By Fr. Dennis Chriszt, C.PP.S.
Weddings in Israel were celebrated for several days.
Guest ate, drank, danced, told stories and rejoiced with the new couple.
But if they ran out of wine before the celebration was over,
it was quite an embarrassing situation.
So, Mary was concerned and hoped that her son and his disciples could do something.
Little did she know what he would do,
but she was confident that he would do something.
That is why we call her “Help of Christians.”
We believe that she will point out to her son the need,
and that he will do something to meet that need.
Jesus took what was available,
six stone jars and sufficient water to fill them.
With somewhere between 120 and 180 gallons of water,
Jesus worked wonders.
He not only changed water into wine,
he changed it into really good wine.
We don’t know how he did it.
Mary didn’t ask.
She simple rejoiced that her son cared enough for the bride and groom,
as well as for all the guests who remained.
Most people there never knew what had happened.
They never knew how close they were to running out of wine,
They never knew that there was a sudden increase in the amount of wine.
They never knew where the better quality wine had come from.
They just continued to celebrate.
Only Mary and Jesus and some of his disciples knew what had happened,
and they were all delighted to know the secret.
Sometimes, we don’t even know what Jesus has done for us.
We don’t even know how much Mary’s care and concern
may have influenced her son’s actions.
But today, we rejoice that Mary is concerned.
We rejoice that she cares for us.
We rejoice that her son works wonders in our lives,
even when we don’t recognize what is happening.
And we cry out with Mary,
“God who has done great things for me,
and holy is God’s Name.”
Fr. Dennis Chriszt, C.PP.S., is the director of advanced formation for the Missionaries of the Precious Blood. He also directs Precious Blood Parish Missions (pbparishmissions.org).