Daily Gospel Reflection
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April 25, 2025
Jesus revealed himself again to his disciples at the Sea of Tiberias.
He revealed himself in this way.
Together were Simon Peter, Thomas called Didymus,
Nathanael from Cana in Galilee,
Zebedee’s sons, and two others of his disciples.
Simon Peter said to them, “I am going fishing.”
They said to him, “We also will come with you.”
So they went out and got into the boat,
but that night they caught nothing.
When it was already dawn, Jesus was standing on the shore;
but the disciples did not realize that it was Jesus.
Jesus said to them, “Children, have you caught anything to eat?”
They answered him, “No.”
So he said to them, “Cast the net over the right side of the boat
and you will find something.”
So they cast it, and were not able to pull it in
because of the number of fish.
So the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord.”
When Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord,
he tucked in his garment, for he was lightly clad,
and jumped into the sea.
The other disciples came in the boat,
for they were not far from shore, only about a hundred yards,
dragging the net with the fish.
When they climbed out on shore,
they saw a charcoal fire with fish on it and bread.
Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish you just caught.”
So Simon Peter went over and dragged the net ashore
full of one hundred fifty-three large fish.
Even though there were so many, the net was not torn.
Jesus said to them, “Come, have breakfast.”
And none of the disciples dared to ask him, “Who are you?”
because they realized it was the Lord.
Jesus came over and took the bread and gave it to them,
and in like manner the fish.
This was now the third time Jesus was revealed to his disciples
after being raised from the dead.
How often do we hold onto our own plans or past experiences, even when they aren’t serving us? Not the ones we know deep down are flawed, but the ones we’ve built up without realizing it; the ones we don’t think to question unless confronted.
The disciples were fishermen by trade, skilled in their craft and familiar with the best techniques to catch fish. Yet after a long, fruitless night, they heard a stranger call from the shore, instructing them to cast their nets again. Despite their experience, they listened and were rewarded beyond expectation.
I consider myself a good listener and more open-minded than most, but I can be resistant when it comes to change. If I can’t logically think through something and justify it to myself, I rarely incorporate it into my worldview. That approach seems sensible. So, at first, I found the disciples’ actions—and their reward—hard to relate to. Of course, I’m no first-century fisherman, and in their position, perhaps I would flip my nets on anyone’s suggestion. However, it seems illogical to suggest that the result would be a marvelous catch of fish. Indiscriminately accepting advice and perspectives would only leave me tired and confused.
Today’s lesson isn’t that blind trust always guarantees reward. Instead, it’s that we often dismiss ideas too quickly simply because they don’t fit within the limits of our reasoning. Most of the time, there isn’t a miraculous catch of fish waiting for us on the other side. But like the disciples who caught nothing alone, we all encounter moments where logic falls short. If we insist on staying within the boundaries of what makes sense to us, we risk closing ourselves off to possibilities greater than we imagined. When and how to cross that boundary is discernment—what faith and spirituality are all about.
Prayer
Father, Peter’s love for your Son is but an echo of your love for us. Help us, like Peter, to love passionately—to leap out of our small boats and to rush to be with Jesus on the shores of the new life that he promises. Bless us with an abundant catch of souls, especially those furthest removed from your mercy today. Amen.
Saint of the Day
St. Mark is the author of the earliest record of Jesus’ life and death that we have in Scripture.
Some believe he is the young man who makes an appearance in that Gospel’s account of the arrest of Jesus (Mark 14:51-52)—the young man who was nearly captured but escaped.
Known also as John Mark, he was a follower of St. Peter and makes other appearances in the Scriptural accounts of the early Church (Acts 12:25). He and his mother were important figures in the early Christian community—his mother’s house was a gathering place for followers, for example.
He traveled with Peter to Rome and he also accompanied Paul and Barnabus, who was Mark’s cousin, to Cyprus as they preached the good news. Tradition tells that he established the Church in Alexandria where he served as bishop, founded the first famous Christian school, and was later martyred. Because of the tradition linking Mark to Egypt, he is one of the chief saints of the Coptic Christian Church.
His Gospel was composed sometime around the year 70, and it seems to have been intended for a non-Jewish audience facing persecution. Some ancient writers describe Mark as Peter’s interpreter—that Mark's Gospel was written from Peter's eyewitness account of Jesus' life.
All four of the Gospel writers are depicted with a symbol that comes from imagery in the Book of Revelation (4:7): a lion, a calf, a human, and an eagle. Mark’s emblem is the lion because his Gospel begins with a scene in the desert, and the lion is considered lord of the desert.
The city of Venice, Italy, is said to hold his body, and relics of St. Mark also rest in the reliquary chapel in the Basilica of the Sacred Heart on Notre Dame's campus. Mark is depicted in several places on campus, most notably in this painting from the ceiling of the Basilica.
St. Mark, the first Evangelist to write down the story of Jesus's life—pray for us!