20220116 TRANSFORMING LIVES
16 January, 2022, Sunday, Week 2 in Ordinary Time
First reading | Isaiah 62:1-5 © |
The bridegroom rejoices in his bride
About Zion I will not be silent,
about Jerusalem I will not grow weary,
until her integrity shines out like the dawn
and her salvation flames like a torch.
The nations then will see your integrity,
all the kings your glory,
and you will be called by a new name,
one which the mouth of the Lord will confer.
You are to be a crown of splendour in the hand of the Lord,
a princely diadem in the hand of your God;
no longer are you to be named ‘Forsaken’,
nor your land ‘Abandoned’,
but you shall be called ‘My Delight’
and your land ‘The Wedded’;
for the Lord takes delight in you
and your land will have its wedding.
Like a young man marrying a virgin,
so will the one who built you wed you,
and as the bridegroom rejoices in his bride,
so will your God rejoice in you.
Responsorial Psalm |
Psalm 95(96):1-3,7-10 © |
Proclaim the wonders of the Lord among all the peoples.
O sing a new song to the Lord,
sing to the Lord all the earth.
O sing to the Lord, bless his name.
Proclaim the wonders of the Lord among all the peoples.
Proclaim his help day by day,
tell among the nations his glory
and his wonders among all the peoples.
Proclaim the wonders of the Lord among all the peoples.
Give the Lord, you families of peoples,
give the Lord glory and power;
give the Lord the glory of his name.
Proclaim the wonders of the Lord among all the peoples.
Worship the Lord in his temple.
O earth, tremble before him.
Proclaim to the nations: ‘God is king.’
He will judge the peoples in fairness.
Proclaim the wonders of the Lord among all the peoples.
Second reading |
1 Corinthians 12:4-11 © |
The Spirit distributes gifts to different people just as he chooses
There is a variety of gifts but always the same Spirit; there are all sorts of service to be done, but always to the same Lord; working in all sorts of different ways in different people, it is the same God who is working in all of them. The particular way in which the Spirit is given to each person is for a good purpose. One may have the gift of preaching with wisdom given him by the Spirit; another may have the gift of preaching instruction given him by the same Spirit; and another the gift of faith given by the same Spirit; another again the gift of healing, through this one Spirit; one, the power of miracles; another, prophecy; another the gift of recognising spirits; another the gift of tongues and another the ability to interpret them. All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, who distributes different gifts to different people just as he chooses.
Gospel Acclamation | 1S3:9,Jn6:68 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
Speak, Lord, your servant is listening:
you have the message of eternal life.
Alleluia!
Or: | cf.2Th2:14 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
Through the Good News God called us
to share the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Alleluia!
Gospel | John 2:1-11 © |
'My hour has not come yet' - 'Do whatever he tells you'
There was a wedding at Cana in Galilee. The mother of Jesus was there, and Jesus and his disciples had also been invited. When they ran out of wine, since the wine provided for the wedding was all finished, the mother of Jesus said to him, ‘They have no wine.’ Jesus said ‘Woman, why turn to me? My hour has not come yet.’ His mother said to the servants, ‘Do whatever he tells you.’ There were six stone water jars standing there, meant for the ablutions that are customary among the Jews: each could hold twenty or thirty gallons. Jesus said to the servants, ‘Fill the jars with water’, and they filled them to the brim. ‘Draw some out now’ he told them ‘and take it to the steward.’ They did this; the steward tasted the water, and it had turned into wine. Having no idea where it came from – only the servants who had drawn the water knew – the steward called the bridegroom and said, ‘People generally serve the best wine first, and keep the cheaper sort till the guests have had plenty to drink; but you have kept the best wine till now.’
This was the first of the signs given by Jesus: it was given at Cana in Galilee. He let his glory be seen, and his disciples believed in him.
TRANSFORMING LIVES
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [Is 62:1-5; Ps 95:1-3,7-10; 1 Cor 12:4-11; John 2:1-11]
Many of us are living a lifeless life. There is no real joy or meaning. We are trying more to keep ourselves alive rather than to truly live. Our happiness in life is reduced to a few moments of pleasure that come from food, success or achievements in life. But for the most part of our life, we are just going through the drudgery of work, with some reprieve when we are promoted, or our salary is increased. But many of us find work a chore, especially when dealing with politics in the office and unhappiness with our colleagues. Some of us have no real friends in life, and even within our own family, we feel lonely, misunderstood, unappreciated, taken for granted and ostracized. After slogging so hard for our loved ones, we are not loved. We feel that all is futile.
When we feel this way, then we are just like the wedding couple in today’s gospel when Mary said to our Lord, “They have no wine.” This too was the sentiment of the Israelites in the Old Testament. Their relationship with the Lord, just like human relationships, had gone through rough patches. Israel was supposed to be the bride of God but the people were unfaithful in the relationship. They prostituted themselves and worshipped the false gods of power, money and pleasure, committing idolatry, adultery and injustices through oppression, cheating and dishonesty. For abandoning God, they were exiled to Babylon, stripped of all their security, glory, power, kingdom, land and even the Temple.
But God does not want us to remain in this state of meaninglessness and boredom. God wants to renew our life with His love and mercy. He has come to change water into wine. He has come to recharge us and fill us with His Holy Spirit. Indeed, He has come to restore our relationship with Him, which was foretold in the first reading and fulfilled in the New Testament. Through the prophet Isaiah, God reassured Israel that He would restore the integrity of Israel. “About Zion I will not be silent, about Jerusalem I will not grow weary, until her integrity shines out like the dawn and her salvation flames like a torch.” The Lord also promised to renew Israel as His bride. He said, “You are to be a crown of splendour in the hand of the Lord, a princely diadem in the hand of your God; no longer are you to be named Forsaken, nor your land Abandoned, but you shall be called My Delight and your land The Wedded; for the Lord takes delight in you and your land will have its wedding. Like a young man marrying a virgin, so will the one who built you wed you, and as the bridegroom rejoices in his bride, so will your God rejoice in you.”
True joy comes from a life of integrity and a life of intimacy with the Lord and in fellowship with His people. This explains why joy is always expressed through the imagery of a wedding and a wedding banquet, flowing with nice wine. Indeed, joy comes not so much from success, achievements or glory, as such things do not last and fade as quickly as they come. Rather, it is having peace of mind, a conscience free from guilt, a heart that is loving and caring; and meaningful relationships, especially with our loved ones and friends that make life worth living and celebrating. Without good friends to support us, to celebrate with us, to journey with us, this life would be a dull life, without lasting joy, at most momentary pleasure that often leads to sadness, emptiness and disappointment.
But how can we find this deep relationship with man unless we first found our relationship with God? In the final analysis, only God can provide us the security and fullness of joy, love and peace in life. Unless, we are filled with His love and peace, we will not be able to share that unconditional love and joy with others. Coming to Jesus, therefore, is the prerequisite to transforming our life.
The gospel tells us that Jesus has power to change water into wine. He can do wonders if we allow Him. There is nothing He cannot do to bring about transformation in the minds and hearts of people. Jesus has the power to change not just water into wine but to change lives. In fact, His whole life was about changing mindsets, giving hope, touching hearts, healing bodies and transforming lives. He could change a sinner into a saint, as He did with St Matthew. He could change timid and fearful apostles into outspoken and fearless witnesses to the resurrection. Jesus can raise the dead back to life. Most of all, He can change wine into His blood, and bread into His body at the Eucharist. The responsorial psalm says, “Proclaim his help day by day, tell among the nations his glory and his wonders among all the peoples.”
How does He do it if not through the Holy Spirit given to us at our baptism, confirmation and in the Eucharist? The Holy Spirit bestows upon us different gifts for the service of the community, the building of the Church, the Body of Christ. “There is a variety of gifts but always the same Spirit; there are all sorts of service to be done, but always to the same Lord; working in all sorts of different ways in different people, it is the same God who is working in all of them.” In every community, just like the Corinthians, there will be those who are rich and those who are poor, those intellectually gifted and those who are more gifted with their hands. Regardless, the Spirit works in different ways, blessing us with different gifts so that we could use them to build up the community, each according to our specific contributions. The gifts are for the common good of all.
Every gift is important and no one gift is insignificant. Often, we make distinction between special gifts, spectacular gifts and ordinary gifts. We tend to focus on those extraordinary gifts because they boost our ego and influence. This would be too narrow an understanding and appreciation of the gifts. All gifts are for the community, whether it is knowledge, wisdom, faith, teaching, praying, prophecy, tongues, healing, writing, singing, worshipping, exorcism, discernment or organizing. It is the sharing and exercise of these gifts for the community that the community becomes alive. But if we keep the gifts to ourselves, not only does the community become poorer but so are we.
Hence, we must rejoice in the gifts that God gives to others, much as the peculiar gifts He has given us. In this way, we ensure the unity of the community, as well as our own personal fulfilment. Only when gifts are used for the building up of others, do we find our fulfilment and joy. This is why St Paul reiterates, “The particular way in which the Spirit is given to each person is for a good purpose. All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, who distributes different gifts to different people just as he chooses.” We must not envy the gifts of others because in so doing, we forget to develop our own unique gifts that are truly innate to us, and which when fully developed, make us more contributive to the community and thereby more fulfilled. By duplicating the gifts of others or seeking to destroy others’ gifts, we will not only deprive ourselves of enjoying and sharing their gifts and losing our own.
Indeed, our lives can be different and can be lived in a meaningful and fulfilling manner if only we put on the mindset of our Lord. This is what Mary is inviting us to do. When she told our Lord, “they have no wine”, she followed by telling the servants, “Do whatever He tells you.” We must leave the freedom to the Lord and not impose our will and wishes on Him. He knows what is best for us and how we can find happiness and meaning. We need to surrender our lives to Him, to discern His will for us, and obey His word so that we can find life. When we surrender our lives to Him, we will be amazed at what the Lord can do for us, just as He did for the wedding couple, and His disciples. With Mary, we need to put our faith and trust in the Lord. Mary believed that nothing was impossible to the Lord even though she might not have fully understood what the Lord meant when He said, “My hour has not come yet.” All the same, she surrendered in faith to her Son. When the time came at His passion, then Mary understood what that hour really meant, His passion, death and resurrection. She would then assume her role as the Mother of the Church, interceding for the Church in union with her Son.
Written by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved.
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