“Preparing ourselves for the Great Wedding Feast by seeking the intercession of our Queen- Mother Mary, and being obedient to the commandments of the Lord!”

(Based on Isa 62:1-5, 1 Cor 12:4-11 and Jn 2:1-11 – 2nd Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle C)

A man who had abandoned Christian practices came across a young boy who was polishing shoes on the street.

As the boy kept shining the shoes, the man noticed that there was a shining medal dancing around the neck of the boy.

With a sense of disdain, the man asked the boy, “What’s that hardware around your neck?”

“It’s a medal of Blessed Mother,” said the boy.

“Why her medal?” retorted the man (who had forsaken his Christian way of life)
“She is no different from your mother!”

The boy looked up at the man…
… smiled, as he continued to polish the shoes as he said, “But remember that there is a real big difference between Her Son and me!”

The man understood the tremendous faith and confidence of the boy in the Blessed Mother.

The story goes on to say that this incident helped the man to re-discover his Catholic Faith.

Mary is special because Her Son Jesus is special!

The greatness of Her Motherhood arises from the greatness of Her Son’s Divine Sonship.

And it is this privilege of being the Mother of Jesus…
… that makes Her a powerful intercessor of God’s Grace!

The Gospel of the Day presents this powerful intercessory role of our Blessed Mother, in the
Wedding at Cana.

The Wedding at Cana is the first of the “signs” that is reported in the Gospel of St John.

Weddings were probably the high point of the Jewish social life.

It was a time when there would be an abundance of celebration, extravagance of merriment and lavishness of fun.

.Weddings were some of the very few occasions when the common, working-class people could take time off to celebrate and enjoy themselves.

As a result, most weddings would include five to seven days of festivities.

Wine was an integral part of this important social custom.

Therefore when the Gospel says, “they ran short of wine”…
… it was a moment of immense embarrassment for the family.
… it was a time of utter shame and humiliation for the hosts

But in this time of crisis and trouble, Mother Mary realised the potential disaster.

She took the initiative to do something about it – to help avoid the great embarrassment that would have crashed upon the family

All of us have our own story to tell of the day or of the times, when the “wine ran out!”
… maybe the disappointing search for acceptance, care and understanding from others
… maybe our despairing hunt for meaning in life or the fear to encounter uncertainty of the future
… maybe moments of financial crunch or social abandonment or being a victim of gossip and ill-talk
… maybe at the death of our loved one or the loss of friendship
… maybe of disturbances in marriage and family life

The list goes on – of moments and situations – when the “wine ran out!”

The “wine”….
… of unity and fellowship in our family life
… of holiness and sanctity in our spiritual life
… of faith and perseverance in our prayer life
… of sensitiveness and responsiveness in our social life
… of joy and commitment in our religious and priestly life

And despite all our good intentions and hard efforts, we are unable to refill the jars!

Our lives only remain as ‘jars with water’…
… that is “filled up to the brim!” (Cf. Jn 2:7)

In all such occasions of “the wine running short,” Blessed Mother Mary is our intercessor to help us receive the “abundance of the best wine” from Jesus.

In Mother Mary, we can ‘send up our sighs, mourning and weeping in this vale of tears”…
… and pray to Her, the most gracious advocate, “to turn Her eyes of mercy towards us!”

Yes, we need to offer all our concerns and uncertainties into the hands of our Blessed Mother!

As St Maximilian Kolbe says, “Never be afraid of loving the Blessed Virgin too much. You can never love her more than Jesus did!”

Have we invited Mother Mary in our life?
Have we given Her a place in our life?

She will take us to the Lord and help receive His blessings and graces!

Her beautiful words are a true revelation of Jesus being the clear focus of her life: “Do whatever He tells you” (Jn 2: 5)

Mother Mary not only helps us receive blessings from the Lord…
… She also directs us towards Him and exhorts us to follow Him closer!

Mother Mary not only takes our petitions, by Her intercessions to the Lord…
… She also shows us the way to Him and urges us to live a life of obedience to Him!

Mother Mary is special because Her Son Jesus is special!

And it is this privilege of being the Mother of Jesus, our God and Saviour…
… that makes Her a powerful intercessor of God’s Grace!

Let us prepare ourselves for the Great Wedding Feast which will take place on “The Third Day” (Cf Jn 2:1) – the Day of our Resurrection – by seeking the intercession of our Queen- Mother Mary, and being obedient to the commandments of the Lord!

The Best Wine is waiting…!

God Bless! Live Jesus!

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📖 Discovering the beauty of the Catholic Church through the Catechism
MAN’S VOCATION LIFE IN THE SPIRIT – GOD’S SALVATION: LAW AND GRACE – The Ten Commandments – The First Commandment

The competent authority determines these “offerings” in accordance with the principle…
… that the Christian people ought to contribute to the support of the Church’s ministers.

“The labourer deserves his food. (CCC # 2122)