Lk.5: 1-11
The true story of Teddy Stoddard and Mrs. Thompson is both insightful and inspiring. Mrs. Thompson’s fifth-grade student, Teddy, was in her class. She was not very happy with Teddy because he did not get along well with the other children in the class. His clothes were always messy and needed constant washing. She was so fed up with Teddy that it reached a point where she delighted in marking his papers with a broad red pen, making bold ‘X’s and then putting a big “F” at the top of his papers.
As part of the requirements of the school, every teacher had to review the past reports of her students. When Mrs. Thompson came across the report on Teddy, it was shocking. Teddy’s first grade teacher wrote, “Teddy is a bright child with a ready laugh. He does his work neatly and has good manners. He is a joy to be around.” His second-grade teacher wrote: “Teddy Stoddard is an excellent student, well-liked by his classmates, but he is troubled because his mother has a terminal illness and life at home must be a struggle.” His third-grade teacher wrote: “His mother’s death has been hard on him. He tries to do his best, but his father doesn’t show much interest, and his home life will soon affect him if some steps aren’t taken.” Teddy’s fourth grade teacher wrote: “Teddy Stoddard is withdrawn and doesn’t show much interest in school. He doesn’t have many friends and sometimes sleeps in class.” Now Mrs. Thompson understood the problem, and she was ashamed of herself. It was Christmas time, and all the students brought beautiful gifts for her, except Teddy’s. His present was clumsily wrapped in the heavy, brown paper that he got from a grocery bag.
She took pains to open Teddy’s gifts before everyone. When she started to uncover the gift, the children started to laugh. She found a rhinestone bracelet with some of the stones missing and a bottle that was one quarter full of perfume. But she stifled the children’s laughter when she exclaimed, how pretty the bracelet was. She put it on and dabbed some of the perfume on her wrist. Teddy Stoddard stayed after school that day just long enough to say: “Mrs. Thompson, today you smelled just like my mom used to.” After the children left, she cried for at least an hour. On that very day, she quit teaching, reading, writing, and arithmetic. Instead, she began to teach children.
Then on Mrs. Thomson started to give special attention to Teddy. Her loving kindness transformed him. In his mind, things started to come alive, and in a matter of time, Teddy became the smartest student in his class. A year later, under her door, she found Teddy’s note telling her that she was still the best teacher he had ever had in his whole life. Six years later, after completing his high school and reaching third in his class, he still wrote to her that she was still the best teacher he had ever had in his life. Four years after that, she got another letter, saying that while things had been tough at times, he stayed in school, had stuck with it, and would soon graduate from college with the highest of honours. He assured Mrs. Thompson that she was still the best and favourite teacher he ever had in his whole life.
Then four more years passed, and yet another letter came. This time, he explained that after he got his bachelor’s degree, he decided to go a little further. The letter explained that she was still the best and favourite teacher he ever had. But now his name is a little longer. The letter was signed, Theodore F. Stoddard, MD.
The story did not end here. Teddy met a girl and decided to marry her. He explained in his letter that his father had died a couple of years ago, and he was wondering if Mrs. Thompson might agree to sit in the place at the wedding that was usually reserved for the mother of the groom.
She willingly agreed. She wore that bracelet, the one with several rhinestones missing. And she made sure she was wearing the perfume that Teddy remembered his mother wearing on their last Christmas together. They hugged each other, and Dr. Stoddard whispered in Mrs. Thompson’s ear: “Thank you, Mrs. Thompson, for believing in me. Thank you so much for making me feel important and showing me that I could make a difference. ” Mrs. Thompson, with tears in her eyes, whispered back. She said, “Teddy, you have it all wrong. You were the one who taught me that I could make a difference. I didn’t know how to teach until I met you.”
We all wish to have a personal transformation in our lives as well as at times we want to be agents of transformation in others too. Unfortunately, often it remains only as a desire. There isn’t any doubt concerning our goodwill for this transformation to become a better person. When it comes to the reality of our lives, we tend to remain the same and compromise our need for personal transformation. The process of personal transformation is not merely our effort. We can’t eliminate the grace of God that empowers us to embark on this process and allow ourselves to be moulded into a better person. How can we remain open to the grace of God and implement this personal transformation in our lives as well as how can we help others for the same? All the three readings of the day provide us with befitting solutions for personal transformation, quoting the life experiences of Peter, Paul, and Isaiah.
In the gospel, we see Jesus using Simon Peter’s boat for the proclamation of the Word of God. Prior to this, we see them washing the net. They went fishing last night and were disappointed because they did not catch anything. After his teaching, Jesus tells Peter to cast a net into the deep sea. Peter was an experienced fisherman. He was working overnight and he could not get anything. It was a disappointing night. When Jesus tells him to cast the net into the deep sea, Peter could have very well justified himself by quoting his disappointing experience that he had last night. Moreover, Jesus did not know any basic lessons about fishing because he was from a carpentry background. Yet, Peter listens to Jesus and obeys. All those who were with Peter, might have thought Peter had gone insane. But when Peter listened to and obeyed the Word of God, he had a great catch. His efforts became fruitful. This incident triggered the personal transformation of Peter. Peter was not lost in the big catch, but he lost himself in the person of Jesus. Peter realised that Jesus was not an ordinary rabbi because he knew not only the sea but also his very life. In that moment of self-awareness, Peter recognises his unworthiness and surrenders his life at the feet of Jesus. It was a moment of transformation for Peter, from a fisherman to a fisher of men. They left everything and followed Jesus. When we listen to the words of Jesus and obey his words, we too will experience a personal transformation in our lives.
In the second reading, St. Paul, in his letter to the Corinthians, acknowledges the same by stating his personal transformation. Like Peter, he too had a personal encounter with the risen Christ on his way to Damascus. This encounter gave him a total transformation. Because of his past identity as a persecutor of the church, Paul surrenders his unworthiness to be called an apostle. He listened to Christ, obeyed his words, and remained open to his grace. Thus, he became the greatest of all missionaries of the Church, carrying the gospel to the end of the world.
In the first reading, we hear the mystical vision of Isaiah. He had a vision of the majesty of the Lord. When he had this supreme encounter, he recognised his unworthiness. He was a man with unclean lips and lived among the people with unclean lips. However, God sanctifies his life. Till then, he was lost in his past, but now he accepts his future with hope. When the Lord asks who will go, He willingly accepted his mission because he listened, saw, experienced, and obeyed the Word of the Lord and became one of the significant prophets in the history of Israel. In all these men of God, we see the same pattern of a God encounter, they listened, and obeyed his words. They become aware of the mightiness of the Lord and recognise their unworthiness in his presence. However, they were not lost forever in their past but accepted their new mission as a transformed person filled with faith and hope.
In our life journey, we never thirst for or seek this God encounter. We want to fulfil the minimum requirement to preserve our identity as Christians. Some of us, may thirst for God’s experience anyhow, but we get lost in our past and sinfulness. As a result, we remain in the same boat. When we fully trust in the Word of God and obey what God is asking us to fulfil, it might be beyond our logical reasoning, like Peter, who had a fruitless night, yet he obeyed it and witnessed the transformation that the Lord can bring in our lives. We might be experiencing emptiness, lack of hope, and joy in our lives. If you are ready to listen to the Word of God and ready to cast your net into the deep sea, you will experience the mighty hand of the Lord in your lives. Thus we could experience transformation into the person of Christ in our lives and we can influence others for the same.