Sunday,
1/20/13
Our
Gospel today is from Chapter 2 of the Gospel according to John. Now, it will enriche our appreciation of John’s Gospel if we notice how it is subtly modeled on the first five books of the Old Testament. Those books told the story of how the
Father led the Israelites to their Promised Land, while John’s Gospel describes
the way the Son leads us to the true Promised Land. Just as the Father helped
the people with manna from heaven, with water from a rock, and with a cloud that
led them in darkness; so in his Gospel John recalls Jesus saying, “I am the
Bread come down from heave,” and “If anyone thirsts let him come to me to drink,” and “I am
the light of the world, anyone who follows me will not walk in darkness.”
As
well, John delighted in following the outline of the first two chapters of
Genesis. The first chapter of Genesis told how the Father created our physical
world in six days, while John’s first chapter follows Jesus through six days
during which he prepared the way for our spiritual world. (Scholars call the
first chapter of John’s Gospel the account of the “New Creation.) Then, where
Chapter Two of Genesis opens with the Father resting on the seventh day,
Chapter Two of John’s Gospel opens with the Son on the seventh day resting at a wedding banquet
which is the Bible’s symbol for heaven.
In
the story of the Marriage Feast at Cana John made subtle allusions to three
major themes of his Gospel.
First, Jesus changing water into wine alluded to the richness of the New
Testament replacing the blandness of the Old Testament. (John had already
alluded to that in his Chapter one where he wrote, “While the law was given
through Moses, grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.”)
A second
them of his Gospel that John introduced here is his portraying Mary as the
person who looks out for people’s needs, making request that her dutiful Son always
hears.
A
third theme John alluded to here is that of the Epiphany. Whereas the adoration
of the Magi recognized Jesus as God in a human form; and that theme was struck
again at the baptism of Jesus where the Father said, “This is my beloved Son. ”
So, here we bring the Epiphany season to an end with the miracle by which Jesus,
“Manifested his glory.”
No comments:
Post a Comment