Reflection on the holy Gospel reading (St. John 2:1-11)- First Sunday of the Great Lent
“This beginning of signs Jesus did in Cana of
Galilee and manifested His glory; and His disciples believed in Him.” (v11)
A plain reading of this verse confirms that
the public ministry of our Lord embarked when He turned water into wine at the
behest of the holy Theotokos at a wedding in Cana of Galilee. It would be an
unorthodox way for the Teacher to begin his public ministry- no sermons, no
healing, no verbal debates with the religious authorities but a sign in an
obscure wedding in Galilee- a sign for those who had the heart and the eyes to
behold and understand.
The wedding was on the third day in Cana of
Galilee (v1-2). The third day holds immense importance in the Jewish
tradition and Scriptures. One such occurrence was when the Israelites
sanctified themselves and waited in anticipation, and on the third day the Lord
manifested to Israelites at Mount Sinai (Exodus 19). The events on Mount Sinai
were reminiscent of a spiritual wedding. The Ten Commandments were offered to
the people, and Israel affirms the covenant. In a symbolic act that affirmed
the matrimonial relationship of the Yahweh and His people, Moses took the blood
of the sacrifices and sprinkles it on the altar and the people saying- “This is the blood of the covenant which the
Lord has made with you according to all these words.” (Exodus 24:3-8). Post
wedding celebrations in many cultures have the practice of the bride and
bridegroom having the meal together. Even in Mount Sinai, a heavenly feast
followed the spiritual wedding, one wherein Moses and the elders of Israel
expressed this familial relationship by dining in the presence of the Lord
(Exodus 24:9-11).
The intimate relationship of God and His
people akin to a matrimonial union was not a novel concept for Israelites.
Prophet Hosea expounds the love of God thus:
“I
will betroth you to Me forever; Yes, I will betroth you to Me
In righteousness and justice, In lovingkindness and mercy;
I will betroth you to Me in faithfulness, and you shall know
the Lord." (Hosea 2;19,20)
And now the Bridegroom (as the Baptist
labeled Him (St. John 3:29)) manifested in person, beginning His ministry at a
wedding in Cana of Galilee, to fulfil the marriage covenant with the bride-the
Church.
The usual course of action would have been to
work with the hosts to make alternate arrangements for the provisions of wine
for the guests; however the Blessed Virgin simply turns to Christ (who is a
guest at the wedding) with the hurdle at hand. The history of Israel is replete
with men and women waiting faithfully in anticipation of the Messiah. The
Blessed Virgin, who was brought up in the Temple, received the annunciation
from angel Gabriel, the one who sung the Magnificat that praises the remembrance
of the Lord for His servant Israel wasn’t a passive agency but one who actively
pondered the events in heart (St. Luke 2:19).
The Blessed Virgin’s call for help -“they
have no wine.” (v.3) is akin to the pleading of Israel to the Lord to receive
for the wine of salvation during His glorious manifestation: “The new wine
fails, the vine languishes,….There is a cry for wine in the streets” (Isaiah
24:7-13).
The prophecy of Isaiah does not end with the
lack of wine. The following chapter foretells how the Lord Himself will not
only provide wine in a lavish banquet but He will also ultimately conquer death
and the people will rejoice in His salvation. The concept of the great
Messianic Banquet has its roots in these prophecies:
“..the Lord of hosts will make for all people
..a feast of wines on the lees, Of fat things full of marrow, Of well-refined wines on the lees…..He will swallow up death forever…
And it will be said in that day: “Behold, this is our God; We have waited for
Him, and He will save us. This is the Lord; We have waited for Him; We will be
glad and rejoice in His salvation.” (Isaiah 25:6-9).
On a surface view the viewer might think that
the mother of our Lord is asking her Son to help save the prestige of a
relative/family friend. However, seen from a Jewish perspective, this very
question shows the prayer of the Blessed Virgin to her Son and the Lord to
provide the wine of salvation that was spoken of by Prophet Isaiah.
After tasting the new wine, the master of the
feast tells the bridegroom how he kept the good wine until now (v.9, v.10). We gather from these verses that
it was the bridegroom’s duty to provide for the wine to the guests. Adeline
Fehribach shares- “When the mother of Jesus says to Jesus, ‘They have no wine’
(2:3), she places him in the role of the bridegroom, whose responsibility it is
to provide the wine.” [The Women in the Life of the Bridegroom].
There were
six waterpots each containing twenty or thirty gallons apiece (v.6). With
Jesus’s intervention the amount of wine generated would be roughly equal to 700
liters. Seen from Hebrew eyes, the provision of a colossal amount of wine in a
small-town wedding would mean the herald of Jesus the bridegroom- not an
ordinary one but the Messianic Bridegroom, the Bridegroom of Israel
(ibid).
In this context, the initial response of
Jesus makes sense- “..what does your concern have to do with Me? My hour has
not yet come.” (v.4). The 'hour', which Jesus alludes to, is the time of His
passion and crucifixion. ("Now before the Feast of the Passover, when
Jesus knew that His hour had come that He should depart from this world
..." (St. John 13:1).
There will be no turning back once the sign is manifested. It seems that
the Lord wants the Blessed Virgin to be really sure of what she is asking. If
His hour had not yet come, then her request for help for a Galilean couple on
their wedding day (a public event) will set Jesus on the path to Cross. Those
with eyes to see would decipher after witnessing the sign that Jesus is
indeed the One whom they have been waiting for. They will follow Him, there
will be no hidden, regular, private life- in a sense, she will forever lose Him
to the followers. The terror of parting with one's own child is unbearable
for a mother. In her instruction to the servants, "Whatever He says to
you, do it", she willingly accepts the sword to pierce her own soul.
The presence of Jesus in their lives was so
life changing, that the people "tried to keep Him from leaving them"
(St. Luke 4:42). When we limit Jesus and His message to ourselves, though this
might seem like an act of human love and longing, it is neither expected from
Christians nor is it spiritually beneficial.
As we begin the Lenten journey, may we like
the Blessed Virgin, be eager in showing Christ to others though it will involve
a 'loss' for us. The wedding residence in Cana had the presence of the Blessed
Virgin and Jesus was invited. The homes where the mother of our Lord is present
and honored will indeed invite the grace of our Lord through her unceasing
intercessions.
May we be strengthened by the prayers of the
most holy Theotokos in this journey.
O Great Salvific Lent- come in peace.
In Christ,
Rincy
