The other night my mother was on the phone with my grandfather (he is Baptist), he was telling my mother that the only reason Jesus turned the water into wine was because the water wasn’t fit to drink. I have tried to search and look for the answer but I don’t know where to find it. Does anyone know the answer to this? Thanks!
Hi.
You may want to ask your grandfather for the Scriptural basis of his interpretation.
Weddings in Christ’s time were just as important moments of partying and feasting as it is today. It was the groom’s family’s responsibility to ensure that there was plenty of food and drink, so a miscalculation about the wine was a big deal.
Scripture is quite clear here. Mary, who takes pity on the couple and intercedes to ask her Son for aid, says, “They have no wine” (John 2:3). She did not say “grape juice.” There is nothing in Scripture that suggests that the guests could not or were not drinking water as well. However, Mary knew of the importance of wine to the feast.
Most importantly, it wasn’t as if Christ were carrying around spare jugs of wine. Mary showed immense faith, first by reaching out to her Son for help for what would seemingly be an impossible wish, but then instructing the servants there (after Christ kindly asks her what she was asking Him to do, since He had not yet chosen to begin His ministry with miracles), without knowing what her Son would do, to “Do whatever he tells you” (John 2:5). This, by the way, is a powerful example of Marian intercession. She can’t do the miracle, but she can ask for help on our behalf.
Historically, fermentation was key to survival. There were no refrigerators or ice, and water often and quickly could become tainted. Fermented liquids, with alcohol, resisted harmful growths with its antibacterial properties, and was also more enjoyable on the palate.
While your grandfather’s presumption that the water was generally unfit to drink without preparation has some validity, Scripture shows that Mary’s statement makes it very clear that the lack of wine, not just something fit to drink, was a serious problem, and Christ responded in kind.
There is nothing wrong in the use of wine–and the wedding at Cana shows that Christ performs this first miracle (anonymously, as the headwaiter had no idea that the wine he approved of wasn’t the groom’s idea) not only because of His mother’s request, but as a sign of his glory, the formal start of his earthly ministry (John 2:11).
Edward Sri has an article that goes into better detail on this miracle. The Vatican also touches on the
importance of this first miracle through Blessed John Paul II’s thoughts.
I kept the wedding of Cana in my thoughts for my wedding. The bride and groom offered beer and wine as complimentary beverages at our reception. As back in Cana, the gesture was well received.
