Gospel Notes by Michael Whelan SM
On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding. When the wine gave out, the mother of Jesus said to him, “They have no wine.” And Jesus said to her, “Woman, what concern is that to you and to me? My hour has not yet come.” His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.” Now standing there were six stone water jars for the Jewish rites of purification, each holding twenty or thirty gallons. Jesus said to them, “Fill the jars with water.” And they filled them up to the brim. He said to them, “Now draw some out, and take it to the chief steward.” So they took it. When the steward tasted the water that had become wine, and did not know where it came from (though the servants who had drawn the water knew), the steward called the bridegroom and said to him, “Everyone serves the good wine first, and then the inferior wine after the guests have become drunk. But you have kept the good wine until now.” Jesus did this, the first of his signs, in Cana of Galilee, and revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him (John 2:1-11 – NRSV).
Image from “The Chosen” TV Series
Introductory notes
General
Chapters 2:1 – 12:50 of John’s Gospel are often referred to as ‘the book of signs’. Cana is the ‘first sign’ that tells us of Jesus’ identity. It points to his ‘glory’ which will be fully manifest on the Cross. The remaining chapters of John’s Gospel – after 12:50 – are often referred to as ‘the book of glory’.
The Johannine scholar, C H Dodd, says of the first three chapters of ‘the book of signs’ which begin with the miracle at Cana: “(These first three) chapters present the replacement of the old purifications by the wine of the kingdom of God, the old temple by the new in the risen Lord, an exposition of new birth for new creation, a contrast between the water of Jacob’s well and the living water from Christ, and the worship of Jerusalem and Gerizim with worship ‘in Spirit and in truth’” (C. H. Dodd, The Interpretation of the Fourth Gospel (Cambridge University Press, 1953, 297). St Paul echoes this belief which must have been central to the first Christians: “the old has gone, the new has come!” (2 Corinthians 5:17).
“The narrative is rich in Johannine symbolism and anticipates many of the themes that will develop through the story. The miracle and its consequences take place after a discussion over ‘the hour’ (2:4; cf. 4:21, 23; 5:25, 28; 7:30; 8:20; 12:23, 27; 13:1; 17:1; 19:27). This is the first of a number of events each described as a ‘sign’ (sēmeion: cf. 2:23; 3:2; 6:2, 14, 26, 30; 7:31; 9:16; 10:41; 11:47; 12:18, 37. Cf. 20:30–31). The theme of water will return in chs. 2; 4; 5; 7; 9, and 19, and the revelation of the doxa (glory) is an important theme throughout the Gospel (see doxa in 1:14; 5:41–44; 7:18; 11:4, 40; 12:43; 17:5, 22–24, and doxazein (glorify) in 8:54; 11:4; 12:23, 28; 13:31–32; 17:1–5)” (Francis J Moloney, The Gospel of John, Liturgical Press, 1998, 66).
Specific
a wedding. The usual festivities consisted of a procession in which the bridegroom’s friends brought the bride to the groom’s house, and then a wedding supper; seemingly the festivities lasted seven days (Judg 14:12; Tob 11:18). The Mishnah (Kethuboth 1) ordained that the wedding of a virgin should take place on Wednesday. This would agree with the guess that 1:39 immediately preceded the Sabbath; the action of 1:40–42 would have taken place on Saturday evening-Sunday; that of 1:43–50 on Sunday evening-Monday; Monday evening-Tuesday would have been the second day of the journey; and Jesus would have arrived at Cana on Tuesday evening or Wednesday morning” (Raymond E Brown, The Gospel according to John (I–XII): Introduction, translation, and notes (Vol. 29), Yale University Press, 2008, 97-98).
Cana of Galilee: The exact site of Cana is not certain. “Of the various sites proposed by archaeologists, the most likely is Khirbet Qana, an uninhabited ruin about nine miles north of Nazareth, and lying in the Plain of Asochis (Jos., Vita 86, 207)” (D A Carson, The Gospel according to John, W.B. Eerdmans, 1991, 168).
The mother of Jesus: “Among Arabs today the “mother of X” is an honorable title for a woman who has been fortunate enough to bear a son. John never calls her Mary” (Ibid). The mother of Jesus is the first person introduced in this account. What she says and does is crucial to the story. When Mary draws Jesus’ attention to the plight of the host – ‘They have no wine’ – Jesus replies: ‘what have you to do with me?’ Francis Moloney says of this reply: “The interpretation of (Jesus’ words) is notoriously difficult” (Francis J Moloney, op cit, 71). At the very least we must be extremely careful of interpreting Jesus’ response in a way that might suit a particular theological position or line of thought.
his disciples. “Presumably, those who were called in ch. 1 have now become the regular followers of Jesus. They have abandoned the ascetic ways of John the Baptist for the less abstemious practices of Jesus (Luke 7:33–34). In consistently referring to these men during the ministry as ‘disciples,’ and in avoiding the title of ‘apostle,’ John shows a historical sense, for ‘apostle’ is a term that belongs to the post-resurrectional period” (Raymond Brown, op cit, 98).
‘My hour has not yet come’: Clearly we are at the beginning of John’s account of the Jesus story. ‘The hour’ will come gradually as the story unfolds. Again, Francis Moloney writes: “For the major part of Jesus’ ministry it is ‘not yet’ (cf. 2:4; 7:4, 30; 8:20). However, though its first association is with a marriage feast it is eventually associated with violence (cf. 7:30; 8:20). Toward the close of the public ministry, as the threat of Jesus’ violent end approaches through a ‘lifting up’ on a cross, the ‘hour’ of violence ‘has come’, and is associated with Jesus’ glorification (cf. 12:23, 27). This theme continues into the final section of the Gospel (cf. 13:31) and is further explained as the hour through which Jesus must pass in order to return to the Father (cf. 13:1, 32; 17:5) and the hour that creates a new family of Jesus (19:27).” (Moloney, op cit, 71-72.)
Do whatever he tells you: “Despite many reflections on this passage claiming that Jesus responds to his mother’s request (cf. Lagrange, Evangile 57; Schnackenburg, Gospel 1:331), this is not said in the text. From a position “outside” the oneness that exists between the Father and the Son, which determines “the hour” of Jesus, she shows her openness to trust in “whatever” the word of Jesus might bring. The narrative has not provided the mother of Jesus with a shred of information that might allow her to give such commands to the servants. Her confident command depends entirely upon a yet-to-be-verified belief. ‘Nowhere is perhaps such trust shewn’” (Westcott, Gospel 37)” (Ibid).
‘(Jesus) revealed his glory’: It is hard not to see this as an echo of the revelation on Sinai where the glory of Yahweh is manifested ‘on the third day’ – see Exodus 19:16. “A crucial element in the nt traditions is the link with the ot. In the Fourth Gospel, Torah and Jesus Christ are profoundly related” (Francis Moloney, op cit, 73).
Nameless mother
In today’s Gospel – John 2:1-11 – we have the story of the wedding feast at Cana. Jesus saves the hosting family from embarrassment by changing the water into wine. John tells us: “Jesus did this, the first of his signs, in Cana of Galilee, and revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him.”
There are three key words here – “signs,” “glory” and “disciples”. Mary is crucially involved throughout. But it is the way that she is involved that is worth noting: She remains nameless! “John never refers to the Blessed Mother by her proper name, Mary, but only as the mother of Jesus. By leaving her unnamed, John allows her to have a larger symbolic role in the Gospel” (Martin, Francis; Wright, William M. IV. The Gospel of John (Catholic Commentary on Sacred Scripture): (A Catholic Bible Commentary on the New Testament by Trusted Catholic Biblical Scholars – CCSS) (p. 57). Baker Publishing Group. Kindle Edition).
Mary’s way is to be hidden and unknown. In an advertising-obsessed culture such as ours, where self-promotion is lauded, this seems silly. However, who would you want as your friend, a person who is effective at self-promotion or a person of substance? Mary reminds us of the value of presence – presence that is real and effective, with or without acknowledgement or fanfare. The presence of the disciple – the one who has made their home in the word (8:32) – is a liberating and enlivening presence. Presence brings transformation through who and what the person is rather than what he or she does. Their being informs their doing and that makes all the difference.
Presence is an expression of that divine quality of “being with”. We are made in the image and likeness of the One who said: “I am with you!” (Exodus 3:12). That preposition, “with,” expresses the very heart of who and what God is and therefore who and what we are. Selfishness, individualism, prejudice, greed, lying . . . . and all manner of bad human behaviour implies a denial of the “being with.” Love, patience, kindness, care, generosity, forgiveness . . . . and all manner of good human behaviour is constituted by our embracing the “being with.”
“(Mary’s) acceptance of the Word is unreserved. When Jesus reproaches her for attempting to hasten or determine the hour of salvation, she comes to a point of total, even if necessarily uncomprehending, surrender to the Word—who is her Son: ‘Do whatever he tells you’ (2:5). In effect, she expresses, in a self-surrender that goes beyond all human conditions, the essential pattern for obeying the Word, heard now in the voice of Jesus” (Anthony J. Kelly, CSsR, and Francis J. Moloney, SDB. Experiencing God in the Gospel of John. Paulist Press. Kindle Edition).
Is it possible to communicate well through silent presence? Do we have to explain ourselves all the time? Can talking get in the way of good communication?