In today’s first reading, St. Paul tells us that worldly wisdom is useless to God who knows what our thoughts are; and that worldly things are our “servants” in our spiritual journey of belonging to Christ and, through him, to God. We must be “fools” by worldly standards to become “wise” by spiritual standards. Implicit in this instruction is the requirement of faith in God; and total reliance on divine inspiration for our decisions. Today’s Gospel proclamation exemplifies the difference between worldly wisdom and spiritual wisdom. Fishing expertise dictated the futility of putting out the nets after fruitless toil all night. Yet, following the instruction of Jesus, Simon and his fishing companions did put out into the deep and were rewarded with such an abundance of catch that their nets began to tear and their boats were in danger of sinking. The shock led Simon to acknowledge his sinfulness but his fear was dispelled by Jesus and at His request to “follow” Him, he and his companions left all their worldly possessions and followed Him.

Prayer: Abba Father, give us the grace to be foolish to become wise. Amen.