The Fruit of the Miracle at Cana: To Jesus, Through Mary

As friends of a small shrine dedicated to Our Lady, the second luminous mystery has a special significance for our lives: the first of Jesus’ public miracles was mediated by the intercession of Our Lady.  Our Lady simply had to look into her Son’s eyes imploringly as she stated the needs of her soon-to-be children – “They have no wine” (Jn 2:3) – and she knew that her petition was granted.  In doing so, Mary teaches us a secret about prayer: our prayer should be simple.  All she does is let the problem be known to the Lord.  She doesn’t try to manipulate her Son into action, or suggest how He should resolve the problem.  She simply leaves it in His Hands. 

How often are our prayers accompanied by anxiety and a desire to control our circumstances!  So often, we not only ask Jesus to act, but tell Him how to.  We assume that our take on the problem is the correct one, and that we know the best means to its resolution.  Not so with our Heavenly Mother.  Her prayer is one of trusting confidence. 

In response to Our Lady’s request, Jesus says to her, “O woman, what have you to do with me?  My hour has not yet come” (Jn 2:4).  These words of Christ are not an unqualified refusal, still less a rebuke.  In referring to His Mother as “woman”, Jesus is highlighting her role as the New Eve, the new representative woman of the human race.  Jesus’ “hour” refers to His Passion, the hour when His Precious Blood – the wine of eternal life – is to be poured out upon the world.  He is asking Our Lady if she is prepared, by the revelation of His divinity, to start the ball rolling towards Calvary, the climax of salvation history.  Our Lady understands that the time is drawing near for a sword to pierce her heart, and rather than protect herself from pain, she generously advocates for her sons and daughters as she instructs the servants standing nearby, “Do whatever he tells you” (Jn 2:5).  How blessed we are to have such a selfless Mother, who always acts for our good!  If she was willing to take the fast lane to the Cross to save a bride and groom from social embarrassment, how much more will she intercede for our true spiritual wellbeing, which has eternal consequences? 

In this mystery, we see the dynamic of Mary’s intercession in our lives.  Through her free participation in the work of our Redemption, she has received the twofold office of presenting our needs to Jesus as our advocate, and teaching us how to obey Him in response.

Having received our petitions into her Immaculate Heart, Mary leaves us like the servants at the wedding feast at Cana, waiting on the words of Jesus.  We are to do whatever He tells us without resistance, trusting that it is for the best.  But how are we to know what Jesus is asking of us, as we do not audibly hear such clear instructions as, “Fill the jars with water” (Jn 2: 6)?  We can discern the Lord’s instructions in our lives in three ways:

1. Through the teachings of His Church, including the divinely revealed moral law which embraces the Ten Commandments and the New Law of the Gospel;
2. Through the ordinances of Divine Providence – the events and circumstances of our lives that we are called to surrender to in a spirit of faith in our Heavenly Father; and
3. Through the inspirations and guidance of the Holy Spirit that we receive interiorly in our personal prayer. 

If we assume the obedience of true servants and are faithful to the Lord’s instructions, the “water” of our broken humanity will be transformed into the “wine” of His divine life.  Jesus is the abundant Bridegroom, who “came that they may have life, and have it abundantly” (Jn 10:10).  In performing His first miracle at a wedding feast, He reminds us that He is the true Bridegroom of the Church, the eternal Spouse of every single one of us.  Human marriage is so sacred because it is an earthly reflection of the marriage between God and redeemed humanity.  The Wedding Feast of the Lamb is celebrated at every Eucharist, and will be celebrated for all eternity in the Kingdom of our Father.  With this in mind, let us savor our Communions that unite us to our abundant Bridegroom, and let us not approach the altar alone, but with Our Lady.  Through her maternal mediation, we can have confidence that our prayers are heard, and we can learn to obey her Son as true servants, with trusting abandon.