Now that we have returned to Ordinary Time the liturgical environment has changed too.  The Advent decorations are gone.  The vestments of the priests are green and the predominant color for the environment is green too.  Green is the color that represents The Holy Ghost, eternal life and hope.

The first reading this week describes the rebuilding of Jerusalem after many years of exile and it is likened to marriage, a wedding.  The Gospel of John documents the first miracle Jesus performed, that of turning water into wine at the wedding in Cana.  This is our focus.  In performing this miracle, Jesus reveals the GLORY of GOD.  Mary comes to Jesus and tells him that the host has run out of wine…Jesus says, “Why are you telling me this, what would you have ME do?” and she instructs the servants to do whatever Jesus tells them to do…just like a mother!  She doesn’t answer him…he knows what she wants him to do…and she KNOWS that he can DO SOMETHING!  Think about that for a minute…Mary doesn’t ASK Jesus if he CAN do something…she goes to him KNOWING he can do something and doesn’t even answer him after he asks her “What would you have me do?”  She KNOWS that Jesus has the POWER to DO something.  In her total FAITH she asks him to fix this problem.  Jesus doesn’t say he can’t do anything but that “It is not time for people to know who I am.”  By performing this miracle, making wine from water, Jesus is revealing that he is the son of God…that he is Lord…and at that moment Jesus’ disciples believed in him. 

I have personally reflected on what it must have been like to raise Jesus as a toddler and young child…just think about that…a four year old with the power of God…and we think it’s hard to raise kids who get into ordinary trouble.  Just imagine…and I think this is why Mary can walk over to Jesus at the wedding and say, “Do something…they are out of wine.” In much the same way that I might walk over to my oldest son and say, “Go help them move that heavy table.”  I KNOW he can do that and I KNOW he will do it to help someone especially if I ask.  Mary knew too.

The Psalm this week is: Psalm 96: Proclaim His Marvelous Deeds (the hyperlinks in this pasted info should work.  The “demo” is the music and the “key of A” and “key of D” are the .pdf music sheets.  The music you listen to is actually in the key of A if it matters to you.

Psalm 96: Proclaim His Marvelous Deeds to All the Nations

the demo and the lead sheet in the original key of A and the lower, more congregation friendly key of D.

Incidentally, Matt’s youth choir is doing a couple of songs that I thought were amazing and I wanted to share them with you too!  The song they are doing for preparation of the gifts was written by Johnny Cash “He Changed The Water Into Wine”.  The link below takes you to the You Tube performance and Johnny tells the story of writing this song.  Both songs are so well suited to last weeks baptism of the Lord and this weeks water turned to wine!  I hope you enjoy them.  

He Changed the Water Into Wine (J Cash)

The second song is an old negro spiritual/coded slave song called “Wade In The Water”.  Slaves wrote songs that had codes in them that contained directions to freedom.  Today no ones knows what the code for Wade In The Water was, or whether the words are the actual original words since songs were passed down person to person audibly.  The song is performed here by Eva Cassidy (look up the amazing story of Eva Cassidy, AFTER you listen to her, on Wikipedia!) and accompanied by a visual slideshow of icebergs.  Pretty pictures, great song!  The kids did it last Sunday and it was awesome!

Wade in the Water

God bless you,

Elaine