Epiphany 2C, 2010
John 2:1-11
A Liturgy is also available
CELEBRATION AND THE PRESENTNESS OF GOD
Celebration is an important part of religion.
Every time we share in a baptism it is a ‘family celebration’.
Same goes for ‘most’ weddings.
And this morning’s gospel theologian, the one we call John,
has told us of one such family celebration... a wedding in Cana.
When we come together to celebrate, be it
a wedding,
a baptism,
a wake,
a graduation,
a win in Test cricket (especially over England)
or a community festival,
we are affirming a part of life with a joyous ‘yes’.
Such is the case with John’s story about the wedding at Cana.
But there can be lots of distractions in this story.
And you wouldn’t believe the amount of ink
that has been spilt over these distractions!
oo0oo
One such distraction is to read into this a so-called ‘miracle’
(even though John doesn’t describe anything a miracle)...
So some people get caught,
either because they believe it is, or because they don’t.
Another distraction is when some people
worry about the alcoholic content of the wine
and Jesus playing the role of barman - to excess!
While a third distraction is when opponents of same-sex unions/marriages
call Jesus' attendance at this wedding
his endorsement of marriage as between a man and a woman:
‘between Adam & Eve, not Adam & Steve’
to quote both the leaders of christian superstition: Cardinal George Pell and MP Fred Nile.
But this story is not about any of those issues or concerns.
For I reckon this story is about one simple theme:
Jesus brings life.
As many of Jesus’ parables reflect raw, uncensored life,
so here in this created story of a celebration,
John has recast an early Christian story
which has Jesus touching on yet another part of life.
That grace is everywhere. Even in unlikely places.
And any emulation at a literal level is for life.
The love and grace of God are meant to overflow freely for everyone.
Not just in some rarified New Age sacredness or fundamentalist Christianity.
Not just in some ‘totally’ other.
But also lurking in the midst of the grace-full events
of secular human life that ordinary people enjoy.
A spirituality of the secular? Very likely!
For is that not what Incarnation - or more accurately, ‘open incarnation’ - is?
And is that not the meaning given to the word 'secular' - this world?
oo0oo
When I think of the religion of the past
it really concerns me that much of it,
particularly those bits called ‘Christianity’,
has for too often been seen as a religion of "you shall not."
You shall not drink.
You shall not dance.
You shall not eat meat on Friday.
You shall not enjoy sex.
You shall not associate too closely with those outside your faith.
We draw boundaries around ourselves, and we draw boundaries around God.
God cannot be found at a wedding party
that includes champagne and dancing, some still say.
God is not present at birthday parties,
or office Christmas parties, some think.
However, Jesus' actions at the wedding in Cana,
as told to us by John, suggests otherwise.
When the occasions presented themselves Jesus enjoyed life,
celebrated it with family and friends, embracing community.
Yes, it is very true.
Life is sometimes a bit of rough dirt track
rather than a bitumen superhighway.
It isn't all lattes at the local coffee shop!
But I do not want to be either glib or underestimate
some of the issues we all have to face in our time and day.
Let me offer but one example.
At the recent World Parliament of Religions gathering held in Melbourne in December 2009,
Sister Joan Chittester was recognised as ‘the real rock star’ of the gathering.
Participating in a panel discussion on ‘Women, religion and poverty’ she made this comment:
“The first problem, of course, is to distinguish natural poverty from unnatural poverty. The fact that a tsunami might wipe out coastal villages creates a kind of natural poverty that we can only alleviate, not avoid. The fact that women are paid less than men for doing the very same work is unnatural poverty. Of course we can stop that, as we can the exploitation of child labo[u]r and the national greed that underlies it all. But to do all of that, we need to start teaching another version of ‘Thou shalt not steal…’ which is clearly a religious question.
“It’s impossible to talk about eliminating poverty without talking about the elimination of sexism and the elimination of militarism. Why we seldom hear homilies about those things in Christian churches may be the Christian question of the age” (WPR.Chittister 2009).
Neither the importance nor the seriousness of that social issue doesn’t mean
our only response can or should be to avoid life.
Life is good.
Love is good.
Celebrating our joy together is good.
And where life, love, and celebration are present,
it is likely that Creativity God is present as well.