Third Sunday in Ordinary Time/A
Massimo Palombella
Today’s Gospel (Mt 4:12-23) describes the calling of Simon, Andrew, James, and John, all fishermen.
It is interesting to note that when Jesus invites Simon and Andrew to follow him, he tells them, “I will make you fishers of men”.
Truly following the Lord is not a denial of our identity, a radical and uncritical change of everything, but fundamentally a broadening of our horizons: from fishers of fish to fishers of men.
Truly following the Lord means beginning a slow process of unifying our lives, where everything, absolutely everything, even what we avoid because it destabilises us, finds its place, becomes a resource, and fits into that broad architecture given to us by the Lord, which alone allows our existence to become increasingly authentic and human.
The Gradual for today’s celebration is taken from Psalm 101 (Ps 101:16-17) with the following text:
Timebunt gentes nomen tuum, Domine, et omnes reges terrae gloriam tuam.
Quoniam aedificavit Dominus Sion, et videbitur in gloria sua.
(The nations shall fear your name, O Lord, and all the kings of the earth your glory.
For the Lord has built up Zion, and he shall appear in his majesty).
The attached music, in Gregorian chant, is taken from the Graduale Triplex published in Solesmes in 1979. The interpretation is by the Choeur Grégorien De Paris. The music track can be found on the CD Méditation grégorienne published by Editions Jade in 2010.
A blessed Sunday and heartfelt greetings.
