Isaiah 6:1–2a, 3–8

In the year King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord seated on a high and lofty throne, with the train of his garment filling the temple. Seraphim were stationed above.

They cried one to the other, “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts! All the earth is filled with his glory!” At the sound of that cry, the frame of the door shook and the house was filled with smoke.

Then I said, “Woe is me, I am doomed! For I am a man of unclean lips, living among a people of unclean lips; yet my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts!” Then one of the seraphim flew to me, holding an ember that he had taken with tongs from the altar.

He touched my mouth with it, and said, “See, now that this has touched your lips, your wickedness is removed, your sin purged.”

Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send? Who will go for us?” “Here I am,” I said; “send me!”

RESPONSORIAL PSALM
Psalm 138:1–2, 2–3, 4–5, 7–8 (1c)

R. In the sight of the angels I will sing your praises, Lord.

I will give thanks to you, O LORD, with all my heart, for you have heard the words of my mouth; in the presence of the angels I will sing your praise; I will worship at your holy temple and give thanks to your name.

R. In the sight of the angels I will sing your praises, Lord.

Because of your kindness and your truth; for you have made great above all things your name and your promise. When I called, you answered me; you built up strength within me.

R. In the sight of the angels I will sing your praises, Lord.

All the kings of the earth shall give thanks to you, O LORD, when they hear the words of your mouth; and they shall sing of the ways of the LORD: “Great is the glory of the LORD.”

R. In the sight of the angels I will sing your praises, Lord.

Your right hand saves me. The LORD will complete what he has done for me; your kindness, O LORD, endures forever; forsake not the work of your hands.

R. In the sight of the angels I will sing your praises, Lord.

SECOND READING (Long Form)
1 Corinthians 15:1–11

I am reminding you, brothers and sisters, of the gospel I preached to you, which you indeed received and in which you also stand. Through it you are also being saved, if you hold fast to the word I preached to you, unless you believed in vain. For I handed on to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures; that he was buried; that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures; that he appeared to Cephas, then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at once, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. After that he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. Last of all, as to one born abnormally, he appeared to me. For I am the least of the apostles, not fit to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me has not been ineffective. Indeed, I have toiled harder than all of them; not I, however, but the grace of God that is with me. Therefore, whether it be I or they, so we preach and so you believed.

or:

(Short Form)
1 Corinthians 15:3–8, 11

Brothers and sisters,
I handed on to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures; that he was buried; that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures; that he appeared to Cephas, then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at once, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. After that he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. Last of all, as to one born abnormally, he appeared to me. Therefore, whether it be I or they, so we preach and so you believed.

ALLELUIA
Matthew 4:19

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Come after me and I will make you fishers of men.

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

HOLY GOSPEL
Luke 5:1–11

While the crowd was pressing in on Jesus and listening to the word of God, he was standing by the Lake of Gennesaret. He saw two boats there alongside the lake; the fishermen had disembarked and were washing their nets. Getting into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, he asked him to put out a short distance from the shore. Then he sat down and taught the crowds from the boat.

After he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into deep water and lower your nets for a catch.” Simon said in reply, “Master, we have worked hard all night and have caught nothing, but at your command I will lower the nets.”

When they had done this, they caught a great number of fish and their nets were tearing. They signaled to their partners in the other boat to come to help them. They came and filled both boats so that the boats were in danger of sinking. When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at the knees of Jesus and said, “Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man.” For astonishment at the catch of fish they had made seized him and all those with him, and likewise James and John, the sons of Zebedee, who were partners of Simon. Jesus said to Simon, “Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching men.” When they brought their boats to the shore, they left everything and followed him.

The Gospel of the Lord.
REFLECTION: THE DEEP WATERS OF FAITH

“Put out into deep water and lower your nets for a catch.” (Luke 5:4)

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It’s interesting to note that Jesus did not simply tell Peter and the Apostles to put out into the water; rather, He told them to put out into the “deep water.” This is significant.

At the close of the great jubilee year of 2000, Saint Pope John Paul II wrote an apostolic letter, Novo Millennio Ineunte in which he began by quoting this Gospel passage. This passage set the tone for the rest of his letter in which he called for a new evangelization for the coming millennium.

“Put out into the deep!” What should we take from this? What should we hear Jesus speaking to us? We should hear Him calling us to “lower our nets” in a tireless and committed way so as to draw many others to the Gospel. When Peter and the Apostles did this in the boat, they caught so many fish that their nets were tearing and they were greatly astonished. This is a prophetic action given to us to tell us that we must evangelize with the utmost enthusiasm and zeal, searching far and wide for God’s lost sheep.

The world we live in can be brutal at times. So many people are lost and confused. Sin is rampant and despair is prevalent. Our world is in desperate need of a Savior and we are the ones Jesus desires to use to gather a huge catch and to find those in greatest need. Jesus desired the Apostles to catch the fish that were in the deep waters as a way of saying that there are countless souls in our world who are far from God. There are many people “swimming” in an ocean of confusion and pain. It is these people, in particular, that Jesus wants to draw in. It’s our responsibility to heed the command of our Lord and to seek them out.

Reflect, today, upon these words of Jesus: “Put out into the deep water.” In what way is Jesus asking this of you? How is it that He is calling you to go out of your comfort zone and “lower your nets?” What is it that He wants of you and how does He desire to use you to further the mission of evangelization. Heed His command and you, too, will be amazed at the good fruit that is born!

PRAYER:
Lord of infinite mercy, I desire to give myself to You for Your service and glory. I desire to go forth, at Your command, looking for the souls in most need of Your abundant mercy. Give me the grace I need to be faithful to the calling You have given to me so that Your loving mercy will reach those most in need. Jesus, I trust in You.https://masvingomirror.com