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You Have Kept the Good Wine Until Now

The Third Epiphany

This weekend’s Gospel from John offers the account of the wedding feast at Cana, prompting Jesus’ first miracle, or “sign.” This is now a third “epiphany,” or manifestation, following the Visitation of the Magi and the Baptism of the Lord. This particular image, painted in oil on a wood panel is a night scene, a novelty in painting at the time (1530-32). In doing so, the artist, Vermeyen, creates a dramatic effect. Candlelight plays over the faces and casts dark shadows. For the flames, the artist uses gold leaf. Well ahead of his time, this “nocturn” as a genre only became more widely known through Caravaggio in the 1600s. 

The painting depicts the moment the meal is being served, just before the miraculous transformation of water into wine. Seated in the center is the newly-wed couple, with Peter and Andrew to the left of them. Cast in shadow, in the foreground, is the Virgin Mary, who turns to her right and grasps the shoulder of the servant telling him, “Do whatever he tells you,” with Christ still gesticulating his infamous, “Woman, how does your concern affect me?” When Jesus approaches and interacts with those he addresses as “woman,” the covenant with the first woman, Eve, is recalled (who is named only after the Fall). When Jesus says to the Samaritan at the well, “Believe me, woman, the hour is coming (Jn 4:21), or to Mary Magdalene at the empty tomb, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you looking for?” (Jn 20:15), we are reminded of the response of the woman who first believed without seeing signs or wonders: Mary, the New Eve—she, who believed foremost in the word of God.

“Do whatever he tells you” (Jn 2:5), are the last words spoken by Mary in the Scriptures. Ask yourself: what might Jesus be calling me to? Like the prophet Isaiah, we must not be silent. Each member of the Church, young and old, has a unique voice, and we must find it and use it for the service of God. This can take time and will change throughout our lives. Mary and Jesus found and used their voices in a new way at the wedding at Cana. How are you being prompted to do likewise?

Fr. Terry

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