Feast of St. Martin I
Deacon Robert Banet
How many days did the rain last during Noah’s flood?
That’s easy. Forty days and forty nights.
Good. Now, how many fish did the disciples catch after Jesus rose from the dead?
One hundred fifty three. The priest just talked about that last Sunday.
Your’re doing fine. Now, how many soldiers did the Romans provide to protect St. Paul on their way to Caesarea?
Oh, I don’t know. Probably ten or so.
Wrong! Wrong! Wrong! It was two hundred spearsmen.
OK, so I was a little off. You don’t have to bite my head off.
A little off? And that’s not counting the seventy horsemen.
OK, you win. Do these numbers in the Bible mean anything?
Yes. Sometimes they remind us things. Like, the forty days of Noah can remind you of the forty years in the desert or the forty days of the fast of Jesus.
How about the others?
They may or may not. We’ll have to wait to ask the authors when we get to Heaven.
God seems to show Himself and remind us of Himself in many ways.
You can say that again. We have a loving God.