In the parable of the net, Jesus tells his listeners that the kingdom of heaven is like a fisherman that casts his net wide. He collects everything in the sea: fish and sea creatures, tin cans and old boots. God wants them all, Jesus says, the good and the bad. We’ll sort later, he explains, at the end of time.
In the mean time, we are all stuck with each other.
Wouldn’t life be so much easier if God would just stop every once in a while and sort out the stinkers. Those bad fish keep ruining our lives and messing up the world with greed and violence.
But, no. God just keeps casting the net and continues the ban on sorting. God doesn’t seem to be in a hurry to toss anyone out of the kingdom. Love will do what it takes to convince every single person that they are precious to God.
This King of Love draws the net tight, so tight the creatures in the net are forced to look each other in the eye. What will our enemies see when they look into our eyes? What will we see in theirs?
That love-stricken poet Hafiz knows.
With That Moon Language
Admit something:
Everyone you see, you say to them,
“Love me.”
Of course you do not do this out loud;
otherwise,
someone would call the cops.
Still though, think about this,
this great pull in us
to connect.
Why not become the one
who lives with a full moon in each eye
that is always saying,
with that sweet moon
language,
what every other eye in this world
is dying to
hear.
You and I have been caught in God’s net because Jesus has loved us with his sweet moon language. Now he calls us to love others with a full moon in each eye. Those other fish? They’re in the net for the very same reason.
An Everyday Pilgrim 
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