Today's Thoughts...

Today’s Thoughts: Sorry friends for my late posting today but I was on the road eight plus hours yesterday so that I could have a two-hour lunch with a friend. Well worth the hours of driving but it wiped me out last night. I had the 7:30 am mass this morning in Chappaqua so this is my first opportunity to sit down and share a few thoughts with you.
 
We have a very familiar passage from John’s Gospel today, the Wedding Feast at Cana. There are many things that I could say about this moment in the life and ministry of Jesus. For John, it is the beginning of Jesus’ public ministry. It is a moment when others, especially his disciples, first encounter his glory through the miracle of changing water into wine. It is a moment when we are reminded of Mary’s presence in the life and ministry of Jesus. I could go on and on reflecting on John’s mysticism, his theology and countless theological reflection on what this passage means, however I am going to take a different approach.
 
I my flawed perspective perhaps the most interesting part of this Gospel story is the fact that Jesus was invited into the life of these two young people. The story tells us that Mary was invited to this wedding and so were Jesus and his disciples. We don’t know who the young couple were. Friends of the family? Prominent families in Cana? Childhood friends of Jesus? We just don’t know. All we know is that they invited Jesus to their wedding and life would never be the same again. In fact, we are still remembering and telling their story.
 
For me the question that this story should cause us to ask is – “Have we invited Jesus into our home, our story, our life?” When you think about it everyone who invited Jesus into their home, their life was never the same again. Peter invited Jesus into his home and the first thing Jesus did was heal his mother-in-law. Think of Jairus, the leader of the synagogue, he invited Jesus into his home and his daughter was healed. Think of Zacchaeus, the hated tax collector, he invited Jesus into his home and was never the same again, and the examples go on and on. Inviting Jesus into our home, into our life can change things forever!
 
All while I was growing up our family had a portrait of Jesus in our living room. It was a print of a painting done by Warner Sallman. It was always there right in our living room for everyone to see who entered our house. It traveled with us to every house we lived in and even traveled with my mother when she entered assisted living and ultimately memory care in the last years of her life.
 
I don’t ever remember talking about the picture with my family or others. It was just always there. I am sure I walk by it, hundreds of thousands of times. I don’t remember ever stopping to acknowledge it, but I am sure that I did. I don’t know what the rest of my family would say, but I believe that simple portrait had an impact on all our lives, for the better. At some point in the journey of life my mother and father invited Jesus into our home, and it made all the difference.
 
Perhaps the simple truth, simple question of our Gospel today is – “Have we invited God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit into our home, our life?”
​
Have a blessed and holy Sunday everyone and make sure you give God a little time today!