‘Six traits of the fishermen that 'fishers of men' ought to have’ - His Grace Zachariah Mar Dionysius Metropolitan (of blessed memory)

Sayings of the saintly fathers series/June 30-Feast of Twelve Apostles.

 The liturgical calendar of the Indian Orthodox Church commemorates the twelve apostles on June 30th. The Lord called few simple fishermen to His ministry and told them- “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.” They immediately left their nets and followed Him." (St Matthew 4: 19-20).

In the previous post, we noted His Grace Zachariah Mar Dionysius Thirumeni (of blessed memory) reminding us of our evangelical responsibility as we commemorate the holy apostles. In this post Thirumeni elucidates few qualities of the fishermen disciples which is needed for 'fishers of men' and should be specially noted by those who are engaged in gospel work including preaching. 

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1) Patience: The fisherman needs to be patient; exhibiting signs of impatience will only decrease the chances of catching the fish. As the farmer waits (for the harvest), the evangelist needs to wait till the Gospel finds home in the heart of men and grows fruit.

2) Perseverance: In the process of catching fishes, the fisherman throws the net again and again. Similarly, the evangelist needs to have a perseverant attitude.

3) Courage: The fisherman's boat is very small as compared to the gigantic sea. But the fisherman is courageous enough to face the perils of the sea. Likewise, the evangelist should be courageous to face any opposition and even death when proclaiming the True Faith. 

His Grace Zachariah Mar Dionysius Metropolitan of blessed memory

4) Alert: The fisherman needs to be alert at all times during the fishing process. When the fishes are caught in the net, the fisherman needs to promptly pull the nets at the right time. There arise many instances in a man’s life, when he would intently listen to the Gospel, and be moved to repentance. This is the apt time when the evangelist needs to lead them to the Lord.

5) Fit the bait to the fish: The water bodies contain variety of fishes - big and small. The ideal bait would be the one which attracts all kinds of fishes. The evangelist should study various aspects of his audience/gospel listeners- like their educational and social background and adapt his sermon/approach accordingly. We can seek inspiration from St Paul’s methodology. He proclaimed Christ as the God whom Athenians worshipped without knowing. (St Paul saw an altar with inscription- To the unknown God' in Athens (Acts of the Apostles 17:22 onwards)). St Paul says- "I have become all things to all men, that I might by all means save some." (1 Corinthians 9:22, NKJV).

6) Keep himself out of the sight: A good fisherman knows how to conceal himself and ensure that the fishes never sense his presence. Similarly, a preacher should never project himself while preaching. His only focus should be Christ and his evangelical duty. Even Christ, during His public ministry and preaching, focused on the Heavenly Father and made Him known to the men. St John the Baptist is a model figure for the evangelists. When Christ came in the view, the Baptist took a backseat. The reason why the hearts of listeners isn't moved when they hear sermons in Churches and elsewhere is because the preacher usually tries to make himself the focus of sermon.

May the feast of the apostles encourage us to inculcate the true spirit of evangelism.

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May the prayers of the holy apostles be our refuge always.

In Christ,

Rincy John

Reference:

Zachariah Mar Dionysius- Vrathashudhiyil thalliritta jeevitham, Ed- Ramban Elias Koshy, Published by Mount Tabor Dayara Pathanapuram, Nov 2014 Pg- 173-175.