Thursday, January 14, 2010

THE EPIPHANY OF MARY
SECOND SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME


Two weeks ago we celebrated the Feast of the Epiphany of Jesus. The Scripture, however, recorded three Epiphanies; one in Bethlehem at the visit of the Magi, second at the time of His Baptism and the third at the Wedding Feast of Cana. In Bethlehem, the Magi discovered the identity of Jesus and revealed it to the world. On the day of His Baptism, the Father and the Holy Spirit together revealed Jesus’ identity to the world. At the Wedding Feast of Cana, Mary, his own mother took the initiative to reveal the identity of Jesus. Our Gospel reading, today, focuses on this particular aspect. Even though the focus is on the fist miracle of Jesus, this story also reveals the significance of Mary in the plan of salvation. From that perspective, the wedding feast of Cana also marks the Epiphany of Mary. This story reveals at least three aspects of Mary’s personality.

MARY, THE GREAT MENTOR

Mentoring is important in any area of life. Consider any game or a sport. Behind any winning team, there always is a great Coach. People who reached the height of holiness had mentors or spiritual directors. The mentor behind the formation of Jesus was none other than his mother. No one knows a son better than his mother. The greatness of Mary was that she accompanied Jesus at every step of his growth and prepared him for his mission. At the age of twelve Jesus was lost in the temple. When Mary confronted Jesus, He said: “Why did you search for me? Don’t you know that I must be about my Father’s business?” According to the Jewish custom, a boy becomes legally an adult at the age of 12. Naturally, nobody could blame a boy if he makes an independent decision. Legal adulthood does not necessarily mean maturity. Mary convinced him of the importance of waiting for God’s time, and led him home. The Bible says Jesus grew in wisdom under the guidance of His parents. At Cana, Jesus was not sure about the timing of his mission. He said, “My time has not yet come.” Mary intervened again and helped him to see the signs of the time. She said to the servant, “Do whatever Jesus tells you”. Mary, thus, accompanied Jesus as a mentor and slowly prepared him for the mission for which he was sent by His Father. Jesus recognized the role His mother in His formation. So at Calvary, He entrusted the Church to her guidance. She faithfully accepted that responsibility and prepared the disciples for the day of Pentecost.

Do you have a mentor in your life? The help of a spiritual director is useful for discernment. Remember the story of Samuel. God called him three times. He did not recognize it. He thought that it was Eli. Finally, Eli helped him to recognize God’s voice. St. Paul says: To each individual the manifestation of the Spirit is given for some benefit. We all have gifts and talents. As Mary helped Jesus to manifest his gift, we need mentors to discern, discover and identify our gifts, talents and calling.

MARY, THE GREAT BENEVOLENT

Things may not always happen as planned. Our calculations can go wrong. Unpredictability of the situation and miscalculation on our part can at times put us in a humiliating situation. How do we respond if we see such a situation happening to some of our friends or neighbors? Here Mary stands as a great model. The host of the wedding feast at Cana was running out of wine. It was a sign of disgrace. It could have brought shame on the whole family. Mary helped to solve the crisis in a professional manner. She did not make breaking-news out of it. She did not bring it to the attention of anyone who could do nothing to save the situation. She approached the right person and solved the crisis without incurring damage to anyone’s reputation. She did everything quietly, and remained behind the scene. What a great model of service!

MARY, THE GREAT INTERCESSOR

“Pray to the Mother of God. She will get your petition to Jesus. Jesus never denies her request,” my mother used to tell me when I was a child. It is a true statement. A couple of times Jesus turned down the requests of His disciples, including Peter. Jesus, however, never rejected the request of his Mother. Even though Jesus thought that it was not the appropriate time for Him to start his public mission, He yielded to his Mom’s request. He performed the first miracle at his mother’s request. Approach Mary, she will intercede for us before her Son, Jesus.

“Holy Mary Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of hour death.”

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