Wedding at Cana

Jesus’ public life begins with a wedding banquet, with a celebration. It is the beginning of the announcement of the good news. It this setting Jesus chose to manifest himself first as a Messiah. The apostles were happy to begin to follow Jesus to a wedding. They were afraid that they were going to go through the hardships of the disciples of John the Baptist. Jesus begins his public ministry bringing wine to us, something to cheer us up, a very cheerful message, the Gospel of joy. When Jesus comes to our soul, he always brings happiness in the long run. Psychiatrists say that good things happen to you depending on your attitude.

Cana in Galilee was probably what is now Kef Kenna, seven kilometres north east of Nazareth. Being so close, the couple would have been friends of the Holy Family. Because Saint Joseph is not mentioned, it means that he had already died. It is a popular spot to get married or to renew the marriage vows. You can see there some huge stone jars, very old, probably from that time, similar to the ones Jesus used to perform the miracle. There are some shops around where you can buy Jesus’ wine. I bought some wine, I wanted to use for a wedding; it was expensive but not of good quality.

Our biggest celebrations are normally weddings. We all love going to a wedding, where we celebrate married love, the most attractive human love. Weddings in the middle East used to last for few days, depending how rich the families were. In the course of the celebrations, relatives and friends would come to greet the newly-weds; even people passing through could join in. The whole town would be invited to. It was an occasion to eat things that they normally didn’t eat. This is why Jesus compares the kingdom of heaven to a wedding feast. It was a comparison which resonated with them. We are invited too, but we need to dress accordingly. Here on earth we are weaving our garments for heaven, where we are going to meet Jesus the bridegroom.

In the Old Testament God was the bridegroom and Israel the bride. The prophets used to complain that in spite of the fidelity of God to his spouse, she was unfaithful to him. Israel was compared to a harlot, betraying the love God had for her. Jesus presents himself as the bridegroom and his bride is the Church. At the beginning and the end of the Mass, the priest, who represents the Church, kisses the altar, which is the symbol of Christ. It is the bridal kiss of the bride to her spouse. In the parable of the foolish virgins a voice cries during the night: “The bridegroom is coming; come out to meet him!” We need to be ready, with our lights burning, our eyes open, our ears listening, to welcome him.

Cana and Calvary are connected in a mysterious way. They are at the beginning and end of Saint John’s Gospel, and in both we find Mary our Mother, emphasising the role of Mary in our redemption. These are the only two places where John calls her “Mother of Jesus”. Also Jesus in both scenes calls her “woman”, reminding us of the parallel between Eve, our first mother in the flesh, and Mary, our first mother in the spirit. If Eve was the cause of our downfall, Mary is the beginning of our salvation.

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