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The Wedding Feast at Cana Essay
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The story of the wedding feast at Cana is one of the most poignant tales in the Bible. Yet it is not because Jesus turned water into wine; his miracle often overshadows the true message of the role Mary plays in the ministry of Christ. In this story, a mother’s love becomes a pivotal turning point for Jesus. It is as if Jesus needed to hear his mother’s faith in him in order to properly commence his ministry. Jesus for the first time assumes a position of spiritual leadership. Although he already had with him his disciples, never before the wedding feast at Cana did Jesus demonstrate the magnitude of his presence. Even before he knew it himself, Mary as his mother recognized the time had come. In many ways, the incident represents a rite of passage for Jesus.
This is also one of the few stories in the Bible that is almost more about Mary than about Jesus. Mary becomes the ultimate role model for faith. For Mary knows that in initiating her son’s ministry through the miracle of transforming water into wine, that she loses him as her son forever. The sacrifice she makes in this story is poignant, particularly as it arrives at a wedding—symbolizing what any typical family would have expected of Jesus. Mary knows that Jesus is not a typical son and she supports him through undying faith.
Mary’s faith is transformative and liberating. Through Mary we see an exceptional amount of courage, which is prerequisite of faith. We see that other people, often mothers but also friends or mentors, can see in us what we cannot yet see in ourselves. Jesus also had to trust his mother in his powerful moment. He said first, “My hour has not yet come,” but Mary knew better; she had the wisdom of a mother who knows her son even better than he had known himself at that time (John 2:4). The wedding feast at Cana also shows how faith in others and in ourselves brings tangible results to those around us: as Jesus and Mary together turned disappointment into joy with a simple act of faith.
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Bible: ESV
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