Life in a New and Abundant Way
By Bishop Paul S. Loverde
Herald Columnist
(From the issue of 1/18/07)
The following homily was given by Bishop Paul S. Loverde on Jan. 14, the Second Sunday of Ordinary Time, at St. Joseph Parish in Alexandria.
What is the lesson God is teaching us today through
His living Word, especially through our third reading from the Gospel
account according to St. John? The lesson is this: God wants us to experience
life in a new and abundant way here and hereafter; He wants us to be fulfilled
as much as possible in this life and then fully and forever when we pass
over to our true home where we will see Him face to face.
Why can we say that this is the lesson which God is teaching us today?
The answer lies in understanding more fully how St. John wrote his Gospel.
The Gospel according to St. John, the fourth Gospel, contains a series
of “signs.” Now, the word “sign” is the Gospel’s
word for the wondrous deeds of Jesus. St. John has seven signs in his
Gospel before the final and greatest sign of all: Jesus’ death on
the Cross, the sign of God’s absolute love for us and of Jesus’
glorification. In our Gospel account today, we are given the first sign:
the transformation of water into wine at the wedding at Cana. This is
the sign of the entire creative and transforming work of Jesus.
In this first sign, Jesus changes water into wine. Water is a symbol of
newness and Jesus provides this newness abundantly. He changes the water,
not in just one stone jar holding twenty to thirty gallons. He changes
the water in all six stone jars — to symbolize abundance! So, through
Jesus, God’s only-begotten Son sent to save us, God wants us, His
sons and daughters, to experience life, love and righteousness in a new
and abundant way! Why does He desire this for us? Because He loves us
beyond our imagining. As we heard in today’s first reading from
the Book of the Prophet Isaiah, “For the Lord delights in you….and
as a bridegroom rejoices in a bride, so shall your God rejoice in you.”
No wonder we keep repeating with joy: “Proclaim his marvelous deeds
to all the nations” — the deeds of His love for us!
The lesson which God is teaching us today must not only be learned, it
must also be lived. Yes, God desires that we experience life, love and
righteousness in a new and abundant way here and hereafter. This is why
He gives us different gifts and talents, so that by using them, we can
benefit others. As St. Paul reminds us in today’s reading from his
First Letter to the Corinthians, “To each individual the manifestation
of the Spirit is given for some benefit.”
Where are we to use these talents and be the channels of life, love and
righteousness in a new and abundant way? Begin with the family. The Lord
Jesus has a special love for married couples and for parents. After all,
His first sign was accomplished at a wedding in order to save the newly-married
couple from embarrassment because “they have no wine.” Do
we contribute to family life in such a way that the members of our family
experience life, love and righteousness in a new and abundant way? Are
those living with us in the family better because we are there? Dr. Martin
Luther King, Jr., whose birthday and memory we are celebrating this weekend,
deeply loved his wife and children. Coretta Scott King, whose first anniversary
of death will occur on Jan. 30, was his constant support as he labored
to defend justice and equality. Dr. King said, “I am convinced that
if I had not had a wife with the fortitude, strength and calmness of Coretta,
I could not have stood up amid the ordeals and tensions surrounding the
Montgomery movement… . Coretta proved to be that type of wife with
qualities to make a husband when he could have been so easily broken.
In the darkest moments, she always brought the light of hope.” Do
we bring the light of hope to one another in the family circle, offering
life, love and righteousness in a new and abundant way?
Other arenas for using our talents and being channels of God’s new
life abundantly include the local community and the nation. Yes, we recall
this weekend Dr. Martin Luther King. He raised his voice unceasingly and
in the end gave his very life for equality and justice for all. True,
much has been accomplished, yet so much more still needs to be accomplished
and achieved. Tangible signs clearly remind us: racial discrimination,
poverty, domestic violence, pornography and attacks on human life, like
abortion, physician-assisted suicide and embryonic stem cell research,
still are very much present. Are we involved in tangible ways which lead
to the lessening and eventual removal of these very real attacks on life
so that a new and abundant experience of living life to the full will
soon be attainable and actually experienced? Do we promote and witness
to justice and peace? Will we participate directly and boldly in the March
for Life on Jan. 22 and in our Catholic Advocacy Day in Richmond on Jan.
29?
Now, in order to be channels for life, love and righteousness in a new
and abundant way, we necessarily must do two things. First, be rooted
in Christ Jesus, for He is the very source of our ability to live in a
new and abundant manner. Only in Him, with Him and through Him can we
experience life, love and righteousness in a new and abundant way! Secondly,
stay close to our blessed Lady, the Mother of God and our mother. The
first sign which Jesus performed occurred at the wedding feast of Cana
precisely because His Mother asked Him to intervene: “They have
no wine.” Initially, He seemed indifferent to her request. Yet she
had said to the persons filling the jars, “Do whatever He tells
you.” Jesus could not say “no” to His mother, so He
did change the water into wine, His first sign. A new era was dawning:
the era of Christ with newness and abundance! Yes, go to Mary daily!
No one will ever forget Dr. King’s “I have a dream”
speech. Our God also has a dream revealed clearly in His Son’s first
sign: that all His children experience life, love and righteousness in
a new and abundant way here and hereafter. Will we be partners in His
dream? We will if we are His channels in our families, our communities
and this nation. Yes, “proclaim His marvelous deeds”: life,
love and righteousness in a new and abundant way here and now and then
forever with Him in heaven!
Copyright (c) 2007 Arlington Catholic
Herald
