The Sunday Eucharis with Father Dave -January 16, 2022

“And [the steward] said to [the bridegroom], "Everyone serves the good wine first, and then the inferior wine after the guests have become drunk. But you have kept the good wine until now.” (John 2:10)

It's a joke from our Gospel reading about getting drunk at a wedding. What’s more, it’s a joke about Jesus’ first miracle – the turning of water into wine at the wedding party in Cana. How did that story ever find its way into the Bible?

I appreciate that this miracle is likely to be off-putting for some of my Muslim readers. It should be equally off-putting to all Christians who consider alcohol the refreshment of the devil, especially as Jesus doesn’t just bring a few extra bottles to the party. He produces hundreds of gallons of the stuff –at least 10 extra bottles for every guest! In truth, I too find this a little unnerving.

I spent some years, as a younger man, volunteering at a local alcoholic men’s home, and I’ve lost a number of good friends to alcohol poisoning. I’ve also seen way too much alcohol-inspired violence in my time – in pubs and clubs and on the streets.

I saw the opposite on my first trip to Iran. I remember walking the streets of Esfahan late at night with my friend, Sheikh Mansour, and was astonished to see groups of young people playing volleyball and soccer in every green space! Sheikh noticed my surprise and said to me, “no alcohol”.

So how do we make sense of Jesus’ first miracle? No one is healed. No one is fed. The dead are not raised and (as far as we know) the poor do not have good news preached to them. There’s just a lot of alcohol produced. A lot!

The response that comes to mind was given by my preaching mentor, Will Willamon, with reference to why some churches use grape juice at their Eucharistic celebrations rather than wine. I’m quoting from memory, but his response was something like this:

‘Grape juice is a refreshing, if somewhat insipid, thirst-quencher on a hot day. Wine, on the other hand, is volatile stuff. If you have too much of it, things tend to get a bit crazy. Some people get overly amorous. Others get loud and passionate and say offensive things. Fights break out. Which of these sounds more like the Gospel to you?’

In truth, I’m not sure why Jesus didn’t put all his hours into healing the sick and raising the dead, but the Gospel records suggest that Jesus spent a significant amount of time partying. Indeed, He developed a reputation:

“The Son of man came eating and drinking, and they say, Behold a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of publicans and sinners.” (Matthew 11:19a)

That verse from Matthew’s Gospel is instructive too, I think, because it concludes with a few extra words that I left out – “But wisdom is justified of her children.” (Matthew 11:19b). if that’s a bit confusing, a more modern translation reads, “wisdom is vindicated by her deeds.” In other words, don’t pass judgement on someone else’s behaviour until you’ve taken a look at the results of their work.

The way of Jesus is unconventional. It is also destabilising, unpredictable, passionate and painful. It’s often hard to make sense of Jesus, and God knows where He’s taking us. I turn 60 in a few weeks and I really thought that this roller-coaster would be slowing down by this stage, as roller-coasters do as they near the end of their track. Nope. Not with Jesus at the wheel. To quote Him again:

“I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” (John 10:10)

I’ll drink to that!

Dave
http://www.fatherdave.org
http://www.fighting-fathers.com