Sunday School handout for 16 Jan 2022
Good afternoon, Sunday School colleagues and friends! Here’s the advance copy of our handout for tomorrow’s class session. Jesus turning water into wine at the wedding in Cana of Galilee is a favorite of many folks; I hope it gives us a lively hour!
Holy Nativity Episcopal Church, Panama City, Florida. Sunday school in Battin Hall, between worship services, 9:15 to 10:15. Always coffee and a snack. All are invited and welcome, come early to visit and chat, come on time, or come on in late and take a seat, there’s always plenty of room!
We’ve missed several sessions being “televised” on our parish Facebook page, but I think Madge, who manages it for us, will be here Sunday morning to livestream us.
Tom
John 2:1-11 (NRSV) On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding. When the wine gave out, the mother of Jesus said to him, "They have no wine." And Jesus said to her, "Woman, what concern is that to you and to me? My hour has not yet come." His mother said to the servants, "Do whatever he tells you.”
Now standing there were six stone water jars for the Jewish rites of purification, each holding twenty or thirty gallons. Jesus said to them, "Fill the jars with water." And they filled them up to the brim. He said to them, "Now draw some out, and take it to the chief steward." So they took it. When the steward tasted the water that had become wine, and did not know where it came from (though the servants who had drawn the water knew), the steward called the bridegroom and said to him, "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." Jesus did this, the first of his signs, in Cana of Galilee, and revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him.
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A. For the evangelist, the key thing here is that it is a SIGN, but we wonder about lots of stuff in the story, including Jesus’ relationship with his mother, something about Jesus' apparent smart mouth, was he maybe a teenager embarrassed by his adoring mother's doting on him in front of his friends, how old Jesus and his friends may have been, why literarily did the evangelist (gospel writer) include the exchange between Mary and Jesus, how far is Cana from Nazareth or Nazareth from Capernaum, how long did weddings last, what were engagement (betrothal) living together customs, &c. So, before we get into discussing the SIGNS in the Gospel according to John, let’s open the floor for anyone’s observations, comments, questions about this familiar Bible story.
B. Closing his gospel, the evangelist writes, “… many other signs are not written in this book; but these have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name” (John 20:30-31). Typically, seven signs are listed. In Bible numerology, seven is sort of a perfect and complete number (look at http://numerology.center/biblical_numbers_number_7.php )
but if you start counting through Gospel/John you can find more, e.g., the miracle catch of fish at John 21:1-8 is sometimes counted as an eighth sign.
1. Turning water into wine (John 2:1-12)
2. Healing the royal official’s son (John 4:46-54) Lk 7:1-10
3. Healing a paralytic man at pool of Bethesda (Jn 5:1-17) Mk 2:1-12
4. Feeding the five thousand (John 6:1-14) Mk 6:35-44
5. Jesus walking on water (John 6:15-25) Mk 6:47-52
6. Healing the man born blind (John 9:1-41) Mk 8:22-26
7. Raising Lazarus (John 11:1-46) Mk 5:21f, Lk 7:11f
C. Consider how the presentation of signs in Gospel John differs from the presentation of the same or similar miracles in the synoptics. Compare a couple of events (several possibilities suggested above). Notice that the signs in John are presented as Jesus intentionally showing those present (and John’s readers - you) who he is (Son of God, God the Son, Messiah/Christ, prophet Moses foretold); whereas in the synoptics the miracles are presented as works of compassion that Jesus performs when he comes on the scene that is the occasion of the need. The synoptic miracles still, obviously, show those present (and the evangelists’ readers - you) Jesus’ power and identity, but subtly by the storyteller, not deliberately by Jesus himself. Either way, the evangelists’ agenda is for you the reader to “get it” about Jesus. Do you prefer one way or the other?
D. Conviction/certainty/moral values may force understanding and interpretation! What do you think of this and other gospel accounts (Last Supper) of Jesus serving wine, versus common evangelical protestant church insistence that it was grape juice? At the wedding in Cana of Galilee, did Jesus turn water into grape juice? This shows doctrine, belief, conviction forcing the interpretation of Scripture. Same with RC doctrine/dogma/belief in Blessed Mary, Ever Virgin. Can you think of examples of how we Episcopalians might do the same sort of “reinterpretation” of Scripture? How about Mark 10:1-10 on divorce? How about Deuteronomy 21:18-21 on discipline of a disobedient son? What causes people to take other than a literal understanding of Scripture?