Come, follow me

Today we celebrate the feast of St. Andrew , the Apostle.  Jesus spots him in his boat with his father and calls out to him: “Come, follow me and I will make you fishers of people.”  Andrew immediately drops everything, leaves his father and his fishing industry to follow the Lord. He is so excited about Jesus that he finds his brother Peter and says to him: “We have found the Messiah.”  Peter, also, immediately leaves  his fishing boat to follow the Lord.

What was it about Jesus that attracted the apostles? What was it about his voice, his demeanor? 

Ever meet someone whom you could not wait to introduce to your siblings, your friends, your family?  That excitement pales, no doubt, in face of the experience of Andrew. It was the Lord, the Son of God, the Anointed One sent to this world to bring us the Good News of our salvation.  He was the one born of the Virgin Mary, of whom Mary said to the servants at the wedding feast of Cana: “Do whatever He tells you,” when she invited her Son to respond as only He could. By her invitation, Mary reveals who Jesus is to all those attending the wedding. Mary knew that her Son was no ordinary person.  He was the one sent into the world to transform it, to reconcile all humankind to His Father. He was the visible manifestation of God the Father, a God of compassion and love, a God of mercy and forgiveness—a forgiveness that would be won for us by Jesus’ obedience to the Father unto  death.

Yes, Jesus was the revelation of God, our Creator, whose plan for our salvation and the salvation of the entire world was being revealed right before Andrew’s eyes.  Come, Andrew said to his brother, I have found the Messiah!

How excited am I about Christ? Do I see in Christ the redeemer of the world? Do I see the Father reflected in the Son? And, as a baptized Christian, do I, in fact, reflect God to the world? Or are my attitudes and behaviors such that God’s light does not shine through them?