Dear friend:

We continue "Evangeli.net Subjects" intended to illustrate –throughout the course– the Mysteries of the Rosary as "flashes" of our Lord's life. We began this series with the Mysteries of Light, and have already had the commentary "The Lord's Baptism in the River Jordan" (read more).

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The second Mystery of Light, "Christ's Self Revelation at the weddings of Cana", is especially brilliant (read more). It is surprising that it is barely appearing in the annual liturgical cycle: only one Sunday every three years! However, it is a crucial moment in our Lord's life. Let us see why... (cf. some analysis from Benedict XVI at Master·evangeli.net: (read more)

1st) "Jesus did this as the beginning of his signs in Cana in Galilee and so revealed his glory, and his disciples began to believe in him" (Jn 2,11). That is no small feat! The Lord's followers saw a miracle (the first ones we know of!) and they accepted the divinity of Jesus Christ. This is a foundational moment for the Church (among others), Jesus demonstrates that he is God because no one else has such power over matter. If Jesus were not God, salvation would still need to be completed. Therefore, it was fundamental for the pillars of the Church to be convinced that Jesus Christ was indeed God (in any case, the decisive proof would come with the Resurrection) (read more).

2nd) "On the third day there was a wedding in Cana in Galilee, and (...) Jesus and his disciples were also invited to the wedding" (Jn 2, 1-2).  This assertion causes a strong impression even after twenty centuries. The main phase of redemption begins in a festive nuptial environment, with the celebration of a marriage. It is surprising that we took so many years (centuries!) in discovering marriage -family- as a setting of holiness. Up until now, we had never formally promoted the identification of Christ within the conjugal and family life. St. Paul insisted that Christians have the mission of reconciling the world with God... and it turns out that almost everyone in the world lives in a marriage and in a family... Based on that, the Church has been able to suggest the universal calling to holiness (read more).

3rd) "The mother of Jesus was there" (Jn 2,1).  The person who was invited, primarily, was Mary. Her presence there had an immeasurable value... Surely it had not been long since she had become a widow (a few years) and her only son had recently left home. But she did not passively stay in Nazareth, crying over her widowhood. On the contrary, she dragged her Son to the celebration of a wedding (if she went, it made no sense for her Son not to attend). Something similar occurred at Calvary. There, He dragged her (with a great benefit to us). The "woman" in Cana is the "woman" at Calvary! (read more). That is where we were "born" as children to that "woman" and, therefore, as "children of God".

4th) “They have no wine.” (Jn 2, 3). We continue with Holy Mary! In her words we have discovered two precious facts. First, her request: if she realized that the wine was short it was because she had been serving more than drinking. Mary saw it, Mary suffered through it, and Mary resolved it (by telling her son; if not Him, then who?). Second, her request is an example of a simple and effective prayer. Never have so few words given such good results! The secret to Holy Mary's prayer: she does not plea for herself, she does not dictate solutions to God, and she trusts completely in Him (read more). She did not know what Jesus would do and, on top of that, her son's response must have seemed enigmatic to her at that time; but she was not troubled and she reacted in the most certain way: "Do whatever he tells you" (Jn 2, 5).

5th) "Woman (...),  my hour has not yet come" (Jn 2, 4). The "hour" would truly come at Calvary. But Holy Mary -with her influence as a holy mother- is capable of advancing the hour. She had said "yes" to God Father; the eternal Son had said "yes" to the Eternal Father: this is how incarnation came to be (read more). And when those two "yeses" unite (mine and that of God) nothing is impossible; everything has a solution (which, surely, we are not able to see, just as Virgin Mary did not see it either, but God is more imaginative!).

Fr. Antoni Carol i Hostench

(General Coordinator of evangeli.net)