The art of catching people
Among Jesus’ first disciples were several fishermen — not men who fished for sport or pleasure, but who fished for a living. Commercial fishing is not for the faint of heart. All one need do is view an episode or two of television’s Deadliest Catch or Wicked Tuna and you will know what I am talking about. Commercial fishing is dangerous, expensive and exhausting. It is a cooperative effort and involves countless factors over which even the most skilled angler has little control. Whether one is able to support one’s family and make a living doing such challenging work is always up for grabs.
This being the case, it is not at all surprising to me that Jesus should find those who fished for a living to be good “disciple” material. Salt of the earth individuals familiar with hard work, disappointment and the need to humbly acknowledge the many things over which they had little or no control — for them, catching people, as Jesus would describe it, would not be all that different from catching fish.
This notion of catching people (being “fishers of men” as it has been described in King James’ English) is mentioned in the Gospel of Luke, chapter 5, where we encounter a group of weary fishermen cleaning their nets on the shores of Lake Gennesaret after having worked all night with not a single fish to show for their efforts. Jesus, who also happened to be there speaking to a crowd eager to hear his message of healing and hope, was tuned in to the fishermen’s dilemma. With boldness, Jesus instructed Simon, in whose boat he had made a temporary pulpit, to put the boat out in deep water and let down the nets. Trusting Jesus, Simon ventured into the more dangerous water and immediately began catching fish — so many that the nets began to break, and additional boats were needed to bring in the tremendous haul.
When Simon saw what was happening, he was filled with both awe and fear as he acknowledged Jesus as “Lord” and identified himself as a sinful man. “Do not be afraid,” was Jesus’ simple response. “From now on you will be catching people.” According to Scripture, upon hearing these words, the fishermen left everything behind and followed him.
Two thousand years later, Jesus is still calling disciples to “catch people” — that is, to share with others the hope that is ours and the grace we have experienced as a result of allowing God’s love to change our lives and make us whole. As I see it, though, catching people does not involve nets and hooks or luring people in. Author Madeline L’Engle expressed this beautifully by pointing out that winning others to Christ is not about loudly discrediting what they believe or telling them how wrong they are and how right we are, but about showing them a light so lovely they will want with all their hearts to know its source.
When it comes to catching people, I prefer a “catch and release” approach, not unlike that of the skilled angler reeling in a fish that has been patiently and carefully attended to while awaiting that moment when things “click,” and the invitation is accepted. As people hear and embrace the message we share, we step back, like the angler carefully removing the hook used to catch the fish but making sure not to cause any damage or trauma in the process. Finally, we carefully set the “fish” free, gently sliding it into the water from whence it came so that it might go about living its life and making a difference in its own unique way. People catching: a fine art, a worthy vocation, a calling to be lived out with humility as we allow God’s loving arms of grace to reach out to others through us.