The Wine of Passion

A Wedding Homily

Grace, mercy and peace to you from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  AMEN.

Jenna, Josh—let’s talk about wine.

I know the wine usually waits until after the service, but bear with me for a moment here. I think this is important. St. John in his Gospel writes that if all the works and wonders of Jesus Christ were ever written down, the world could not contain all the volumes necessary to catalogue His miracles. Yet John, the Beloved Disciple, chooses seven wonders—just seven—to serve as “signs” in his Gospel, signs pointing us to the truth of Who Jesus is and what He wants for us. And the first of those signs happens—where else?—at a wedding.

I’m sure you know the story. Jesus and His mother Mary attend a wedding feast in the town of Cana, sometime before Jesus’ public ministry begins. Unfortunately, the party either proves a bit larger or a bit more boisterous than anticipated, and the young couple runs out of wine to serve their guests. Back then, this would’ve proved a serious loss of face. After all, if a couple can’t provide for their own wedding, how could they hope to provide for a family? Mary urges Jesus to do something, and at her prompting He works a miracle, transforming no less than 120 gallons of water into highest quality wine. And the steward, upon discovering this new vintage, says to the bridegroom, “Everyone serves the good wine first, and then the inferior wine after the guests have become drunk. But you have kept the best wine until now!”

So there we have it. The first miracle in John’s Gospel, the first sign pointing us to how Jesus, God in the flesh, is inclined towards His children, is that Jesus makes 120 gallons of top-shelf hooch for a party—for a wedding! Alleluia.

Throughout the Bible, wine represents abundance, represents joy. As the Psalmist says, “Wine maketh glad the heart of man.” And this is precisely what Jesus wants for you on this day: to pour out upon you blessings of joyful abundance, that your cup may runneth over. For Christians it is no small thing that Jesus begins His ministry by saving a wedding. Throughout the history of God’s people, the bond between man and wife has ever symbolized the loving and indissoluble promises binding together God and His people, Christ and the Church. This is another reason that wine is deemed necessary for marriage: it represents passion.

Passion is a wonderful thing, is it not? The need, the joy, that a young bride feels for her groom and the groom for his bride. Passion brings us together, binds us in happiness, leads us to marriage, and proves the fire that kindles a family. Newlyweds revel in the wine of passion, and that’s one of the reasons why we all love a good wedding: we love to remember and to relive the freshness of it all, the promise of joy and new life together, the future opened wide, never again alone.

Thank God for that. Thank God for weddings. Thank God for you. You two have found each other, loved each other, known each other, worked through difficulties and trials, celebrated milestones and surprises, and it has brought you today to the altar of God, Who will consecrate and bless you this day as husband and wife. That is awesome. And it couldn’t happen to a more beautiful couple.

But the fire of newlywed love, understand—that fresh new wine of passion and joy—cannot, in and of itself, sustain your marriage in the long run. Yes, you absolutely love each other. But love grows, changes, deepens in unexpected ways, ways we cannot understand for ourselves until we’ve been up for six months straight changing diapers in the night. Love means flossing next to the same person each morning for 50 years. Love means having the same conversation for the fortieth time. Love means understanding that sometimes the more you love someone, the more you want to kill them.

This sort of love, the long love of marriage, is one of mutual understanding, of unshakable commitment, of selfless giving and patient compassion. It entails a lot of forgiving, a lot of give-and-take. It might not seem as fiery as it once was, but believe me, it is powerfully strong. And you’ll be amazed at what this sort of love will allow you to do together, what you’ll accomplish together, how you’ll grow together. Passion will not keep your marriage going. But if you do it right, marriage will keep your passion going. Ultimately there is nothing more beautiful than knowing that someone will love you, support you, and be with you, no matter what, until death do us part. That’s more than a relationship. That’s a miracle.

And if the time should ever come when your marriage feels passionless or stuck, when you think that time and life and the daily grind have exhausted your marriage of the wine of joyous abundance, and all you have left is tepid water—take heart. For you are not alone! Jesus Christ has come to your wedding. He is both the host and guest of honor at this feast! Turn to Him, ask of Him, and He will turn your water into wondrous, overflowing wine, more than you could ever have imagined. Pray together. Worship together. Read Scripture together and raise your children in the faith. Help each other to strive for Heaven, and you will have a marriage that positively sings. You will have wine, you will have passion, in full abundance, ladling it out for all to share.

Then the world will look to the two of you and say, “Good heavens. Everyone serves the good wine first and runs out. But you? You have saved the best until now.”

May Christ and Mary rejoice at your wedding. And may your children and your family grow in passion, abundance, and joy. In Jesus’ Name. AMEN.