Last Sunday we have celebrated the Baptism of the Lord which is still part of Christmastide which also brings to its conclusion.With that, the following Monday commenced the Ordinary Time in our Liturgical calendar.
The word ORDINARY is rich in meaning, it does not only means regular, usual, or common. The word ordinary comes from Latin verb orior which means to rise up, to grow, to stir up. The Latin word oriens which means east also conveys the same meaning which points to the rising of the sun. The Ordinary Time in our liturgical calendar, therefore, is an opportune time to let God through His Word stir up our hope and faith in Him, allow our spiritual life to rise and have the growth in our personal relationship with Him. That is why the liturgical color is green which signifies life, growth, and hope. In terms of the Gospel readings,the focus will be on the life and ministry of Jesus. Ultimately,focusing on the life and ministry of Jesus in our reflections would guide us as we embark on a journey towards growth in our spiritual life.
We are so familiar with this traffic safety warning: STOP, LOOK and LISTEN. Our Gospel this Second Sunday in Ordinary Time invites us to dig deeper into this safety warning as we embark in this Ordinary Time spiritual journey but will be rearranged a bit:STOP, LISTEN and LOOK. The wedding feast at Cana is considered by many biblical scholars as the first manifestation ofJesus of his divinity. By turning water into wine, Jesus was showing his power over creation. The first invitation for us is toSTOP. We might be preoccupied with so many things in life,daily activities that at times blind us from seeing small details of life but are as important as the rest. With the busyness of the wedding feast, Mary might have been busy as well talking with other visitors but she noticed a small detail, they have ran out of wine but who cares? They were just visitors so when Mary told to Jesus: “They have no more wine” (John 2:3) and Jesus’ response was “How does your concern affect me?” (John 2:4)Mary recognized what was needed at that moment when she stopped what kept her busy. In the middle of our busy schedules, we might as well need to stop and see what is happening and recognize our capacity to do something. Only then we’ll be able to share a thing that can alleviate the situations of people around us.
The second invitation is to LISTEN. Though Mary might have received a cold response from Jesus, “Woman, how does your concern affect me?” (John 2:4) yet, she instructed the servers anyway, “Do whatever he tells you” (John 2:5) The servants in turn just listened to Mary and followed what Jesus told them.They might not have a clear understanding of what is going on,they have ran out of wine, they were instructed to just do what is being told and the miracle happened. We need to listen in order for the miracle to happen in our life. The gift of the best wine was given when the servants listened to all what Jesus told them to do. The gift, the grace, the blessing is given to us when we listen and do whatever Jesus tells us to do.
The third invitation is to LOOK. Who have seen the miracle happened of turning water into wine? Many of the visitors were unaware of the great thing happened, what they knew was that the host reserved the best wine to be served last. They enjoyed the gift without knowing the giver. It is possible to enjoy the blessing and graces from God without looking up at him to credit all of these. Every good gift we have, every blessings we enjoy come from God above. Look up to Jesus and thank him for what you are and what you have right now.
There’s no harm if you would do this this week: STOP, LISTEN and LOOK!