Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, ‘Whom shall I send? Who will go for Me?’ ‘Here I am, send me.’” In this verse from Isaiah 6:1-8, Isaiah has a vision of God and heaven, and though he knows himself to be a sinner, God’s mercy cleanses him of sin. Then Isaiah responds to God’s call: “Here I am, send me.”
In First Corinthians, we encounter Paul, who had persecuted the Church but later responded to Jesus, who appeared to him on the road to Damascus. Some years after his conversion, Barnabas invites him to join him on a mission of evangelization, and Paul responds to Barnabas and to God with a “yes.” Paul’s response is such that he will become the “Apostle to the Gentiles” – the one who brings God’s saving word to large areas north of the Mediterranean Sea.
In the Gospel of Luke, Peter is amazed by the great number of fish caught simply on a word from Jesus. He then examines himself and his own weaknesses. He falls at the knees of Jesus and says, “Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man.” But Jesus responds, “Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching people.” Then Peter and Andrew, James and John leave their nets and follow Jesus (Luke 5:1-11).
In each case, God is less worried about our sinfulness than most of us are. The call is to follow Him, for when we do, then we will grow in grace and our sins will diminish. We will get caught up in doing good, and so will have little time for sin. We seldom can overcome sin by ourselves – that is why Jesus came to bring us healing and lead us on the way to life and love.
“Do not be afraid. Come and follow me”: These are Jesus’ words to each of us and to all of us. Leave your nets behind and follow Him. In many ways, this is counter-cultural. Our culture tells us that we are supposed to do things our way. It is all about freedom and “don’t tell me what to do.” The irony is that billions of dollars are spent telling us where to go, what to eat, what to wear, what to drive, what to look like, where to live, how to vacation, what to listen to, what smartphone to have – in other words, we are continually told what to do, what will make us happy, and who we are supposed to be. And somehow, if it can keep us busy enough, we will never stop to reflect and realize how unfree society makes us. Of course, much of the driving force behind all of this is money. So who really cares about us? God does.
Jesus and the Father invite us: “Come and follow Me.” We are created not to follow every whim and fashion, or every new app or ideological ploy. No, we are created out of love and for love. We are created not as individuals but as persons. A person is only fulfilled in relationship – relationship to others and relationship to God. Only loving relationships can bring about peace, not billion-dollar military budgets or Otezla or Consumer Cellular or Kraft mac and cheese or having the Hornets win the NBA.
Relationships leading to love, this is the key to fulfillment and peace. This is what Jesus calls us to. He wants to be part of our relationships.
I came across a good example of this recently on South Carolina Educational TV, which was airing an interview with Dr. James Hildreth, president of Meharry Medical College in Nashville, Tenn. Meharry Medical School was founded in 1876 at a time when no U.S. medical school would accept African-Americans. The initial money came from a man who remembered a good deed. In the 1820s, a 14-year-old white boy was driving a wagon near dusk and got stuck in the mud. He went to the nearest home for help, and the black family there took him in and fed him, gave him a bed and the next morning helped to get his wagon going again. He never forgot their kindness. Some 50 years later, now a wealthy man and a devout Methodist, he gave the money to found the medical college.
Interestingly, Hildreth mentioned how in the 1930s through the ’50s, when medical schools in the South would also not accept Jewish students, Meharry did, and graduated a good number of Jewish doctors and dentists.
This is grace at work. This is the response to God’s asking, “Whom shall I send?”
May we not be afraid of our weakness and sins, but turn to Jesus and say, “Here I am, Lord, send me.” Often we will find that we are not alone. Like the apostles and so many others who followed their example through the ages, we will travel on together – the Body of Christ at work in the world.
“Here we are, Lord, send us.” Amen.
Jesuit Father John Michalowski is the parochial vicar of St. Peter Church in Charlotte.