laid his life bare before God who wanted to used him for his mission. The darkness and emptiness of his life gave way to a sense of mission and the joy of being a constructor of God’s world. Andrew inspires our availability and commitment to the Lord and to trustingly go wherever he leads us.

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