Casting the Net
Casting the Net
This modern-day fisherman demonstrates how to use a cast net, one type of net used in New Testament times (Mark 1:16-18). The net is 18 to 25 feet in diameter. The fisherman arranges it on one arm, stands in the boat, and throws it like a parachute into the sea.
The weights along the edge, which were made of stone in Jesus' day, carry it to the bottom of the sea. The fisherman can either pull out the fish caught in the net, or pull the bottom of the net together, trapping the fish inside. Either way, he must jump into the water. In John's account of the miraculous catch, Peter apparently was the "man in the water" (John 21:7).
We should appreciate the long hours, under difficult conditions, that Jesus' disciples worked. This conditioning certainly prepared them for the demanding mission to which Jesus called them.
