Homily - 2nd Sunday in Ordinary Time

Second Sunday in Ordinary Time

Isaiah 62:1-5, 1 Corinthians 12:4-11, John 2:1-11

I don’t know about you but when I was a much younger person during those College years I used to hate “last call” --- especially whenever we were having a night out with friends. I never wanted the fun to end!   Of course, there are other sorts of “last calls” in life.   It happens at formal occasions such as parties, dinners and receptions that involve renting a space for a certain amount of time. “Last calls” happen at amusement parks, and all places where the fun only happens during specified hours. They even exist at parties in homes. How many times have we seen one of the hosts hold back a yawn and know that it is our cue to grab our coats and say our goodbyes? And, of course, kids really take these sorts of “last calls” quite hard --- they always want to stay up a few minutes past their usual bedtime, or finish their video game, or ask if the play-date at a friend’s house can turn into a sleepover. It seems clear that when things are good, we don’t want them to end.

The opposite is also true. A dental procedure that seems to take forever. Part-time studies that make you wonder if you will ever get your degree. Scolding by a parent or teacher or coach. Even a boring homily! Yes, sometimes the unpleasant things, and painful things in life seem as if they will never end. Where does God fit into all of this? Anywhere? Nowhere?

“Fill the jars with water.”

Dear friends, we just heard the story of the Wedding at Cana. This is one of those stories that is rich in meaning. On one level, it is simply about Jesus’ power, his compassion, his authority unfolding in full view ----- a manifestation of his identity as God’s Son. In fact, in the early Church three biblical “events” were all celebrated on the exact same day --- the Epiphany, the Baptism of the Lord, and the Wedding Feast at Cana. The Church saw in all three a “revealing” of Jesus to the world!

Preachers will sometimes use this day to say something about Mary or say something about how Jesus always defies expectations or say something about how wedding feasts in the bible are often allegories of the unfailing love that God has for us. All inspirational stuff.

Yet, what really struck me this time when I was reflecting on this passage was the whole idea of Jesus not wanting the joy to end, not wanting the celebration to end, not wanting all the good will and hospitality to fade into the night. Jesus wanted the party to go on --- in fact he wanted the party to even be better than before. In the simplest terms, Jesus stepped in (at Mary’s request in this case) and the whole situation was better for it. Jesus got involved and reversed the course of events.

Yet, we know that in our own lives it’s not one continuous party. Sometimes things go the right way. Other times they go wrong. Someone succeeds and another fails. Someone’s heart soars. Someone’s heart breaks. Someone gets healed. Someone dies. Where is the celebration in all of that?

Well, the things God promises us are often not what we think he is promising or are not what we want him to promise. The things of God are richer, deeper, more meaningful and eternal. God’s generosity to us is an abundance of the things he knows truly make a difference (such as the gifts of the Spirit we heard Paul talk about in today’s Second Reading). In other words, the celebration God wants to last forever is an openness to His grace --- an openness that allows God to fill us to the brim with every good thing, not our own terms but on His terms. The presence of God’s very life within us cannot be undermined or diminished by anything going on around us --- good or bad. Their efficacy does not depend on external things. 

Last call? Never! There is no such thing when we let God be God. When we surrender to God’s will, true joy, true peace, true hope will dominate the landscape of our lives.

Finally, Dr. Martin Luther King Jnr, the civil rights giant whose holiday we are celebrating next week once observed that life’s most persistent and urgent question is ‘What are you doing for others?’ Let us remember that positive involvement in the life of others should both be our duty and our vocation.