John 2:1-11 NRSVue
1On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. 2Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding. 3When the wine gave out, the mother of Jesus said to him, “They have no wine.” 4And Jesus said to her, “Woman, what concern is that to me and to you? My hour has not yet come.” 5His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.” 6Now standing there were six stone water jars for the Jewish rites of purification, each holding twenty or thirty gallons. 7Jesus said to them, “Fill the jars with water.” And they filled them up to the brim. 8He said to them, “Now draw some out, and take it to the person in charge of the banquet.” So they took it. 9When the person in charge tasted the water that had become wine and did not know where it came from (though the servants who had drawn the water knew), that person called the bridegroom 10and 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.” 11Jesus did this, the first of his signs, in Cana of Galilee and revealed his glory, and his disciples believed in him.
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Reflection on John 2:1-11
Inspiration from 2025-01-19 Daily Prayer
In our Christian lives there are times for joyful celebration and being in the company of friends. The presence of Jesus and his Mother was truly a blessing for this young couple as they began married life. May we invite the Lord into all the events of our lives.
Mary the Mother of Jesus has been given to us as our mother too, and she takes her role seriously, as we know from her apparitions to us over the centuries. Here we see her compassion for this young couple and her complete trust in her Son. She will be no different with us and will always bring us closer to her Son. Let us speak to her now or prayerfully repeat the words of the Memorare.
Further reflection
John's Gospel speaks of Jesus' miracles as ‘signs' because they always point to something deeper than the merely miraculous. They inform us about who Jesus is, and about the purpose of his mission. So in the Cana story, for example, Jesus replaces the water prescribed for Jewish purifications with more than one hundred and twenty gallons of wine! According to the Jewish Scriptures, when the Messiah comes there shall be an abundance of new wine, a symbol for God's abundant goodness towards his people. That Jesus turns so much water into the best of wines is a ‘sign' that he is in fact the long awaited Messiah.