John 2:1-5
On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding. When the wine gave out, the mother of Jesus said to him, “They have no wine.” And Jesus said to her, “Woman, what concern is that to you and to me? My hour has not yet come.” His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.”
When I read this story, I want to say:
Jesus, don’t speak to your mother like that!
“My hour has not yet come”
What kind of response is that?
Like a teenager who always knows better than their parent
not yet at the stage of valuing the wisdom that is often found
in those who have seen a thing or two
and who bear the scars that tell the stories
of how their wisdom was won.
I want to say:
“Jesus, listen to your mother.”
Jesus’ mother, in her wisdom
overlooked her son’s petulance
and alerted the folk at the feast
to prepare for the possibility of a miracle.
Sometimes, just sometimes, mothers really do know best.
And, like the water turned to wine,
there was abundance
Abundance that meant that there was
room enough,
grace enough
love enough
to go beyond dismissal
to carry on regardless
and to resist the temptation to say:
“I told you so”
Mary, mother of God.
