Shouts February 2021
Shouts February 2021
Published on Friday 26th February 2021
LENT ENCOUNTER 28TH FEBRUARY 2021
Published on Friday 19th February 2021 Published on Wednesday 17/02/2021 ENCOUNTERS WITH JESUSThis week in our Lent studies of Encounters with Jesus, our reading takes us to the very first recorded Miracle where Jesus is reported to have turned the water into wine. Reading the account, we note that Jesus says that His time is not yet come. Yet, nevertheless, when the servants persist, his mother tells them to do what he says and behold they take the water to the Master of Ceremonies who, in turn, asks to the Bridegroom why he had reserved the best wine until last! To get to understand this account we have to realise that marriage ceremonies differ in their cultural context and in the culture of the time and place, marriage is a different experience to that in our society. According to tradition, the ceremony went on a for a week and it was considered a discourtesy not to attend, somewhat different to our experiences, where often the bride’s and groom’s families have to negotiate the number of guests!! Even in my lifetime the culture of weddings has changed dramatically from the wedding ceremony and reception to now being extended to include an evening, when guests, who were not part of the wedding ceremony, can come and celebrate with the happy couple. So what, you may ask, does this event say to us? Here we see Jesus in a different light to events that follow. He is at the very beginning of His Life’s work, not yet ready to take on that responsibility but instead relaxing and enjoying the company of His mother and His friends. Here He is being very human and retiring but enjoying the whole atmosphere of the event. Are we sometimes too busy to sit back, relax and enjoy the opportunities to engage with pastimes and company, focussing on being too busy doing? I know that I have too often been too busy in doing, rather than being, feeling guilty about just relaxing and enjoying the world and people around me. As we remember the journey that Jesus inexorably took to Jerusalem and His trial, crucifixion and death, let us not forget that, in His humanity, Christ was able to relax and enjoy His humanity for this brief moment.
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