God likes a good party!

A reflection based on John 2: 1-11 and Mark 14: 3-9.

In the mid sixteen hundreds, the Puritans banned the celebration of Christmas! In doing so, they were implementing the sentiments of the strict protestant Philip Stubbs when, some decades earlier, he wrote this about Christmas in his book ‘The anatomie of abuses’: “More mischief is that time committed than in all the year besides ... What dicing and carding, what eating and drinking, what banqueting and feasting is then used ... to the great dishonour of God and the impoverishing of the realm.” It was thus decreed by the Puritans that all shops should remain open on 25th December, and that it should be a day for fasting and prayer – not for celebration. Was this how God would want it? Is God against celebrations – a party-pooper and a kill-joy?

Well, in contrast to the view of the Puritans, let’s think about the circumstances of Jesus’ first miracle that’s recorded in the Gospels. Was it the healing of the sick or lame, or the casting out of demons? No – it was turning water in to wine – for the benefit of wedding guests who, it seems, had already had quite a lot to drink!

There are numerous interesting nuances to this account in John’s Gospel. Firstly, it seems that both Jesus and his mother were already aware of what we might call his ‘special powers’. Why else would she come to her son seeking a solution to the dearth of wine and why else would Jesus respond that it wasn’t his problem and it wasn’t yet ‘his time’.

Secondly, it’s clear that, however special her son might be, Mary wasn’t going to take ‘No’ for an answer from him. She ignored Jesus’ protests and simply told the servants to follow his orders.

So, we can imagine that it was with a heavy sigh and a degree of irritation that Jesus asked the servants to ‘Fill the pots with water’. And then, miraculously, by the time a sample of the water had been delivered to the host of the wedding reception, it had become not just wine (if that wasn’t enough!), but wine of the highest quality.

Can we believe that this miracle actually happened as recounted by John? Well, of course, many people – including many Christians – would say ‘probably not’. They might say that we can view it as an allegory that is meant to illustrate God’s power and glory expressed in Jesus.

I used to be one of those people, but not anymore. This is because I’ve come to realise that all we need to acknowledge is that ‘supernatural’ events (such a miracles) are just ‘natural’ events that we don’t currently have the knowledge-base to explain. Thus, in the present case, it may be that we just have to accept some of the concepts of cutting-edge quantum physics (such as quantum entanglement and the holographic principle) together with there being someone who has the ability to manipulate these – such as God incarnate (which, of course, is where faith comes in) – and, hey-presto, water is turned into wine!

You’ll probably be relieved to know that I’m not going to expand on this concept at this time!

However, the point I do want to emphasise here is that Jesus performed this miracle in order to help people celebrate – to enjoy themselves, have a good time, and possibly even get rather ‘merry’ (in the inebriated sense of the word). Whatever, would Philip Stubbs or, indeed, Oliver Cromwell, have said about that!

So let’s move on to the incident at Bethany where a woman poured expensive perfume over Jesus’ head. We can view this as a celebration of Jesus’ divine status. But some of those present at the time exploded in self-righteous indignation, saying that the money it cost would have been better spent on ‘the poor’. Well, clearly it can’t be denied that everything possible should be done to relieve poverty. But isn’t it again Jesus’ point that celebration should be a cause for joy, not for guilt. He commended the woman for celebrating her innate recognition of his holiness. And, furthermore, as Jesus already foresaw, but would only become apparent to his followers subsequently, she was celebrating Jesus’ supreme act of sacrifice and redemption for us all through his death and resurrection.

So, perhaps Jesus would have said to the Puritans what he said to the self-righteous critics of his own day as recounted in Luke’s gospel: “ The Son of Man came, and he ate and drank, and you said, ‘Look at this man! He is a glutton and wine drinker, a friend of tax collectors and other outcasts!’ God's wisdom, however, is shown to be true by all who accept it.”

So let’s not only thank God for His goodness and love, but let’s celebrate His gifts to us.

I’ll end with some words from Howard Storm – an atheist academic who, as a consequence of a transcendent experience, is now a Christian pastor. During this experience Howard was told: “God wants you to be full of joy, and grow into a wonderful child of God...... [He] wants us to develop to our full potential as creative, joyful, participants in the creation.”

Amen to that!