Cana of Galilee
You
have kept the good wine until now.
John 2:10
In
the opening exhortation of the Anglican marriage service,
the celebrant declares, "This holy estate [of matrimony]
Christ adorned and beautified with his presence, and first
miracle that he wrought, in Cana of Galilee" (Book
of Common Prayer, page 564).
A
colleague of mine in the priesthood once told me that he had
the practice, when a couple wishing to get married came to
see him, of asking them what this first miracle was. Usually
they draw a blank. Well, today's gospel narrates that miracle:
changing water into wine.
Last
Tuesday the West Toronto Deanery Clericus held its monthly
meeting at the Church of the Advent, and the Interim Priest
in Charge presided over an informal eucharist, at which I
was asked to read this same gospel. Following local practice,
in place of a homily, those present were invited to contribute
their reflections on the passage just read. It was interesting
to note what we came up with.
The
celebrant remarked that this story was proof positive that
Jesus was no Puritan. He accepted an invitation to the joyful
event of a marriage, at which the consumption of wine was
a prominent feature, and he saved the day when the last of
the wine threatened to bring the festivities to a premature
end.
Another
colleague observed that Mary was acting like a typical Jewish
mother, taking charge in a social situation where, presumably,
all those present were people she knew.
My
own contribution was to comment on Jesus' response to his
mother's implicit request: "They have no wine" (John
2:3). He replies, "O woman, what have you to do with
me? My hour has not yet come" (verse 4).
Why
does Jesus address his mother as "woman," rather
than as "mother" or "Mary"? And why does
he seem to rebuff her with an expression which appears to
deny that there is any common bond between them? And what
is meant by Jesus' reference to his "hour," which
"has not yet come"?
Some
Protestants read the passage as putting Mary and, perhaps,
the church's veneration of Mary, in their place. However,
they should note that whatever Jesus says, what he does is
a positive reponse to his mother's request. This has led Roman
Catholics to refer to the "suppliant omnipotence"
of the Mother of God: What Mary wants Mary gets.
Finally,
we have to do a fast forward to the end of the gospel, where
Jesus once again addresses Mary as "woman" ((John
19:26). This time the scene is the cross, and Jesus is entrusting
his mother to the care of the Beloved Disciple: "Behold,
your mother!" (verse 27).
Is
Jesus' sacrifice of himself for the sins of the world the
"hour" to which he referred at Cana (John 2:4)?
Does the action of the Beloved Disciple in taking Mary to
his own home (John 19:27) suggest that Jesus has entrusted
her to all Christian disciples, to be their mother? This is
the inference which many Roman Catholics would make.
The
Old Testament lesson, in accordance with the practice of the
New Lectionary, echoes the theme of marriage, but here it
is the marriage (or remarriage) of God with his people Israel,
who will be "a crown of glory in the hand of the Lord,
and a royal diadem in the hand of their God" (Isaiah
62:3).
