FIRST READING
As a mother comforts her child, so I will comfort you.
Rejoice with Jerusalem and be glad because of her,
all you who love her;
Exult, exult with her,
all you who were mourning over her!
Oh, that you may suck fully
of the milk of her comfort,
That you may nurse with delight
at her abundant breasts!
For thus says the LORD:
Lo, I will spread prosperity over her like a river,
and the wealth of the nations like
an overflowing torrent.
As nurslings, you shall be carried in her arms,
and fondled in her lap;
As a mother comforts her child,
so will I comfort you;
in Jerusalem you shall find your comfort.
When you see this, your heart shall rejoice,
and your bodies flourish like the grass;
The LORD'S power shall be known to his servants.
but to his enemies his wrath.
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Isaiah speaks metaphorically to those returning from exile. They hear of the creation (birth without pain) of God’s children in a New Jerusalem. He uses the image of a mother nursing her child as an image of God's loving care for the people he has called home. His oracle relates to a time of prosperity that comes about due to God’s love for those he has created. It is a calling home, a call to return to that place that gave them birth. It concludes with God's promise of support to the faithful but his enmity to those who oppose his people.
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RESPONSORIAL PSALM
Psalm 131:1bcde, 2,3
R. (See Psalm 57:2c) In you my soul takes refuge, O Lord
O LORD, my heart is not proud,
nor are my eyes haughty;
I busy not myself with great things,
nor with things too sublime for me.
R. In you my soul takes refuge, O Lord
Nay rather, I have stilled and quieted
my soul like a weaned child.
Like a weaned child on its mother's lap,
so is my soul within me.
R. In you my soul takes refuge, O Lord
O Israel, hope in the LORD,
both now and forever.
R. In you my soul takes refuge, O Lord
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Psalm 131 is an individual lament praying for harmony and humility among the members of the community. The singer proclaims trust in the Lord and peace, like children's contented peace, secure in the knowledge of the love and protection of their parents.
CCC: Ps 131:2 239; Ps 131:2-3 370
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GOSPEL
The mother of Jesus was there. And his disciples believed in him.
John 2:1-11
There was a wedding at Cana in Galilee,
and the mother of Jesus was there. ,
Jesus and his disciples were also invited to the wedding.
When the wine ran short,
the mother of Jesus said to him,
"They have no wine."
And Jesus said to her,
"Woman, how does your concern affect me?
My hour has not yet come."
His mother said to the servers,
"Do whatever he tells you."
Now there were six stone water jars there for Jewish ceremonial washings,
each holding twenty to thirty gallons.
Jesus told them,
"Fill the jars with water."
So they filled them to the brim.
Then he told them,
"Draw some out now and take it to the headwaiter."
So they took it.
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 at Cana in Galilee
and so revealed his glory,
and his disciples began to believe in him.
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The author gives us the story of Jesus' first revelatory action following his baptism by St. John the Baptist in the Jordan. Jesus and his disciples are invited to a wedding and the wine runs out. Jesus’ mother lets her son know that the time has come for his revelation, even though Jesus does not think so. The Greek in the exchange between Jesus and his mother is ambiguous; some would interpret it, ‘What concern is that of mine or yours?’, but it is more probably to be understood as a Hebrew idiom, ‘What have I to do with you?’, that is, ‘Leave me alone, do not interfere with me’, as in Matthew 8.29, and in many passages of the Old Testament. [1]Significantly the stone water jars were there for the ceremonial cleansing, the very Hebrew custom John the Baptist used in his call to repentance. The Hebrew custom was symbolic (as was St. John's invitation to be baptized in the Jordan); the Lord would later make baptism efficacious as sins were forgiven. We also note the Hebrew numerology applied to this scene. The number six represents one less than the perfect number seven. It was not yet Jesus’ time. The water became wine, not his blood which was yet to be poured out for the salvation of mankind.The final statement in this story: “his disciples began to believe in him,” is the only time in the Gospel of St. John where there was any doubt about the Lord’s true identity on their part.CCC: Jn 2:1-12 2618; Jn 2:1-11 1613; Jn 2:1 495; Jn 2:11 486, 1335
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Reflection:
We once again thank God for the gift of our Mother, the
Blessed Virgin Mary. We call her,
 |
Our Lady of Divine Providence
artist and date unknown |
among the many titles she bears: Mother
of Divine Providence. Indeed, she must have that honor.
According to the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, “Traditional theism holds that God is the
creator of heaven and earth, and that all that occurs in the universe takes
place under Divine Providence — that is, under God’s sovereign guidance and control.” For us, therefore, logic dictates that
since Mother Mary is the mother of Jesus, who is Christ, the Only Begotten Son
of God, she is also the mother of divine providence. Through her
intercession we are constantly pointed at her son’s good works, his miraculous and
glorious creation. It has been so since the very beginning. In the
Gospel from St. John we proclaim on this memorial day, we are reminded of her
active role in the wedding feast at Cana. It was Mary who, seeing that
the wine was running out at this celebration of love, called the servants over
and, after pointing out the problem to her divine son, told them to do what he
told them. It was the true man, Jesus of Galilee that said, ‘"Woman, how does your concern affect me? My hour has not
yet come."’ It sounds rather out of keeping with the loving son
we know the Lord to be. Looking more closely, the Greek in the exchange
between Jesus and his mother is ambiguous; some would interpret it, ‘What
concern is that of thine or of mine?’, but it is more probably to be understood
as a Hebrew idiom, ‘What have I to do with you?’, that is, ‘Leave me alone, do
not interfere with me’, as in Matthew 8.29, and in many passages
of the Old Testament.
Divine Providence steps in as Jesus is compelled by his
own divinity and compassion, and the water which would have been used as a
symbol of repentance by the guests instead provides a revelatory miracle – the
Son of God is revealed through the intercession of the Blessed
Virgin.
The entire episode provides us as modern day disciples
with some clear guidance and strength. We are reminded once more that
Jesus is indeed the Son of God, and that all of God’s creation (Jesus’ creation)
is under his providence. Mother Mary tells us clearly that if we ask, her
Son will provide. These are things about which our faith informs us and
strengths we can carry with us as we do battle in the secular world where the
evil one still holds sway.
Today our prayer is this, that Mary our Mother of Divine
Providence intercede for us with her son that he might hear her words and that
we as servants might do has he asks us.
Pax
[1] Knox Bible footnote on Jn 2:4
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