Water or Wine?

Sermon preached by the Rev. Lowell E. Grisham, Rector
St. Paul's Episcopal Church, Fayetteville, Arkansas
January 14, 2007; 2nd Sunday after Epiphany, Year C
Episcopal Revised Common Lectionary

(John 2:1-11) -- 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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Many years ago I read a novel, set in the Far East. It was the story of the journey of a man who had been embittered by the treachery of his aunt and uncle who stole his family's prosperity and position. To restore honor and justice, he executed fierce revenge. But then he was left to rebuild his life from the ruins of his anger.

The book traces his long process of growth and transformation, culminating in his pilgrimage to echo cave, a dark round cave where he is left alone, sealed inside. His teacher leaves food, water, a lantern, and this instruction: "When you truly learn tolerance, the resistant forces that separate you from realizing the nature of yourself will melt away..." The teacher gives him a tablet. On the tablet is written:
THE CAVE IS A SYMBOL OF YOUR INNER BEING.
IT CAN BE FILLED WITH DARKNESS OR WITH LIGHT.

He is left, alone. Sealed in the cave. There he must confront himself. There is no one to perform for. There is no reason to pretend or to fake anything. He must face his real self. His deepest fears arise in his thoughts, and he feels very dark inside this cave. But when he thinks of his deepest loves, he finds that he feels lighthearted and thankful inside this cave. He makes a discovery that the nature of his inner being is dependent upon his attitude. He says of this discovery, "Gradually, it dawned on me what an attitude was, ...a way of acting or feeling. An attitude was formed by clinging to a feeling. Attitude was belief, and belief controlled our view of life. I held my breath, barely breathing, realizing that every time I have become fixed in my attitude, my attention became locked."

THE CAVE IS A SYMBOL OF YOUR INNER BEING.
IT CAN BE FILLED WITH DARKNESS OR WITH LIGHT.

He emerged from the cave enlightened, fixing his attitude upon that which was light.

These jugs of water in the story of Jesus' turning water into wine at the marriage in Cana, these jugs of water seem to me to be a metaphor not unlike the metaphor of the cave. In his Gospel, John calls this miracle a sign, a metaphor to be listened to at a deep, symbolic level.

Inside these jugs is watery life -- pale, colorless, without taste or flavor. This is the life of duty; its function is to try to keep things clean, washing over and over the stuff that inevitably gets dirty over and over.

Jesus changes this water into wine -- rich, colorful, with taste and sparkle. This is the life of celebration, whose function is abundant joy, where hearts are warmed in community.

I know of certain people who, when they walk into the room, bring a life and energy that seems to brighten the whole space. I've been to parties -- not unlike this family wedding in our Gospel -- celebrations which seemed to be full of joy and conviviality. Sometimes that joy simply reflects the happy energy of that community and its mutual affection spreading out over the whole. Sometimes it is a particular person who literally is the life of the party. I leave such events smiling, feeling warm and thankful for the communion and fellowship we have enjoyed. There are also people who seem to suck the air out of a room and to carry a cloud around wherever they go. There are people who can turn wine into water.

What is it that turns water into wine? There is a Spirit that enlivens; it seems to come out of the inner being -- the inner being which can be filled with darkness or filled with light. The enlivening Spirit is ubiquitous, appearing anywhere, any time. I remember Dr. Gerald Walton as one of those people who has that light which enlivens. He was an English professor at Ole Miss. I signed up for an elective class just because he taught it. The class was Grammar. Can you think of anything more boring than a Grammar class? Jerry Walton made it a delightful experience. He had Spirit. He had a spiritual gift for teaching. He could make grammar interesting.

Spirit has something to do with attitude and belief. When we cling to negative and defensive feelings, we create negative and defensive attitudes and beliefs which control our view of life. We have choices about what attitudes we nurture. When we think of our deepest fears, our cave can become very dark. When we think of our deepest loves, our cave can become lighthearted and thankful. Darkness or light? Water or wine? Where are your feelings? What feelings create your attitude? How does your attitude capture your attention?

For a moment, I'm going to offer a self-indulgent diversion. All of this conversation about wine and "spirits" has brought back an old memory. One of my father's lifelong friends was a man he went to law school with. They were from neighboring towns and served together in the Mississippi Legislature. Dad's friend eventually became a judge. His name was Noah S. Sweat, Jr., but everyone knew him by his nickname. He was "Soggy" Sweat, and I remember him from my childhood as the life of the grown-ups parties.

In 1952 the Mississippi Legislature was considering legalizing liquor. Representative "Soggy" Sweat rose to offer what became a rather famous speech that, years later, he could be coaxed into repeating from time to time. Representative Soggy Sweat, 1952:

You have asked me how I feel about whiskey. All right, here is how I feel about whisky.

If when you say whiskey you mean the devil's brew, the poison scourge, the bloody monster, that defiles innocence, dethrones reason, destroys the home, creates misery and poverty, yea, literally takes the bread from the mouths of little children; if you mean the evil drink that topples the Christian man and woman from the pinnacle of righteous, gracious living into the bottomless pit of degradation, and despair, and shame and helplessness, and hopelessness, then certainly I am against it. But;

If when you say whiskey you mean the oil of conversation, the philosophic wine, the ale that is consumed when good fellows get together, that puts a song in their hearts and laughter on their lips, and the warm glow of contentment in their eyes; if you mean Christmas cheer; if you mean the stimulating drink that puts the spring in the old gentleman's step on a frosty, crispy morning; if you mean the drink which enables a man to magnify his joy, and his happiness, and to forget, if only for a little while, life's great tragedies, and heartaches, and sorrows; if you mean that drink, the sale of which pours into our treasuries untold millions of dollars, which are used to provide tender care for our little crippled children, our blind, our deaf, our dumb, our pitiful aged and infirm; to build highways and hospitals and schools, then certainly I am for it.

This my stand, and I will not compromise.

I've thought of composing my own version of Soggy's speech clarifying my feelings about religion. If when you say religion you mean that superstitious fear that conjures tribal magic to confirm the narrow prejudices of the chosen and to consign to hell all others -- then certainly I am against it. But if, when you say religion, you mean the open willingness to cooperate humbly with the unqualified love of the divine compassion and justice of Almighty God -- then certainly I am for it... and so forth. Diversion over. Back to where we were.

I know within the cave of my own heart there is both light and darkness, both heaven and hell, both fear and love, both water and wine. When I anxiously try to control life motivated by my fears and needs, I begin to drown in a pale, colorless, jug of darkness without taste or sparkle. But when I surrender my life trusting the presence of Christ right here right now, I experience abundant life and a certain freedom from anxiety that brings flavor and sparkle and Spirit.

The cave is a symbol of our inner being. It can be filled with darkness or with light. We can emerge from our cave enlightened daily, fixing our attitude on the One, who is light.

The jars can be filled with water or wine. Feeling the presence of Jesus makes all the difference.

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