Miraculous catch of fish: Difference between revisions
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[[Image:Bouts third-appearance.jpg|thumb|The anonymous author of this 16th century painting did not represent a massive quantity of fish.]] |
[[Image:Bouts third-appearance.jpg|thumb|The anonymous author of this 16th century painting did not represent a massive quantity of fish.]] |
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[[Image:Vesica Piscis.svg|thumb|In the white fish-shaped figure (''[[vesica piscis]]'') in the center, width and height are in a proportion of the square root of 3, the "measure of the fish".]] |
[[Image:Vesica Piscis.svg|thumb|In the white fish-shaped figure (''[[vesica piscis]]'') in the center, width and height are in a proportion of the square root of 3, the "measure of the fish".]] |
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The '''Miraculous Draught of Fish''' can refer to two different, though very similarly described, episodes from the [[Ministry of Jesus]] as described in the [[Gospel]]s. |
The '''Miraculous Draught of Fish''' can refer to two different, though very similarly described, episodes from the [[Ministry of Jesus]] as described in the [[Gospel]]s. By itself the term usually means the first of these; the other may be called "the Second Miraculous Draught of Fish". In art the two can usually be distinguished by whether or not Jesus is in the boat. |
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The first is in {{bibleverse||Luke|5:1-11}}, early in Jesus's ministry, preceding Saints [[Saint Peter|Peter]], [[James, son of Zebedee]] and [[John the Apostle|John]] joining Jesus as his Apostles. The '''Catch of 153 fish''' is an episode in [[Gospel of John]] [[John 21|chapter 21]], in which seven of the [[Twelve Apostles]] were out fishing when they unexpectedly witness one of the ''[[resurrection appearances of Jesus]]''. In both the apostles are fishing unsuccessfully in the [[Sea of Galilee]] when Jesus tells them to try one more cast of the net, at which they are rewarded with a great catch (or "draught", as in "weight"). |
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| ⚫ | In the first narrative in Luke, Jesus has joined the fishermen in the boat. |
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| ⚫ | In the first narrative in Luke, Jesus has joined the fishermen in the boat. In the latter narrative ({{bibleverse||John|21:1-14}}), a mysterious stranger asks the apostles for fish, but when they say that they have none, the stranger tells the apostles to throw their net into the water on the other (righthand) side of the boat, and the apostles are unable to pull it back due to the volume of [[fish]]. The narrative goes on to state that the (unnamed) [[beloved disciple]] identifies the stranger as [[Jesus]], which causes [[Saint Peter|Simon Peter]] to jump into the water, wrapping his coat around him, while the others follow in their boat dragging the net behind them. The number of fish caught is specified to have been 153. |
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[[File:Spoleto074.jpg|thumb|left|225px|Miraculous Draught of Fish <br /> <small>fresco in the [[Spoleto Cathedral]], Italy </small>]] |
[[File:Spoleto074.jpg|thumb|left|225px|Miraculous Draught of Fish <br /> <small>fresco in the [[Spoleto Cathedral]], Italy </small>]] |
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==The significance of the number== |
==The significance of the number== |
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Revision as of 00:09, 23 October 2009
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (July 2007) |
The Miraculous Draught of Fish can refer to two different, though very similarly described, episodes from the Ministry of Jesus as described in the Gospels. By itself the term usually means the first of these; the other may be called "the Second Miraculous Draught of Fish". In art the two can usually be distinguished by whether or not Jesus is in the boat.
The first is in Luke 5:1–11, early in Jesus's ministry, preceding Saints Peter, James, son of Zebedee and John joining Jesus as his Apostles. The Catch of 153 fish is an episode in Gospel of John chapter 21, in which seven of the Twelve Apostles were out fishing when they unexpectedly witness one of the resurrection appearances of Jesus. In both the apostles are fishing unsuccessfully in the Sea of Galilee when Jesus tells them to try one more cast of the net, at which they are rewarded with a great catch (or "draught", as in "weight").
In the first narrative in Luke, Jesus has joined the fishermen in the boat. In the latter narrative (John 21:1–14), a mysterious stranger asks the apostles for fish, but when they say that they have none, the stranger tells the apostles to throw their net into the water on the other (righthand) side of the boat, and the apostles are unable to pull it back due to the volume of fish. The narrative goes on to state that the (unnamed) beloved disciple identifies the stranger as Jesus, which causes Simon Peter to jump into the water, wrapping his coat around him, while the others follow in their boat dragging the net behind them. The number of fish caught is specified to have been 153.
fresco in the Spoleto Cathedral, Italy
The significance of the number
The precision of the number of fish has long been considered peculiar, and many scholars, throughout history, have argued that 153 has some deeper significance. Jerome, for example, wrote that Oppian's Halieutica listed 153 species of fish[1]. St. Louis-Marie de Montfort, in his fifth method of saying the Rosary, considers that the number 153 was foreshadowing of the number of Hail Marys in the Rosary: "its fruitfulness as shown in the net that St. Peter by order of Our Lord threw into the sea and which though filled with 153 [representing 153 Hail Marys in the Rosary] fish did not break." [3]
The fact that the measure of the fish was known to include 153, as one of its two numbers, and that the measure of how many fish the disciples are said to have caught is also 153, has not gone unnoticed by many scholars[who?], with some[who?] suggesting that the number of fish in the New Testament episode is simply down to being the most familiar large number to the writer, or a deliberate reference to the geometric nomenclature as a sort of in-joke. A story was told of Pythagoras by Iamblichus[2], then Porphyry[3] describing how Pythagoras correctly predicted the amount of fish caught by fishermen. Neither Iamblichus or Porphyry's accounts describe a miraculous catch nor specify the number of fish caught and the Gospel accounts make no mention of Jesus predicting the number of fish caught.[4][5] Some scholars[who?] have argued that the entire Biblical episode is a coded reference to a geometric diagram, since Pythagoreanism saw geometry and numbers as having deep esoteric meaning, and via Hermeticism (and more minor routes) it was profoundly influential in the development of Hellenic mystery religions, and in certain aspects of gnosticism, an early belief system with disputed origins[6]. The number 153 has several curious mathematical properties. [7]
Scholars regarding the unnamed Beloved Disciple as Mary Magdalene have noted that in Greek gematria her epithet "n Magdalhnh" bears the number 153, thus revealing the identity of the Gospel's author.[8]
See also
- Timaeus (dialogue)
- Bartimaeus (biblical character)
- Pythagoras
- Pythagoreanism
- Hermeticism
- Vesica piscis
- Sacred Geometry
References
- ^ "Early Christians and Animals", Robert McQueen Grant ,p23, Routledge, 1999 ISBN 0415202043
- ^ Guthrie and Fideler, 1988, The Pythagorean Sourcebook, 64-65
- ^ Guthrie and Fideler, 1988, The Pythagorean Sourcebook, 128.
- ^ "Porphyry, Life of Pythagoras", English translation Kenneth Sylvan Guthrie, par 25, 1920[1]
- ^ "Iamblichus: Life of Pythagoras", Translated by Thomas Taylor, p41, Kessinger Publishing, 1998 ISBN 0766102173[2]
- ^ Edwards, Dean (1994-05-18). "Gnosis Overview". La Casa del Paese Lontano. Retrieved 2007-11-19.
- ^ Gupta, Shayam Sunder. "Curious Properties of 153".
{{cite web}}: Text "accessdate-2009-06-26" ignored (help) - ^ "Mary Magdalene: The Illuminator", p. 61. William Henry Adventures Unlimited Press