Ordinary Time 2 - Wedding Feast

 

Homily for Ordinary Time 2

The Wedding Feast of Cana

January 12, 2025

 

            This is such an amazing Gospel to unpack, so open up your missalettes and let’s discover the riches in this short story from John’s Gospel!

            The scene is a wedding feast – which should ring some bells for those who know the Old Testament! In Isaiah, the coming of the Kingdom of God is inaugurated at a Wedding Feast; in Hosea and other prophets, the relationship between God and His People is described as a sacred wedding. It was not random chance that Jesus picked this particular setting for His first miracle – yes, a bride and groom were getting married, but moreso, Christ the Bridegroom has come for His Bride, the Church.

            Wedding feasts in ancient times lasted seven days, with specific times for drinking and toasting. It would be a complete embarrassment to run out of wine, so there is a practical problem that needed attending to. Mary notices and seeks a solution – a beautiful symbol of Our Lady’s intercession in our life – She notices even the small problems of our life and brings them to Our Lord’s attention.

            There has been a growing devotion in our Church to one of Mary’s more unique titles – Our Lady, Undoer of Knots. Back in 1700, there was a wealthy young man from Germany who was very devoted to Our Lady. However, his family was in trouble – the grandfather had planned to divorce his grandmother, causing a huge rift in the family. The young man went to a priest for advice about how to help his grandparents, and the priest and the young man together went in front of an image of Our Lady and prayed, “Mary, untie the knots in this family situation and smooth it out!” Within a short time and completely unexpectedly, the grandparents had reconciled, and in gratitude the young man commissioned a painting of Our Lady the Undoer of Knots, which has since spread to the entire Church. A beautiful testimony, on display in today’s Gospel!

            But Jesus’ words seem to be a rebuke. First, He calls her “woman”. Is this disrespectful? Of course not – it’s theological! Who else is called “woman” in the Bible? Back in the beginning, Eve was called woman – so Jesus is saying that Mary is the New Eve, whose obedience undoes Eve’s disobedience. But there is another “woman” – in the Book of Revelation, John has a vision of a woman clothed with the sun, the moon under her feet, and a crown of twelve stars. She has no name, but is known only by “woman”. So Jesus is saying, “Not only are you the New Eve, you are also the one who will be crowned as queen of Heaven and Earth!”

            Then Jesus says, “What concern of that is it to Me? My hour has not yet come.” In John’s Gospel, “Jesus’ hour” always refers to His Passion. So in essence, Jesus is saying, “Don’t worry about it, Mary. I can do all things, since it is not yet time for my Passion.” It’s not a rebuke – Jesus is sharing with Mary His willingness to do this miracle!

            Which engenders Mary’s response – “Do whatever He tells you.” Notice that it is only after the miracle that the disciples believe in Jesus, but it is before the miracle that Mary believes in Jesus. Do you believe in Jesus before He works in your life, or do you have to see to believe?

            These are actually the last recorded words of Mary in history: “Do whatever He tells you.” Like any “famous last words”, they carry immense weight – Mary is not just telling the waiters to follow His instructions, She is also telling us, the disciples from every time and place, to do anything the Lord asks. This is Her final parting wisdom – and it sums up the entirety of the Christian life!

            The Gospel writer then goes on to note that there were six stone water jars for ceremonial washings. This is so dense to unpack! These jars were huge – we’re talking a total of 150 gallons of wine – showing the superabundance of God’s blessings upon humanity. But it was kind of gross for Jesus to use those water jars. They had been used for a ritual hand-washing, so they were dirty – why can’t Jesus just use the empty wine jars to make the new wine?

            Because He’s making a huge point about what He has come to accomplish. These jars had been used to fulfill the old Jewish law, which was very specific about many aspects of daily life, such as washing. But Jesus came to fulfill and supersede the Old Law. The jars had an important purpose, but in Christ, it is no longer necessary to follow the Old Law with its specific commands about diet and clothing and sanitation. We no longer follow the Jewish Law, but the Lawgiver.

            This is also symbolized in the number of jars. In Scripture, the number seven is the number of perfection, completion, and covenant. So it is significant that there were six jars – symbolizing that the Old Covenant is imperfect, incomplete.

            Even the headmaster recognizes Jesus’ superiority over the Old Testament. While most people serve good wine first, now the best wine is saved for last. Likewise, God gave the Jewish Faith a glimpse of His truth and love, but now in Jesus we have the fullness of that truth and love.

            John ends by saying that this was the first of the “signs” – notice he does not call them miracles but “signs”. A sign points to a deeper, often invisible reality. So these miracles are not ends in themselves – Jesus didn’t just do it because He likes a good party. Rather, Jesus wanted to reveal a bit more about Who He Is – the incarnate God Who can change literal matter with merely a word.

            Finally, there is a whole Eucharistic undertone for this scene. Jesus is giving us food and drink, but a food and drink that started as one thing, and then with just a word transformed into something else. If Jesus can turn water into wine, can He not turn wine into His Blood?

            My friends, this rich story reveals a great deal about who Jesus is and who Mary is. Jesus is the great Bridegroom preparing to initiate the Kingdom with this Wedding Feast, and Mary is the perfect Christian Who brings her needs before Him, waits and trusts in faith, and sees His glory. May we all be like Her and entrust our lives to Him!