Do you love me?

Jesus showed himself again to the disciples by the Sea of Tiberias; and he showed himself in this way. Gathered there together were Simon Peter, Thomas called the Twin,^[a] Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two others of his disciples. Simon Peter said to them, ‘I am going fishing.’ They said to him, ‘We will go with you.’ They went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing. 

Just after daybreak, Jesus stood on the beach; but the disciples did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to them, ‘Children, you have no fish, have you?’ They answered him, ‘No.’ He said to them, ‘Cast the net to the right side of the boat, and you will find some.’ So they cast it, and now they were not able to haul it in because there were so many fish. That disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, ‘It is the Lord!’ When Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put on some clothes, for he was naked, and jumped into the lake. But the other disciples came in the boat, dragging the net full of fish, for they were not far from the land, only about a hundred yards off.

When they had gone ashore, they saw a charcoal fire there, with fish on it, and bread. Jesus said to them, ‘Bring some of the fish that you have just caught.’ So Simon Peter went aboard and hauled the net ashore, full of large fish, a hundred and fifty-three of them; and though there were so many, the net was not torn.  

Jesus said to them, ‘Come and have breakfast.’ Now none of the disciples dared to ask him, ‘Who are you?’ because they knew it was the Lord. Jesus came and took the bread and gave it to them, and did the same with the fish. This was now the third time that Jesus appeared to the disciples after he was raised from the dead.

When they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, ‘Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?’ He said to him, ‘Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Feed my lambs.’ A second time he said to him, ‘Simon son of John, do you love me?’ He said to him, ‘Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Tend my sheep.’ He said to him the third time, ‘Simon son of John, do you love me?’ Peter felt hurt because he said to him the third time, ‘Do you love me?’ And he said to him, ‘Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Feed my sheep. Very truly, I tell you, when you were younger, you used to fasten your own belt and to go wherever you wished. But when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will fasten a belt around you and take you where you do not wish to go.’ (He said this to indicate the kind of death by which he would glorify God.) After this he said to him, ‘Follow me.’ (Jn 21, 1q-19)

Today the Church presents St. Peter in two different situations. In the first part of today's Gospel  Simon Peter told some other disciples: "I'm going fishing." It seems that Peter was disheartened, still not sure what to do. He had already seen Jesus resurrected and believed in Him. However, he still had not received any command from his Master. It is true that Jesus had promised Peter: "Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching people.But he only knew how to catch fish! So he went to fish, and six other disciples went with him.

There are those who explain in a spiritual way the fact that Simon Peter and the other disciples went to fish. Maybe they went to fish for people i.e. to start preaching.

It is not important to know which explanation is correct, because the result of the fishing expedition was the same. They caught no fish, no people! In the morning of that day, on the shore of the Sea of Tiberias, Jesus told the fishermen: "Children, you have no fish, have you?" "No!" - they replied.

If Jesus is not with us in our apostolic work what can we do? Jesus said: "  I am the vine, you are the branches … apart from me you can do nothing. " (Jn 15,5).

Jesus had prepared a coal fire with fish on it, and bread. He told the disciples: " Bring some of the fish that you have just caught." Jesus wants us to cooperate with him.

It is good to remember the words of the priest at Mass. When he offers bread the priest prays: "Blessed are you, Lord God of all creation, for through your goodness we have received the bread we offer you: fruit of the earth (i.e. a gift from God) and work of human hands, it will become for us the bread of life." He says the same thing when he offers wine. During the Mass we have the biggest expression of cooperation between God and man.

Then Jesus said to his disciples: "Come and eat." It's like a Eucharist that Jesus celebrated with his disciples.

In the second part of today’s gospel, after the disciples ate breakfast, Jesus asked Peter, " Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?" Peter, who for three times had denied that he knew Jesus, replied: "Yes, Lord; you know that I love you." For three times he repeated the question, and Peter for three times declared his love for Jesus. Each time Jesus replied: " Feed my lambs. "

Here we have three elements: the first is forgiveness of Peter’s betrayal, not with condemning  words because he knew that Peter loved him. The second is that the fear that Peter felt at the moment of Christ's passion had not dampened his love for Jesus, nor Jesus’ love for him. This was a very important moment for Peter, for it strengthened him and prepared him for his mission. The third element is that Peter had clearly before him the mission Christ had prepared for him. Jesus did not want Peter just as a fisher of men. Peter's mission was broader. His main job was to lead the community of the disciples of Christ.

Peter was ready to begin his mission. Only one thing was missing: a command from Jesus. Before his ascension to heaven, Jesus told his disciples: "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. ¹⁹ Go therefore and make disciples of all nations … teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.’

When, before ascending to heaven, Jesus gave this order, Peter could tell the other disciples: "I am going fishing", and they could say, "We'll go with you!"

Christ's disciples are still catching many fish ... with our cooperation.