January 17, 2010
Second Sunday of Ordinary Time – Wedding Feast of Cana
By Rev. Joe McCloskey, S.J.
For Zion's sake I will not be silent, for Jerusalem's sake I will not be quiet, Until her vindication shines forth like the dawn and her victory like a burning torch. Isaiah 62:1
There are different kinds of spiritual gifts but the same Spirit; there are different forms of service but the same Lord; there are different workings but the same God who produces all of them in everyone. To each individual the manifestation of the Spirit is given for some benefit. 1 Corinthians 12:4-7
And when the headwaiter tasted the water that had become wine, without knowing where it came from (although the servers who had drawn the water knew), the headwaiter called the bridegroom and said to him, "Everyone serves good wine first, and then when people have drunk freely, an inferior one; but you have kept the good wine until now." Jesus did this as the beginning of his signs in Cana in Galilee and so revealed his glory, and his disciples began to believe in him. John 2:9-11
Piety
Miracles give birth to faith. This first miracle of Jesus according to John begins the process of the Apostles believing in Jesus. The headwaiter after tasting the wine tells the bridegroom he should have served the good wine first. To be running out of what was needed and suddenly to have what could not be bought! A miracle goes beyond our expectations. It captures our attention. It is hard to forget. We can be present to miracles that transpire around us and not even notice what happened. Miracles that we are looking for are quite different than what we would ever dream of. Some of us are born into the miracle of our faith. We did nothing to deserve being able to believe. Ongoing life is the miracle of God’s ongoing creation of who we are. We do not even notice what the world might have been like if we had never been born. Children born healthy are even a greater miracle than unhealthy children suddenly becoming healthy. We notice differences. Christ has called his disciples to share the good news of the kingdom. The miracles of Christ make it hard not to listen to what he is saying. Christ is preaching the good news of the kingdom by each of his miracles. He captures the attention of his audience by the marvels that he accomplishes. It is hard not to take seriously what Christ says around the miracles he does. The piety of Christ stands out in what he does for the needy and the poor. Our piety reflects Christ in the faith that does justice.
Study
A miracle cannot be taken for granted. The miracles that we do not get when we have asked for God’s intervention in our lives make us notice in a special way the miracles we are recipients of. To be born in a time when a heart can be repaired is a miracle all by itself. A repaired heart or a transplanted heart makes miracles of recovery from heart attacks commonplace; that robs the wonder of what God does. Daily events seem insignificant. Each moment of life possesses the miracle of God’s love being strengthened. Miracles are present in the better health that all too suddenly is ours. We are forever surrounded by thousands of examples of God’s love for us in the love of the human race. Where there is love, God is there. Life reveals the miracle of God’s love for us.
Action
The impossible takes time. The presence of the Spirit in our lives is given for some benefit. The same spirit is the source of wisdom, knowledge, faith, healing, mighty deeds, prophecy, and discernment of spirits. One and the same spirit is the source of the many gifts that are seen in the Mystical Body of Christ. How the gifts are used by each of us makes us the Mystical Body of Christ. Each gift we possess to share. It takes time to appreciate the gifts we possess. We grow slowly in awareness of how much more we can do when we operate under the influence of the Spirit. The good wine of the gospel is found again in the good we do in the power of the Spirit at work in us. God rejoices in us just as a bridegroom rejoices in his bride. Our actions give form to the life of the Spirit in us as each gift makes Christ more real to our world. The wedding feast at Cana is the picture of God’s love real in his life of the Spirit within us. We are wedded to God in the actions of the Spirit within us all. The good we do is the new wine of salvation.
