Woman, what does your concern have to do with Me?

 On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there.  Now both Jesus and His disciples were invited to the wedding.  And when they ran out of wine, the mother of Jesus said to Him, "They have no wine."  Jesus said to her, "Woman, what does your concern have to do with Me?  My hour has not yet come."  His mother said to the servants, "Whatever He says to you, do it."

Now there were set there six waterpots of stone, according to the manner of purification of the Jews, containing twenty or thirty gallons apiece.  Jesus said to them, "Fill the waterpots with water."  And they filled them up to the brim.  And He said to them, "Draw some out now, and take it to the master of the feast."  And they took it.  When the master of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and did not know where it came from (but the servants who had drawn the water knew), the master of the feast called the bridegroom.  And he said to him, "Every man at the beginning sets out the good wine, and when the guests have well drunk, then the inferior.  You have kept the good wine until now!"  This beginning of signs Jesus did in Cana of Galilee, and manifested His glory; and His disciples believed in Him.

After this He went down to Capernaum, He, His mother, His brothers, and His disciples; and they did not stay there many days.

- John 2:1-12

Yesterday, we read that day after gathering His first disciples, Jesus wanted to go to Galilee, and He found Philip and said to him, "Follow Me."  Now Philip was from Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter.  Philip found Nathanael and said to him, "We have found Him of whom Moses in the law, and also the prophets, wrote -- Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph."  And Nathanael said to him, "Can anything good come out of Nazareth?"  Philip said to him, "Come and see."  Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward Him, and said of him, "Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom is no deceit!"  Nathanael said to Him, "How do You know me?"  Jesus answered and said to him, "Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you."  Nathanael answered and said to him, "Rabbi, You are the Son of God!  You are the King of Israel!"  Jesus answered and said to him, "Because I said to you, 'I saw you under the fig tree,' do you believe?  You will see greater things than these."  And He said to him, "Most assuredly, I say to you, hereafter you shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man."

  On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there.  Now both Jesus and His disciples were invited to the wedding.   We recall that John's Gospel, paralleling Genesis, gives us the first seven days of Jesus' ministry.  Here, the "on third day" is an expression that includes the current day in the calculation; yesterday we read about the events of the fourth day, and this is the sixth.   My study bible says that the wedding in Cana parallels the creation of man and woman in Genesis 1:26-31.  On this day we are given the first of seven "signs" or miracles of John's Gospel.  John uses the term signs to show that these miraculous actions are pointing beyond themselves to the truth that the Kingdom of God has come among us in the Person of Jesus Christ.  My study bible further explains that the setting for this first sign is significant.  In the Old Testament, marriage feasts symbolized the union of God with His Bride, Israel.  Jesus begins His ministry at Galilee, which had a large Gentile population; this was a sign of the spread of the gospel to all the world.   That the wedding takes place on the third day is reflective of the theme of resurrection, showing that the marriage of God and God's Church will be fulfilled in the Resurrection of Christ.  There are further parallels to the Resurrection (see 20:1-8) in today's reading in that both involve a woman named Mary making an appeal, and in both passages the disciples are invited to witness the event.  Moreover, the Resurrection account in 20:11-18 bears a strong similarity to Song of Songs 3:1-5, also showing the unity between marriage and Christ's Resurrection.  Furthermore, my study bible adds that by Christ's presence at this wedding, He declares marriage to be holy and honorable.

 And when they ran out of wine, the mother of Jesus said to Him, "They have no wine."  Jesus said to her, "Woman, what does your concern have to do with Me?  My hour has not yet come."  His mother said to the servants, "Whatever He says to you, do it."   Here, my study bible notes, is an example of Mary's gift of intercession.  Even now, it says, Mary continually speaks to her Son on our behalf and is our preeminent intercessor before His Throne.  This is confirmed as Jesus grants her request here.  In this passage, wine is symbolic of life, so there are two levels of meaning to Mary's statement, "They have no wine."  First, a marriage isn't complete without Christ's presence; and second, the old covenant was unable to bestow life even on the most faithful people.  We should also keep in mind as we read this passage that in Scripture, Woman is a sacred title; it's an address that conveys deep respect and distinction (4:21; 810; 19:26; 20:13; compare to Genesis 2:23).   Jesus asks here, What does your concern have to do with Me? which is more literally translated, "What is that to Me and to you?"   His response isn't a refusal, but rather a statement that the time hasn't come for Him to be revealed.  My study bible adds that the fulfillment of this request teaches that:  (1) Christ is Lord over time; He is not subject to hours and seasons.  (2)  The wedding party needed to be aware of their lack of wine first so that they might understand that ti is Christ who fulfills all needs.  (3)  We need to persevere in our petitions before God (Matthew 15:12-28).  (4)  The intercessions of the righteous have great power (James 5:16). 

Now there were set there six waterpots of stone, according to the manner of purification of the Jews, containing twenty or thirty gallons apiece.  Jesus said to them, "Fill the waterpots with water."  And they filled them up to the brim.  And He said to them, "Draw some out now, and take it to the master of the feast."  And they took it.   Waterpots were made of stone in accordance with rabbinical teaching.  Stone would not contract ritual impurity.  That there are six is spiritually significant.  It is one less than the perfect seven, and indicates that the Law, illustrated by water being reserved for Jewish purification, was incomplete, imperfect, and unable to bestow life.  That the water is changed into wine symbolizes the old covenant being fulfilled in the new, which is capable of bestowing life.  The overabundant gallons of wine, my study bible adds, illustrate the overflowing grace that Christ grants to all.

When the master of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and did not know where it came from (but the servants who had drawn the water knew), the master of the feast called the bridegroom.  And he said to him, "Every man at the beginning sets out the good wine, and when the guests have well drunk, then the inferior.  You have kept the good wine until now!"  This beginning of signs Jesus did in Cana of Galilee, and manifested His glory; and His disciples believed in Him.   Patristic teaching sees this transformation as prefiguring the transformation of bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Christ in the Eucharist.  That He manifested His glory is the substance of the signs in John's Gospel:  the essence of the divine is revealed as present in Him to His disciples.

After this He went down to Capernaum, He, His mother, His brothers, and His disciples; and they did not stay there many days.   This verse gives us the seventh day in the ministry of Christ, a day of rest.  It parallels God resting on the seventh day in Genesis 2:1-3.

Mary's gift of intercession is extremely strong in the tradition of the Church.  And yet, many modern Christians do not hold with a belief in this kind of saintly intercession.  But if we look closely at John's Gospel, we see once again that the understanding of time, space, and the relatedness of the faithful in the Kingdom does not have limits as we think of them in worldly terms.  The interrelatedness of those present at this wedding isn't an anomaly, but is a pattern already revealed in the first chapter of John's Gospel.  It is a factor that is merely expanded at the wedding.  Why is Mary invited?  Clearly this is a wedding in Galilee that includes extended family and relations from the region.  Already we have seen in the choosing of the disciples of Christ a type of relatedness indicated here.  In yesterday's reading, Jesus found Philip, and Philip found Nathanael who mysteriously (or perhaps we should say mystically) was already known to Christ.  Furthermore, the text tells us that Philip was from Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter, the first disciples chosen by Christ, who had been earlier the followers of John the Baptist.   These connections are not merely particular to time and place, but rather illustrate the threads of communion within the Body of the Church, of the faithful, all those who will come to Christ.   In today's reading, that is extended to the many at the wedding who come to know Christ through this first sign in the Gospel.  And there we come to Mary, the mother of Christ.  How is she His mother?  Why is she His mother?  Is she chosen accidentally?  Certainly not, according to Scripture and the narratives that we have of the Annunciation.   It is Mary's own devout nature and purity of heart -- along with no doubt a host of other virtues we can infer from the Gospel narratives -- that give her the substance of what must have been required to be the human mother of Jesus.  Her faith in Him is unwavering.  She is present at the Crucifixion, faithful to her Son to the end.  Her presence with those who follow Him tells us a great part of this story.  John is the disciple whom Jesus declares to be the son of Mary at the Crucifixion (19:26) addressing her again as Woman, meaning He entrusts His mother to the disciple's care (something that would be shocking if she had other natural children to care for her).  As such, one would assume John's knowledge of Mary is more intimate than the other Evangelists, and so we get this glimpse of the relationship of Mary and Jesus.  Above all, and most striking, is her absolute confidence in Him and in His divine identity.  But again, from the beginning, in the Annunciation stories, it is Mary's confidence in her faith that is the most striking trait of her character.  When we think of intercession, we must understand the fullness of the body of saints, the great cloud of witnesses, and consider that all live to Christ -- from the most ancient of the holy people we read about in Scripture to those living in the world today.  Mary stands out among them, and to reach to her for her faith, her compassion, her experience of suffering, and her love is to reach to anyone else among the faithful whose prayers we believe can help us -- just as one might ask a trusted friend or faithful person we know.  For the millions who have experienced that help and love, she stands as intercessor who turns no one away.  In an Orthodox hymn to Mary, she is called "hope of the hopeless."  Let us revere the strengths she shares with us, and the depth of compassion in the one who never deserted her Son but whose faith remained through all things.