Sermon by the rev'd. Pamela Snare

Sermon
January 14, 2007
The Reverend Pamela Snare

“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.’” (John 2:3-5)

Over a year ago now, I took my annual retreat at the Benedictine Monastery in Normandy where Jerry and I spent our sabbatical. The sisters were glad to see me, but all of them without exception, asked, “Where is ‘Mr. Pamela?’” (That had become Jerry’s nickname among the sisters.) It became evident to me that the next time I returned to the monastery Jerry would have to be with me.

I confided to Sister Sarah, my spiritual director that I didn’t know how or when we could come together because the trip is so expensive especially during the summer which is the only time that we have time off together.

Her response was to tell me a story. She was at that time in charge of the lingerie, the washing, ironing, and supply of clothes, bed linens, kitchen linens and towels. “Pamela,” she said, “I had been running short of pillow covers and pillow cases for a good while. I had been careful to mend the old ones, but some of them were so threadbare they would hardly hold together anymore. I thought about asking the monastery to buy some, but I thought we had more pressing needs. So I prayed. I told the Lord that I needed linens. Then I left it in his hands. I stopped thinking about it and went on with my work, doing the best I could. A few months ago the monastery received a phone call. The person calling said that a convent a few kilometers from here had closed. They were trying to disperse of the convent’s goods, and wondered if we needed any linens. Pamela, when the linens arrived, there were over 300 pillow covers and pillow cases. We now have so many pillow covers and pillow cases that we won’t be able to use them all in my lifetime.”

“Pamela, just tell the Lord what you need, what you desire, and then leave it in his hands. Let it go. Wait and see what comes. And whatever comes, accept that as what is best for you.”

I thought about Sister Sarah this week in relation to Mary, the mother of Jesus in today’s gospel. Mary has noticed a very simple and basic human need at a wedding. There’s no more wine. She knows that her son has a unique relationship with God. The angel Gabriel told her so at the Annunciation, and so did Simeon at his presentation in the temple. She’s seen it herself when, as an adolescent, Jesus stayed behind at the temple in Jerusalem when the rest of the family had left the city to return to Nazareth. She doesn’t know exactly what all of that means, but she knows that given his unique relationship with God, he is the one, if there is anyone, who can do something about this. So she makes the need known. She tells him, “They have no wine.” She doesn’t tell him what to do, or what she wants him to do, or thinks he should do. She simply tells him the need.
Many people, mothers in particular, are put off by Jesus’ response to her. “Woman, what concern is that to you and to me? My hour has not yet come.” Yet commentators tell us that the salutation, “Woman”, is not an impolite reply. Indeed it is how Jesus replies to many women in the gospels. Yet, it does place a certain distance between him and her, implying that his relationship to God comes before, is more vital than any ties of blood.
But Mary, bless her, is not put off by this. It is as if she knows that, although he is her son, he is more importantly, her Lord. This is simply one more of those mysterious occasions when she is confronted with his unique identity. Indeed, her faith in him and in his compassion and power is so strong that she simply leaves the situation in his hands and trusts whatever should come.

She knows that he cannot be impervious to human need because of who he is. Whatever he does, it will be for the best. All that is required is for the servants to be obedient to what he commands, so she says to them, “Do whatever he tells you.”

And, of course, what happens is the best - the best wine that has been served all day. And not only the best, but more than could be imagined, or ever consumed, at least at one wedding. Commentators estimate between 120 and 180 gallons of wine. Sort of like over 300 pillow covers and pillow cases for a monastery of 27 sisters.

Does this stretch you, stretch your faith? It stretches me. But this is the life of faith, my friends. This is what it means to live by faith.

I am a novice at it. But I have begun following the lead of Sister Sarah and the example of Mary. I tell God my needs and desires, even my anxieties, because they tend to come from a sense, whether true or false, of deficiency or scarcity in myself or in resources. Sometimes, a great deal of the time, I have to do this over a period of weeks before I am able to let go of it, to surrender it to God, to leave it in his hands. Then I wait, not really thinking about it any more. I find that once I have left the need, or desire, or anxiety with him, a peace comes over my heart and mind. It doesn’t really matter anymore what comes. I know that whatever comes, God will be with me, he will show me the way, little by little, day by day.

When I do this, I am no longer plagued by anger, frustration, anxiety or stress. I discover that I am living out of a profound place of joy and of liberation. St. Paul’s words to the Philippians become true and real to me:

“Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice…The Lord is near. Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:4, 5b-7)

That, my friends, is the life of faith. That is what it means to live by faith.

Jerry and I returned to the monastery last summer. Because of losses sustained by Katrina, we had more than enough from our tax return to make the trip. God and the monastery are making a believer out of me. I know that God is working in your lives, too, to make believers out of you. Do not hinder him. Surrender all to him and let him do his work.

The Reverend Pamela P. Snare

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