TOGETHER IN CHRIST COLLABORATIVE
Church of Saint Ann
West Bridgewater MA
Website: stannswb.com
St. John The Evangelist
East Bridgewater MA
Website: stjohneb.org
January 19, 2025
My Dear Friends in Christ,
I enjoy going to wedding receptions (I am, after all, Irish and what Irishman doesn’t like a good party!). If I’m ever invited to a reception, however, I have one rule: please don’t seat me at the head table. Usually what happens is that I either end up alone (since the bridesmaids and groomsmen are off with friends and the bride and groom are going from table to table) or, as happened in one case, I end up cutting the flower girl’s meal (yes, that really did happen!)! All things being equal, though, I do enjoy my time at these affairs.
In today’s gospel, Jesus finds Himself at a wedding reception. It is late in the reception, as is evidenced by the fact that they are running low on wine. This is a major faux pas (as you can imagine) and Mary comes to Jesus and informs Him of this dilemma. At first, Jesus seems unconcerned with this challenge to the bride and groom (and their families). Mary then informs the servers to “do whatever He tells you” (Jn2:5). Mary, knowing her Son, seems to know that Jesus won’t leave them “high and dry” (figuratively and literally!), that Jesus will rectify the situation. Jesus not only produces (through a miracle) plenty of wine, but it is the best vintage of the day!
I don’t believe that it is a coincidence that Jesus performs this miracle (the first of His many public miracles) in this time, place, or manner. Let’s think about what transpires. They are at a wedding banquet/feast, something that scripture writers will use as an image of the Kingdom. He produces wine, an essential element of the Last Supper (a Passover meal). The wine that is produced is not only new wine, but it is also the best vintage; for us as Christians, Jesus is that “new wine” (unlike anyone who has come before Him) and is the “best vintage” (the Son of God).
Jesus never does anything accidentally. Every word He speaks, every action He undertakes, everything He does, is done with intentionality. This first miracle of Jesus, one that no one else but Jesus saw coming (except, perhaps, for Mary, who knows her Son). May we follow in the path of Jesus. May our actions, like Jesus’, be intentional and may that move us ever closer to Him. May we come to know Jesus for who He is: a miracle worker, the greatest prophetic voice ever to speak, the Son of God.
Have a Blessed Week,
Fr. Paul