- 1st Reading – Isaiah 62:1-5
- 2nd Reading – 1 Corinthians 12:4-11
- Gospel – John 2:1-11
Last weekend we celebrated the Feast of the Lord’s Baptism, when we heard the voice of God from heaven declare Jesus as his beloved Son and we saw the Holy Spirit descend upon Jesus in the form of a dove. Technically that was the inauguration of Jesus into his public ministry, but it is in today’s Gospel where we see him take his 1st step, he begins to take action. It presents to us Jesus’ first public miracle, and one of the best-known miracles of his ministry, the changing of water into wine.
There is so much to learn from this Gospel reading, not just from the miracle itself, but from all of the circumstances surrounding the event. Jesus was attending a wedding along with his disciples and his mother. Just his presence there blesses, not only the wedding couple, but it blesses the meaning and the purpose of marriage itself. It strengthens God’s purpose for man and woman from the beginning, when God made woman to be a partner for man. It’s a sacred institution, and a sacrament unfortunately, is getting diluted and distorted in today’s world, but that’s long discussion for another time.
At Cana, Jesus bestows this great gift on the wedding couple by turning water into wine. In those days wedding feasts often lasted for many days and running out of wine would have been a great disaster, a disgrace to the wedding couple and a tremendous breach of hospitality. At first Christ was reluctant, saying his time had not yet come, but in giving in to the need, he shows that he came not to be served, but to serve; and that the needs of others outweighed his own needs. This miracle showed how he was going to live the rest of his life, for the sake of others.
That’s the same thing that we learn from St. Paul in today’s second reading. The Corinthians were going through some troubling times and arguing among themselves about their various gifts and abilities. So, Paul tells them, “What you have is not for you. What you have is for others. Whatever gift you have, whatever ability, whatever power you have comes from God who gave it to you to be used for the good of others.” That is a fundamental truth of life. It was true for Jesus. It was true for the Corinthians, and it is true for us today. What we have has been given to us by God and it’s not for us to keep to ourselves, but for the good of all. Our talents, our abilities, our material resources and our spiritual resources are all a gift from God, so that we might serve our neighbors and build up Gods’ Kingdom here on earth.
Today’s Gospel also tells us a great deal about Mary. It shines a bright light on her relationship with Jesus, and her role in Jesus’ life, and in our lives. It was Mary who first brought to Jesus’ attention about the shortage of wine at the banquet. Mary interceded for the wedding couple in asking for Jesus’ help. From what I understand, in any good Jewish family, even in today’s society, if you want something done, and done right, you ask the mother. If you go to the mother things WILL get done. And the same is true in most families, especially Christian families. What respectable man can say no to his mother? And so, it was with Jesus at the wedding in Cana. Even though his time had not yet come, he was not about to refuse the request of his mother.
Mary tells the servants to do what Jesus tells them. This is a very proper response to the presence of Jesus, to trust in his word. The water in the six jars was there to be used for the Jewish rite of purification. Jesus transformed it into something to be used for a greater purification, not just wine, but his blood. This passage is not just about wine for the wedding party, but it points to the wine that will transformed into the blood of Christ. Jesus’ first sign here at Cana points to his final sign in John’s Gospel, the crucifixion, when Jesus is raised up on the cross. This passage is a prelude to mankind sharing in the death of Jesus through the Eucharist. This passage points to the extraordinary transformation of the world, that began at Cana, this transformation was able to take place because people trusted in the Word of the Lord. The means for purification from the evil of the world would be transformed from symbolic washing to sharing in the blood of Christ.
When we receive communion, we’re participating in this transformation of the world. When we receive communion, we’re united to the one who died on the cross for us. We have to be careful that when we receive communion, we never receive it routinely. We have to remind ourselves that every reception of communion, in either body or blood, is a union with Christ.
Mary’s instruction for us in today’s Gospel is the same as she told the wine steward, to trust in Jesus’ word. This Gospel passage shows us that Mary is there to lead us to her Son.
At the other end of John’s Gospel, when Jesus was dying on the cross, he gave us his mother as the Mother of the Church. And just as at Cana, she continues to intervene on our behalf. One of the documents that came from Vatican II, “Lumen Gentium” tells us,
“By her maternal charity, she cares for the brethren of her Son who
still journey on earth surrounded by dangers and difficulties, until
they are led into their blessed home. Therefore the Blessed Virgin
is invoked in the Church under the titles of Advocate, Helper,
Benefactress and Mediatrix.
In that document, the Church officially recognizes what we’ve known for centuries, that Mary intercedes for us continually; and that’s why we have such a deep reverence for the Mother of our Church.
Mary’s response to Jesus at Cana was to tell the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.” That shows that Mary had total trust in her Son, which makes a perfect model for us. Let us take a cue from her and do “Whatever he tells us.’