This week we move into Ordinary time and our gospel brings us to the Wedding at Cana. Check out the video here.
It was the great social philosopher Groucho Marx who once said: “Marriage is a wonderful institution…
But who wants to live in an institution?”
Did you hear about the two florists that got married?
It was an arranged marriage.
Ten years ago, the invisible man married the invisible woman.
Yeah, their kids are nothing to look at either.
Two spiders got married.
They met on the web.
Two antennas got married.
The ceremony wasn’t much but the reception was excellent.
There are many things we could talk about regarding the wedding at Cana in this week’s gospel. Personally, I am greatly edified that Our Lord’s first miracle was to make a party a success. As tempting as it might be to go down that rabbit hole, instead I’d like to talk about the role of the Blessed Mother.
Much like today, wedding feasts were a big deal in first century Palestine. But unlike today, they were public, not private events. Days before, the groom had left with his entourage to retrieve his bride from her village. Travel being what it was in those days, he could show up at any time, day or night. Once the bridegroom and his bride arrived there was a festive procession from the gates of town to the bridegroom’s household. The whole village was involved. Since there were no newspapers or Facebook or any other type of media to publicize the event, this is how they did it. The typical wedding feast went on for a week or more. Many scholars comment that this particular wedding feast had probably been going on for at least three days by the time the wine ran out. How embarrassing!
Enter the Mother of Jesus. Seeing the awkward situation of the host family, she approaches her Son. We may be a bit perplexed at Jesus’ response, “My hour has not yet come.” I’m not sure what his plans were, but whatever they had been, the intervention of his mother seems to change all that. And then, perhaps even to his own embarrassment, she turns to the steward and says, “Do whatever he tells you.” I my own mind, I can hear Jesus mutter to himself, “Oh, Mom!”
Then, the miracle happens.
The implication of the story is clear. Jesus works the miracle because of the intercession of the Blessed Mother on behalf of the bride and groom. It is a powerful lesson and a strong example for all of us. There are three things we should take away from this encounter.
First, Mary is the first disciple and the model for all the rest of us disciples. As she was not shy about asking Jesus to work the miracle for her friends, neither should we be in asking Jesus to help ours.
Second, like the bride and groom, we should not be shy about making our needs know to the Blessed Mother so that she may intercede on our behalf.
Finally, once we have, we would do well to heed her advice to the stewards: “Do whatever he tells you.”
There are many things we can contemplate about the wedding at Cana, but it behooves us to look very closely at the role of the Blessed Mother.
In how we pray
What and for whom we pray
What we should do with the fruits of that prayer.