John 2:1-11 — The wedding at Cana, described in our Gospel passage this Sunday, never fails to signify for us the abundance of life that Christ desires for all his people.
We read this passage at weddings to remind soon-to-be husbands and wives, at the moment they found their new families, that Christ embraces them, sees their needs, and stands ready to pour out incredible gifts on the love that binds them. We refer to this passage in order to build up our confidence that the Mother of God presents our troubles and insufficiencies to the Lord, who is always prepared to address them. Perhaps most commonly, we see Christ’s overwhelming gift of wine in this story as a sign that he wants joy for us, even if we use this moment jokingly to affirm our own love for a good drink.
These interpretations and impressions are all true, and all lovely, but they are only the beginning of the good things Christ promises us at Cana. The key to unfolding this passage is understanding the meaning of wine itself as a symbol. Thankfully, there is a text prayed at every Mass that illuminates everything for us. As the priest prepares the chalice during the offertory of the Mass, he fills it first with wine, then with a little water; the presence of both should immediately make us think of Cana. As he mixes these two liquids in the chalice, the priest then says in secret: “by the mystery of this water and wine, may we come to share in the divinity of Christ, who humbled himself to share in our humanity.”
Here then is our great clue. The wine and water represent divinity and humanity, God’s nature and our own. During the Mass, as the two mix, the wine that represents God’s divinity takes up the water representing our humanity and seems to transform it into itself, such that we still say that the chalice is filled with wine, and the water no longer appears distinct or separable. As this happens, we ask for our own humanity to be taken up, and for us to receive a share in God’s own divinity. Applying those same symbolic values to Cana, we can understand that Christ’s turning water into wine is a similar sign, that is, of Christ turning our humanity into something divine. He takes what is natural, the water representing us, and makes it supernatural, giving it deeper color, flavor, and the capacity to lift the heart to exhilaration; he makes it the wine representing divinity. At Cana, Jesus is not just helping this couple in their need, he is not just helping the guests to have a good time, and he is not just showing his love and approval for marriage and human love, but he is making a promise. He is promising to make us sharers in his own divinity, to give us the life he shares with the Father and the Holy Spirit.
This first miracle of Jesus, accomplished in response to a simple need and at the request of his Mother, announces his entire mission of salvation, even to the present day. To save us in our human need, Christ today promises to take our natural selves and transfigure us into what only he can be: the wine enjoyed at the eternal feast of heaven. So, the real wedding is not so much between bride and groom as it is between heaven and earth, between us and God, the union given to us in baptism, and nourished, deepened, and fulfilled in holy Communion. There can be no greater source of joy than this best wine.
Fr. Rampino is studying at the Catholic University in Washington with residence at Blessed Sacrament Church in Alexandria.
No greater wine
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John 2:1-11 — The wedding at Cana, described in our Gospel passage this Sunday, never fails to signify for us the abundance of life that Christ desires for all his people.
We read this passage at weddings to remind soon-to-be husbands and wives, at the moment they found their new families, that Christ embraces them, sees their needs, and stands ready to pour out incredible gifts on the love that binds them. We refer to this passage in order to build up our confidence that the Mother of God presents our troubles and insufficiencies to the Lord, who is always prepared to address them. Perhaps most commonly, we see Christ’s overwhelming gift of wine in this story as a sign that he wants joy for us, even if we use this moment jokingly to affirm our own love for a good drink.
These interpretations and impressions are all true, and all lovely, but they are only the beginning of the good things Christ promises us at Cana. The key to unfolding this passage is understanding the meaning of wine itself as a symbol. Thankfully, there is a text prayed at every Mass that illuminates everything for us. As the priest prepares the chalice during the offertory of the Mass, he fills it first with wine, then with a little water; the presence of both should immediately make us think of Cana. As he mixes these two liquids in the chalice, the priest then says in secret: “by the mystery of this water and wine, may we come to share in the divinity of Christ, who humbled himself to share in our humanity.”
Here then is our great clue. The wine and water represent divinity and humanity, God’s nature and our own. During the Mass, as the two mix, the wine that represents God’s divinity takes up the water representing our humanity and seems to transform it into itself, such that we still say that the chalice is filled with wine, and the water no longer appears distinct or separable. As this happens, we ask for our own humanity to be taken up, and for us to receive a share in God’s own divinity. Applying those same symbolic values to Cana, we can understand that Christ’s turning water into wine is a similar sign, that is, of Christ turning our humanity into something divine. He takes what is natural, the water representing us, and makes it supernatural, giving it deeper color, flavor, and the capacity to lift the heart to exhilaration; he makes it the wine representing divinity. At Cana, Jesus is not just helping this couple in their need, he is not just helping the guests to have a good time, and he is not just showing his love and approval for marriage and human love, but he is making a promise. He is promising to make us sharers in his own divinity, to give us the life he shares with the Father and the Holy Spirit.
This first miracle of Jesus, accomplished in response to a simple need and at the request of his Mother, announces his entire mission of salvation, even to the present day. To save us in our human need, Christ today promises to take our natural selves and transfigure us into what only he can be: the wine enjoyed at the eternal feast of heaven. So, the real wedding is not so much between bride and groom as it is between heaven and earth, between us and God, the union given to us in baptism, and nourished, deepened, and fulfilled in holy Communion. There can be no greater source of joy than this best wine.
Fr. Rampino is studying at the Catholic University in Washington with residence at Blessed Sacrament Church in Alexandria.
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