Third Sunday of Easter: Catching Fish, Eventually

The Reverend Dr. Johanna Wagner points out some strange aspects
of this story at the end of the Gospel of John. While the end of chapter 20 leads
us to believe that the gospel is “done…” here we have a story in chapter 21! This
story is also somewhat a mundane one, until the apostles finally catch some
fish.

Rev. Wagner compares this to a story her stepfather told. He was in East Berlin, trying to get to a play in West Berlin, back when those two halves were divided by a border. He experiences a few shame-filled moments and is late to the play, and his lesson to Johanna is that now he is always early to the theater.

This experience is like the Apostles’ journey: after all the struggles and chaos of their journey, they find themselves back at home, in a somewhat normal, mundane life. Yet, now they are to be true Apostles, not just disciples. Most of life is lived this way. In our normal lives, there are opportunities for extraordinary things to happen.

So, while John has spent so much of his Gospel emphasizing the holy and exalted nature of the Christ, reminds us that the voice of God is also a simple, everyday voice.

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