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2nd Sunday ordinary time
Mass Readings
Reading 1 – Isaiah 62:1-5
Psalm – Psalm 96:1-2, 2-3, 7-8, 9-10
Reading 2 – 1 Corinthians 12:4-11
Gospel – John 2:1-11
Today we’re going to talk about the Second Sunday in Ordinary Time. In today’s Gospel, we hear the familiar story about the Wedding Feast at Cana. In the Gospel, they’re running out of wine. Mary, noticing the situation, goes to Jesus. Now this is really important because it underscores our understanding of who Mary is. What does she do? Mary, the first disciple, intercedes-she asks Jesus for help. Then she turns to the servants and tells them to do whatever he asks. This is important because of some of the questions and comments I receive. We Catholics do not worship Mary. We do not believe Mary has power on her own. Mary cannot save us. Only Jesus can save us. But Mary can help us. Why? But we believe we’re a community. We believe in the communion of saints – a community of disciples. So just like we can ask each other for prayers, we can ask our deceased family and friends for their intercessory prayers and we can ask Mary and the saints for their intercessory prayers.
Is this effective? Yes! But Jesus doesn’t simply provide some wine. No! the Gospel says that Jesus provided the best wine! God loves us so much that he will lavish us with his grace – with His blessings – with His gifts. That’s what we find the first reading today. In Isaiah 62, we hear that the Lord delights in you.
St. Paul tells us today in Corinthians that we as disciples of Jesus have gifts. Some receive very particular gifts. But these gifts are not for own sake. Our gifts are meant to be shared with the community. Now, another way of looking at this Gospel is that Jesus shares His gift with the community. So we too are called to follow Jesus’ example and share our gifts.
Ok, so how do I know what gifts and talents I have and how do I know God’s will for my life? Understanding ourselves, our gifts and our call is a process we call discernment. There are many ways to do this, and we usually hear about discernment at moments of change in our lives, but Pope Francis in his book, Rejoice and Be Glad, tells us we need to know if something comes from the Holy Spirit. Discernment itself is a gift that we should nurture over the course of our lives. Here is just very quick summary of what that process looks like: prayer, reflection, reading and good counsel.<1>
If we’re trying to understand our gifts, then we need to be attentive and reflective, that is to say, we need to try to understand through prayer and reflection what our gifts and talents are and how God might be asking us to use them. Part of this process includes seeking input from the people around you, like your family and friends, your spiritual director, or other staff or volunteers at your parish who know you. You see, our gifts will bear fruit and sometimes it takes looking at ourselves through the eyes of another person to help us see them.
Discernment is not just for the young and just for moments of big change in our lives. We should nurture discernment throughout our lives. Pope Benedict gives us a great example of discernment. In discerning it was time for him to retire, he taught us that where and how God calls us today might change down the road. Being open to God‘s will for our life means we need to have the courage to make adjustments in our lives from time to time.
By developing a better understanding of our talents and gifts, we are in a better position to share our gifts with the community. That’s what Scripture asks us to do. We need to go out in to the world, to be what Pope Francis calls missionary disciples sharing the Good News of Jesus Christ, or as our psalmist says today, to proclaim His marvelous deeds to all the nations.
Homework! Inspired by the Eucharist and the Word of God proclaimed, let’s work on the following this week:
- Spend a few minutes in quiet this week and ask yourself what signs of God do you recognize in your life?
- How can you improve how you share your gifts with others at your current stage in life?
- Bonus homework: read about the fruits of the Holy Spirit in Galatians Chapter 5.<2>
I think by doing our homework this week we might develop a better sense of our call as missionary disciples. May each of us come to know the grace and peace of our Lord, Jesus Christ. In the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. +Amen!
<1> Francis. Rejoice and Be Glad: Gaudete Et Exsultate; Apostolic Exhortation. Washington, DC: United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, 2018.
<2> Galatians 5:22