By Sr. Teresa Joseph, FMA –
The words of His Eminence Oswald Cardinal Gracias during the homily on Palm Sunday 5th April 2020: “Let us enter this Holy Week with Our Lady” swiftly took me to the Wedding Feast at Cana (Jn 2:1-12). Her trust-filled words to Jesus: Son they have no wine and her hope-filled appeal to the servants: “Do whatever He tells you” and this made the miracle happen. Mary’s powerful intercession made Jesus her Son, to anticipate his hour for the First Miracle: Water turned into Wine! We turn to Mary: Mother of humanity and our mother and humbly request her to plead for us as the Covid–19 pandemic spills across the world, killing people each day.
For the disciples, Holy Saturday was a day of mourning for their beloved leader, whom they had deserted in his last hours. For Mary it was a time of faith and of hope, as she did not know what was to be but was certain of God’s faithfulness. On Holy Saturday, Cardinal Martini affirms:“in the disciples of Jesus we recognize the confusion and the fears that characterize our lives as believers” (especially during this Covid-19). In Mary “we recognize our own waiting, our own hopes, the faith lived as a continual passage towards the mystery” (Cardinal Martini, Our Lady of Holy Saturday, Ligouri Press, 2002).
To Live the Silence of Holy Saturday
Holy Saturday is the interval linking the pain of the death of Jesus and the joy of His resurrection. No liturgy is celebrated during the day. Many have defined this day as “the longest day,” In the midst of the rapidly spreading pandemic Covid -19, we are here to live the silence of Holy Saturday with Mary.
In accordance with the Byzantine tradition for about thirty years or so, Holy Saturday has also been celebrated as the Hour of the Mother. The spotlight is on Mary in whom on Holy Saturday we find both the pain of bereavement of her only beloved Son and the hope of His resurrection. Today, the Church waits in prayer like Mary and together with Mary sharing the same sentiments of sorrow and confidence in God.
A Deeper Gaze at Cana
A thought provoking question is: Are we sure that only the wedding guests lacked wine? Broadening our view a bit more it is apt to ask: What about the whole nation: all Israel – did they not experience the scarcity of wine?
All Israel was waiting for the coming of the Messianic Son of David. The Prophet Isaiah in (25:6-8 ) has expressed it in poignant words; when “On this mountain the LORD of hosts will make for all peoples a feast of fat things, a feast of wine on the lees, of fat things full of marrow, of wine on the lees well refined. And he will destroy on this mountain the covering that is cast over all peoples, the veil that is spread over all nations. He will swallow up death for ever, and the Lord GOD will wipe away tears from all faces, and the reproach of his people he will take away from all the earth; for the LORD has spoken.”
Jesus speaks of the dawn of the Messianic Age in language that once again links the image of a wedding with the image of wine: Jesus responded to the disciples of John: “Why do we and the Pharisees fast, but your disciples do not fast?” And Jesus said to them: “Can the wedding guests…Neither is new wine put into old wineskins; if it is, the skins burst, and the wine is spilled, and the skins are destroyed; but new wine is put into fresh wineskins, and so both are preserved” (Matt 9:14–17).
The New Wine of the Kingdom
As we enter into an intimate conversation with Jesus and Mary, we realize that Mary is requesting for the new wine of the kingdom “This, the first of his signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee, and manifested his glory; and his disciples believed in him” (Jn 2:11). We gaze upon Mary, mother of humanity as she pleads with Jesus to manifest himself with her unrelenting and persuasive prayer. There is more to the story: a quick look into the Feast of the Epiphany will offer connecting links. Three revelatory events are celebrated on the Feast of Epiphany: the Magi’s visit, the baptism of the Lord and the wedding feast at Cana. ‘Divinity’ is the connecting link that knits together: the Magi’s homage confirms the divinity of Jesus the child-king born to die for his people. Jesus’ baptism in the Jordan discloses a foretaste of God’s inner life as Trinity. In the midst of daily life, at a wedding reception at Cana, the divine power at work in Jesus, the carpenter from Nazareth, manifests. The Lord’s miracles, “signs” as the fourth gospels calls point to Jesus’ divinity. They reveal to us the very purpose of Jesus’ coming into this world and his mission of love.
Anointed by the Holy Spirit towards stronger intimacy with God
At Cana, Jesus transforms water into wine, better still here we get a preview of the abundance and richness of the supernatural life He came to share with us. Life has taken a quality lift; it is nothing but intimacy with God, a call to partake in the timeless celebration of love between Father, Son and Spirit. With Mary’s trust-filled words: “Son they have no wine”. And thanks to the power of the Holy Spirit, Jesus worked the transformation. It is the very same Spirit that transformed Mary the virgin into the mother of the messiah, that led Jesus into the desert, and the bread and wine into the body and blood of Christ. Following his baptism, Jesus Christ was anointed by the Holy Spirit and the Holy Spirit will do for each one of us all what He has done for Jesus, will gradually transform us to be more like Christ.
Mother, be with us
Mother Mary, when the Angel greeted you, you listened to God’s Word and entrusted yourself entirely to His will, received it without uncertainties. Thanks to your “Behold I am the handmaid of the Lord, let it be to me according to your word” (Lk 1:38), in you, mother, the Word was made flesh. Mother, you distinguished your “yes” to God with your characteristic style of service with particular attention to the needs of others. You went in haste to meet your cousin Elizabeth and to serve her.
On Good Friday, we find you Mother, at the foot of the Cross accompanying your Son Jesus, raised on the Cross before breathing his last, gave his beloved disciple John as your son… Like the Apostle John, Mother Mary, spiritually we have taken you to our homes. Now, we await in hope a renewed beginning with God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
Inspired by the Holy Spirit, after our Lord’s Ascension, Mother, you remained in the Upper Room, wrapped in prayer and expectation together with the Apostles until the day of Pentecost “when the Church was to be born in visible form, coming forth from darkness” (St. John Paul II, Redemptor Hominis no. 22). You comforted them in moments of affliction and cheered them, in you Mary; we have an example of how to comfort the afflicted. We know it is God who comforts us through Jesus Christ.
Mother, Like at Cana, Plead With Your Son
Cana is for us the starting point to witness to many more miracles. Mary’s intercession anticipated the hour of Jesus. With renewed vigor and deep faith we implore Mary to tell Jesus: Son they have no medicine to combat Covid-19 pandemic
As the first manifestation of our Lord’s divinity, Cana fills our hearts with joy and hope. This Holy Saturday, 11th April 2020, a time in between, is a gift of silence to pray together with Mary our mother and mother of humanity for relief from Covid-19.
(Feel free to spend this time with Mary in prayer at home, communities etc. Enhance your prayer moment with your favorite Marian Hymns).
Pope Francis in his Apostolic Exhortation Rejoice and Be Glad on the Call to Holiness in Today’s World in No. 176 reassures us: “Mary our Mother does not need a flood of words. She does not need us to tell her what is happening in our lives. All we need do is whisper, time and time again: ‘Hail Mary’…”
With your family members pray a Hail Mary asking Mary to plead with her son to bring humanity complete healing.
We pray together the Prayer send by His Eminence Oswald Cardinal Gracias
“Almighty and merciful God, who show your love to all creation everywhere, hear graciously the prayers we make for all those affected by the Corona Virus in various parts of the world.
We come before you asking for a quick control of the outbreak, for a healing of those affected, for the victims and their families.
We pray for the doctors doing research that an effective vaccine to combat the sickness is speedily found.
We pray for the Government and health authorities that they take appropriate steps for the good of the people.
We make his prayer through Christ Our Lord.”
(http://www.asianews.it/news-en/Card-Gracias-calls-for-prayers-to-God-to-help-us-against-the-coronavirus-49486.html)
Mother, Anticipate Jesus’ Hour for a Miracle
Mary, the attentive mother, you knew to participate in simple human joy and to cause joy to be born in abundance. You interceded with your Son for the bridal couple at the wedding feast at Cana, when they have run out of wine. Mary, image of hope, mother with kind eyes and compassionate heart, take to Jesus our needs and the needs of others. Lord, we pray you to help us to journey on the Marian way of attentive service and love in this time of covid-19. Lord, we pray to help us to multiply our acts of kindness to bring joy and solace to those around us. Lord, grant that the mystery of Cana invite us to greater faith in God. Help us to believe that nothing is impossible with God. Mother, you can plead with your Son to anticipate a miracle to heal humanity of Covid -19. Mother, you treasured everything in your heart, you allowed yourself to be pierced by the sword, mother, you are “the saint among all saints”, continue to journey with us. Mother, help us to do what Jesus tells us so that as at Cana miracles may continue to happen in our lives too, that with you we may “learn more and more the spirit of discipleship.”