Change Our Hearts Lord

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

We hear in our Gospel reading today that there was a wedding in Cana and that Mary, the Mother of Jesus, was there as well as Jesus along with a few of His disciples.

We do not know who the wedding couple is but most likely they were relatives or friends of Mary’s and Mary most likely was helping out at the wedding celebration with the guests and the food.

Mary, realizing that they had run out of wine and knowing that this would be an awful embarrassment for the couple as well as their families and perhaps even overshadow the rest of the celebration – turns to her son and simply says – “they have no wine.”

“Woman” replies Jesus, “how does your concern affect me? My hour has not yet come.”

Now typical of many good Mothers Mary pays no attention to what her Son said but instead tells the servers to “do whatever He tells you.”

Mary knows her son – she knows who He is – she trusts Jesus to work things out – she leaves it to Him as to how – and what happens is a miracle.

Jesus – it appears – cannot deny His Mother’s request – even though His “hour has not yet come” – He tells the servants to fill the 6 stone jars with water and once they had done that he tells them to draw some out and take it to the headwaiter – and they do.

Stepping back for a moment from the story, the first thing we may want to take home with us today (if we don’t do it already) is always asking Mary when we have a problem to intercede for us like she did for the wedding couple, relying on her to take our problem to Jesus – who cannot deny His Mother’s requests.

Another thing we may want to take home with us today is realizing that no problem is to small or insignificant – if it matters to us it matters to God our Father – so we should bring Him our problems and then trust in Jesus to work things out once we have turned them over to Him, like Mary did – this enables us to get on with our lives and demonstrates our faith in Jesus to work out all things for our good – now His answers may not always be the ones we are looking for but we trust that His answers are always what is best for us at that moment even though we might not realize it.

The water we know had become wine – good wine – without doubt the best wine ever made – we know this because of what the headwaiter said once he had tasted it – people he said “normally” serve the best wine first and then an inferior one once everyone has had a little too much to drink – that way they won’t notice the difference in the quality – but you he said “have saved the best wine for last.”

Notice the simplicity of this miracle, how easily, how quietly and with what dignity it was done – the water simply became wine. Compare that with what will take place on our altar here today – the gifts will be presented the priest will say prayers over them and by the power of the Holy Spirit they will become for us the body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ.

By changing the water into wine at the wedding celebration in Cana Jesus certainly saved the wedding couple and their families from embarrassment – we are also told that He revealed His glory and that His disciples began to believe in Him.

But perhaps Jesus did something more that day – even though His time had not yet come – even though Mary’s request, as simple as it was and perhaps as insignificant as it might seem when compared to all the serious problems in the world, her request was in harmony with God’s will for His Son’s life – it was in harmony with God’s will for each of our lives, His adopted sons and daughters – perhaps Jesus did His Father’s will that day – He celebrated life by allowing that wedding celebration to go on without interruption.

God so loved the world that He sent in the fullness of time His only Son, so that we who believe in Him might have life and have it more abundantly. Each of us is here to celebrate the gift of life that we have received and to willingly give that gift back to God by loving Him, loving people and serving others.

Everything we do is a celebration of the gift of life – the birth of a child and their baptism, their first steps, going off to school, birthdays and graduations, their first Holy Communion and Confirmation – their marriage and even their death – are all celebrations of the gift of life.

Jesus taught us that there is go greater love than this - to lay down one’s life for his friends. To sacrifice the greatest gift we have been given – our very lives – for our friends – there is no greater demonstration of love.

“By His incarnation” – the Second Vatican Council said – “the Son of God has united Himself in some fashion with every human being.” This saving event, they went on to say, not only reveals to each of us the boundless love of God who sent His only Son but also the incomparable value of every human person.

All life (from the moment of conception to natural death) is precious and must be celebrated and when necessary protected. And unfortunately – in America today as well as around the world – innocent babies are being aborted.

In the past 37 years over 50 million babies have lost their lives in the name of choice, convenience, or under the guise of mercy when diagnosed with some defect by prenatal testing. This number is staggering and it is still growing by 3,300 babies a day!

The teaching of Pope John Paul II in Evangelium Vitae is valid and clear: 'It is true that the decision to have an abortion is often tragic and painful for the mother, insofar as the decision to rid herself of the fruit of conception is not made for purely selfish reasons or out of convenience, but out of a desire to protect certain important values such as her own health or a decent standard of living for the other members of the family. Sometimes it is feared that the child to be born would live in such conditions that it would be better if the birth did not take place. Nevertheless, these reasons and others like them, however serious and tragic, can never justify the deliberate killing of an innocent human being'."

The Church’s teaching on abortion has not changed in 2000 years, never will change, and is very clear – you can not be Catholic and pro-choice. You can not be Catholic and support abortion.

Jesus came to give each of us a new heart, a new spirit, a new mind and a new body – free from the slavery of sin. No matter what temptation we have given into or sin we have committed – even the sin of abortion or supporting abortion – we can find healing, peace and forgiveness from Christ in His Church, particularly through the Sacrament of Reconciliation.

As Catholics we have a responsibility to defend the innocent – whether they are in Africa, Europe, Bosnia or in their mother’s womb. We can’t be quiet on this issue – we must protect the innocent and defend the dignity of womanhood and all life.
This coming Friday – January 22nd – marks the 37th Annual March for Life in Washington DC.

The parish is sponsoring a bus and seats may still be available.

Attending the March for Life is certainly encouraged and a good thing to do but the most important thing each of us can do is to pray – constantly – and we should seek Mary’s intercession on this issue – ask Her to intercede on our behalf like she did for that couple in Cana – that all people who support abortion will have a change of heart and those suffering from an abortion will be healed. Amen.