"They Have no Wine"

This seemed a good day to talk about motherhood, family, and why Minnesota has the start of fishing season fall on Mother's Day weekend.

My wife says it may be so that mothers can have some time alone. If that's so, Minnesota's DNR blundered. They say this weekend is "Take-a-Mom fishing weekend."

Ephesians and Diapers

'Family' is very important to Catholics, or should be. The Catechism devotes quite a bit of space to what a family is, and how families should work. (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2201-2233)

What the Church teaches is not the 'good old fashioned' notion that women are useful household items: ranking somewhere between the dog and the refrigerator in terms of importance and status. I've discussed Ephesians, responsibility, and getting a grip before. (September 24, 2009)

On the other hand, I'm not allowed to see marriage as a casual agreement between consenting adults. For starters, we all have duties: children and parents (Catechism, 2214-2220, 2221-2231).

When I married my wife, I knew what I was signing up for.

Ephesians 5:22-25 points out that as her husband, I must love my wife "even as Christ loved the church and handed himself over for her."

That sets a high standard, since my Lord washed the disciples' feet: and walked to Golgotha. (John 13:4-7 and Matthew 27:33; for starters)

Considering what my duty might require, I didn't mind cleaning diapers now and then.

Queen, Yes: Passive, No

I expect that we'll pay special attention to Mary at the parish church today. As the mother of my Lord, she has a prominent place in the Catholic Church. That's "prominent," not "top." She is, in a sense, our mother. (Catechism, 484-507, 963-972)

I had a soft spot in my heart, and a great deal of respect, for Mary long before I became a Catholic. (March 20, 2011)

One of her titles, by the way, is Queen (or Lady) of Angels, which is where my parish church got its name.

In movies like "Knights of the Round Table" (1953), queens don't do much other than stir up trouble: intentionally or not. My guess, based on the number of Marian apparitions over the last two millennia, is that Mary is nowhere near as passive as that.

As a Norwegian-Irish American whose mother was as ekte norsk as you're likely to find, I had no trouble thinking of a woman as a sort of 12-star general. I've said that before. There's probably a post lurking around the idea. (August 18, 2013)

Devotion to Mary is a very important part of being Catholic, one which looks odd to many non-Catholics in my native culture. We see Mary as a Saint, someone who "practiced heroic virtue and lived in fidelity to God's grace." (Catechism, 828)

There may be some among the world's 1,100,000,000 or so living Catholics who think Mary is a goddess: but that's idolatry, a very bad idea, and strictly against the rules. (Catechism, 2112-2114)

A Woman of Few Words

(From John William Waterhouse, via Wikimedia Commons, used w/o permission.)

Let's remember that Mary was quite likely in her teens when Gabriel said, "Hail, favored one! The Lord is with you."

Gabriel did most of the talking in that meeting, mostly responding to Mary's question: and reassuring her. (Luke 1:26-38)

I don't think that means Mary is timid or diffident. She had the guts to accept an assignment that would be extremely difficult to explain to her family, friends, and neighbors.

Years later, she had this conversation with my Lord:

"¹ On the third day there was a wedding ² in Cana ³ in Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there.

"Jesus and his disciples were also invited to the wedding.

"When the wine ran short, the mother of Jesus said to him, 'They have no wine.'

"(And) Jesus said to her, 'Woman, how does your concern affect me? My hour has not yet come.'

"His mother said to the servers, 'Do whatever he tells you.' "
(John 2:1-5)

"Do whatever he tells you" is pretty good advice: and that's another topic.

Vaguely-related posts:

• "Mary, a Message, and a Mural in Minnesota"
  (August 18, 2013)
• "Unconsidered Optimism and Diaper Changing Tables"
  (June 23, 2013)
• "Mother's Day, 2012"
  (May 13, 2012)
• "Family Values: Addams and Otherwise"
  (July 12, 2011)
• "Mother's Day: A Nice Cultural Tradition, and a Quite Catholic Celebration"
  (May 10, 2009)