by Joan Mitchell, CSJ
Jesus works his first sign in John’s gospel at a wedding. Weddings celebrate the most basic of human unions — the love of a man and woman for each other. Weddings are when the married couples in the congregation reach for each other’s hands and perhaps tear up as bride and groom come together to join their lives.
A wedding gathers extended family and friends not only to share the joy of the new couple but to welcome them into the larger community in which they will live, raise a family, make a home, and establish a place in the warp and woof of church and society.
The wedding setting in the gospel hints at a marriage other than the one the guests are celebrating. His mother and new disciples accompany Jesus to the wedding. Turning six 20-gallon jars of water into choice wine provides 120 gallons for a wedding feast that must be nearly over if the guests have drunk up the available wine. Jesus provides wine enough for celebrating the messiah’s relationship with his new community — the feast that continues in every Eucharist.
In the flow of the Church year the Cana story follows Epiphany, a feast that points to Jesus as the savior of all peoples. Jesus is the end of the magi’s journey and the choice wine in whom a new community rejoices.
- What do you love about weddings? What weddings hold special meaning for you?