A preaching in the morning

John 2: 1-11; Rev. 19: 6-10
St. Mary Magdalene Longbenton. 22^nd January 2012

Four ‘W’s and a new beginning. Weddings, Woman, Water/Wine are the strong and pleasantly alliterative symbols that run through our readings this morning and I am delighted that they are such strong symbols, as they allow me say a few things about this morning’s gospel, without having to return to arguments about the nature of miracles. The symbols, in the language throughout this gospel are so rich, so full of biblical connections, and so involved, that it renders questions as to the reality of the miracle secondary, or at least a distraction from the meanings in the text. It is of course one of the most familiar stories from the gospel which has currency both inside and outside of the church, if only for use in arguments over the consumption of alcohol.

The first of our ‘W’s is the scene, set at a wedding, a wedding at which Jesus, his mother and undoubtedly a number of disciples are present. We are not distracted at all by knowing who are bride and groom, we don’t know their name or their social standing, or indeed have any contribution from the immediate family at all. We see the action of the servants and we hear the reaction of the steward of the feast but otherwise we know nothing of the nature of the event. But almost like a TV soap opera we know that any wedding story just can’t be straightforward, there has to be a disaster, a scandal of some sort for the story to take off, (watch Coronation street this week,) and we are not let down here. Mary notes that the wine has run out. Whilst we may imagine that this would be a problem if we were at a wedding today, it would be an event of disastrous social proportion in the cultural setting in which Jesus lived and moved. To fail to ensure an adequate party would have been deemed a social faux pas of a serious nature and brought shame upon the house of the young woman being married. Some biblical commentators have gone so far as to suggest that such a failure may have led to litigation between the bride’s and the groom’s families as a result.

So very rapidly we are brought to our second ‘W’.  ‘Woman!’ says Jesus when his mother points out to him the nature of the impending social disaster. Now this is just the kind of scene in which women may take a hand to try to avoid problems before they happen. I was recently discussing with a visitor from the south of this country, her impression that the North East of England was a predominantly masculine and hard cultural environment. I was at some pains to explain that this was only surface impression and that the North East, especially in the former mining, shipbuilding and other industrial communities was in fact profoundly matriarchal. Women are the ones that hold families and communities together, make things happen and such is Mary. She takes steps to name the problem and suggest to her son that he might need to do something about it to avoid the embarrassment of the family. Jesus response however we may find a little surprising. “Woman, what concern is that to you and to me?” Now then, there is some speculation as to what the subsequent conversation is between Mary and Jesus, but if I try, not too hard, I can imagine what would happen if I said this to my mother. I can only imagine that it went something along the lines of an incredibly withering look, providing a split second in which to realise that I had not provided the required response, before a severe ear bending. “I beg your pardon! What do you mean what’s it got to do with us? And how dare you address me as woman? Now get out there and do something about it or you’ll be getting a smack upside the face with the dustpan and then it will have something to do with you.” or at least I think Mary may have said something like that, because Jesus is up and off to sort things out immediately.

And so we come to our third and fourth ‘W’’s, the water and the wine. Having commanded the servants to fill the substantial water-jars with water, they are no sooner finished than he asks one of them to draw out some of the water and take it to the Steward of the feast. His decision and pronouncement is clear, this is the best wine, that which they had before was not the best stuff at all, and how surprising for the best wine to be served after all the cheap stuff has gone.

In doing so, the Steward of this feast is drawing together all of the symbols used in this story to point to a change. Not simply that the hosting family has provided wine of superior quality later in the feast rather than sooner, but a very public declaration that the intervention of Jesus in the lives of all people is the change signalled in this act.

It is symbolic that this initial ministerial act of Jesus takes place at a wedding. The wedding and subsequent feast is used in many instances throughout ancient scriptures as allegory for the coming of the messiah and the subsequent fulfilment of ancient promises. Our epistle reading for this morning describes the redemption we are offered through Jesus as a wedding feast. In Isaiah 54 the prophet speaks of the husband who is the coming redeemer and in chapter 62 declares that God will rejoice in that redemption as ‘the bridegroom will rejoice in his new bride’. In Joel (3:18) the prophet promises “In that day the mountains will drip new wine, and the hills will flow with milk; all the ravines of Judah will run with water. A fountain will flow out of the Lord’s house and will water the valley of acacias.” Jesus himself is conscious of this allusion and uses the imagery in his own teaching. In the gospel of Luke he prefigures our memorial of this promise in the breaking of bread and the sharing of wine as he shares in his last supper with the disciples. In Matthew chapter 8, he speaks of the eternal feast and in chapter 22 he expands on this to tell a full parable of the kingdom of heaven as a wedding feast.

The stone jars that Jesus commands to be filled with water are vessels that would usually be used for ritual purification under Jewish law. Is this accidental? Perhaps not. Perhaps Mary’s opening gambit may be interpreted as a reflective comment on the ritualistic, cultural customs of Pharisaic tradition, which is being replaced by something new. Empty vessels prepared for ritual arrangements that will be transformed into the holders of the vital and abundant new life giving wine, the quantity of which is substantial. Six jars of up to 30 gallons each. This again takes us back to the world of old testament promises of redemption, Amos (9:13) tells us that “New wine will drip from the mountains and flow from all the hills”, Jeremiah (13:12-14) talks of sufficient wine to render everyone in the land drunk, and of the new wine (31:12) that is to come.

Even though we can see at other points in the gospels that the disciples can be a bit dense and not catch on to what is going on in the set pieces of interaction, it would be difficult to believe that they would not see in this rich tapestry of symbols the portents of Old Testament prophecy. They are at a wedding, something significant has happened surrounding the water and wine, they would have to be a collection of Jews utterly ignorant of their own scriptural and cultural inheritance not to realise that this was significant moment.

And finally Jesus’ use of that word ‘Woman’, in speaking to his mother. It is an unusual way for a son to address his mother, but then this is no ordinary son. Is Jesus himself signifying to her that this is a point of change? That the promises surrounding his birth are now to be fulfilled and he is no longer her little boy, but a man destined to carry out the promise of his father in heaven, which begins with this sign.

John 2

On 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 you and to me? 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 chief steward.’ So they took it.⁹When 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 bridegroom¹⁰and 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.

Revelation 19

⁶Then I heard what seemed to be the voice of a great multitude, like the sound of many waters and like the sound of mighty thunder-peals, crying out,
‘Hallelujah!
For the Lord our God
the Almighty reigns.
⁷ Let us rejoice and exult
and give him the glory,
for the marriage of the Lamb has come,
and his bride has made herself ready;
⁸ to her it has been granted to be clothed
with fine linen, bright and pure’—
for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints. 9 And the angel said^* to me, ‘Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.’ And he said to me, ‘These are true words of God.’¹⁰Then I fell down at his feet to worship him, but he said to me, ‘You must not do that! I am a fellow-servant^* with you and your comrades^* who hold the testimony of Jesus.^* Worship God! For the testimony of Jesus^* is the spirit of prophecy.’