The Rosary in a Year (with Fr. Mark-Mary Ames) - Day 195: New Wine, New Life

Episode Date: July 14, 2025

“Do whatever He tells you.” Mary’s powerful words at the Wedding Feast at Cana urge us to trust Jesus wholeheartedly. This moment reveals Jesus as the divine bridegroom who brings transformation, joy, and new life into our lives. We are reminded that Jesus and Mary see our needs and respond with deep love and care, even when we do not realize it. Today’s focus is the mystery of the Wedding Feast at Cana and we will be praying one decade of the Rosary. For the complete prayer plan, visit https://ascensionpress.com/riy.

I'm Father Mark Mary with Franciscan Friars of the Renewal and this is the Rosary in a Year podcast where through prayer and meditation, the rosary brings us deeper into relationship with Jesus and Mary and becomes a source of grace for the whole world. The Rosary in a Year is brought to you by Ascension. This is Day 195. To download the prayer plan for Rosary in a Year, visit ascensionpress.com forward slash rosary in a year or text R-I-Y to 33777. You'll get an outline of how we're going to pray each month and it's a great way to track your progress. The best place to listen to the podcast is in the Ascension app.

There are special features built just for this podcast and also recordings of the full rosary with myself and other friars. I encourage you to pick up a copy of the Rosary in a Year Prayer Guide, a book published by Ascension that was designed to complement this podcast. You'll find all the daily readings from Scripture, Saint Reflections, and beautiful images of the sacred art we'll be reflecting on. Today we will be praying with and meditating upon the second Illuminous Mystery, the wedding feast at Cana. All right, to begin, we'll go ahead and call to mind again some of what we have already

reflected on pertaining to the wedding feast at Cana. And of course, the Gospel account that correlates to this mystery comes from John chapter two, verses one through 12. And one detail that we noted that I'd like to highlight again are Mary's words, right? Mary sees that they're out of line. She goes to Jesus, tells him the situation, they have a conversation. And then Mary's last contribution in the context of that conversation, the last word she speaks are, Do whatever he tells you.

Do whatever he tells you. And these are Mary's last words in scriptures. These words that we want to continue to like echo in our minds, in our hearts. Do whatever he tells you. Do whatever he tells you. And how great these words are when we are perhaps experiencing temptation. How great these words are when we feel like our lives, our situations have run out of wine. We can't necessarily solve the problem, like in the context of the wedding feast,

we can't, right, provide wine out of nowhere, but we can do whatever He tells you. And so we can just sit and receive those words again, whatever context we find ourselves in. Mary saying to us, do whatever He tells you. I think a second really important note to highlight again about the wedding feast of Cana is we see the newness of Jesus being revealed. Jesus as the new bridegroom who gives us the new wine.

We have the imagery of the six jars being turned from water to wine. And we see Jesus being this living, if you will, seventh day, this living fulfillment, as six water jars are filled with water and they become wine. These six days of creation, they're going to be fulfilled with the seventh day, with the Sabbath. We see Jesus foreshadowing the new creation. Jesus, the new temple, He is the Lord of the Sabbath. Like He is the new one, right?

And this is what is being revealed in this second Luminous mystery, like where we see the kingdom revealed in Jesus. Jesus is here, He is fulfilling see the kingdom revealed in Jesus. Jesus is here. He is fulfilling. He is doing something new. New hope, new creation, new wine, new bridegroom, new access to God in Jesus. Now also during our time of Lectio Divina with John chapter 2, one of the themes that came to the surface from our prayer with the wedding feast of Cana

was just this reminder, the reality that Mary and Jesus, they see us, right? Like at the wedding feast of Cana, they're in conversation about you. They're concerned. They're invested. They know your name. They know your needs. And they're already doing something to respond to your needs. And so an invitation for prayer is just to be there.

To be where you are. And to experience, to call mind, both Mary and Jesus being together, seeing you, talking about your needs, responding to it. For me, this is a great source of both consolation and comfort. We're not in it alone. You're seeing in your situation, and also comfort because you're not in it alone, you're seeing in your situation and also comfort because you're not in it alone. Like they're coming, they're acting, they're responding to your needs in the best way possible. And then lastly, for our review today, which touched on a similar theme of what we've talked

about is during our time of prayer and reflection, starting with the painting of the wedding at Cana by Karl Block. What I noted is just that Jesus, at the wedding feast of Cana, when He changes the water to wine, He doesn't make a spectacle of it, right? He's not doing it as some sort of like magician or gesture or showman. Like, it happens subtly and behind the scenes where only a few people are aware of what actually has happened. Why does he do it? It's an act of love.

It's an act of concern for this particular wedding, but more particularly for the bride and the bridegroom. And because he desires this wedding, but more particularly for the bride and the bridegroom. Because he desires this wedding, this feast to be celebrated with the fullness of joy possible. This points to this theme at the wedding of Cana of Jesus being the divide bridegroom, the one who loves his church, who provides for us because He loves us, who comes to heal us because He loves us, who does miracles because He loves us, who lays down His life because He loves us, desires to give us joy, and desires to bring us into intimacy with Him for all of eternity.

into intimacy with Him for all of eternity. So now as we start to transition into our time of prayer today, we can bring to prayer one of these themes. Experiencing Jesus and Mary looking at you with love and concern as a source of consolation or comfort. Hear Mary say to you, and whatever your situation is, do whatever He tells you. We can meditate upon Jesus, the Divine Bridegroom, who acts in our life and in our world out of love for us, to draw us into intimacy with Him, or perhaps another topic or theme, which is on your mind and heart today.

So as we linger here, go ahead and ask these questions. So what is the grace? What is the truth being revealed that you are being invited to receive? How can you respond? What is the grace that you need? What is the grace that you'd like to request, particularly at the service of this response? And then rejoice, give thanks, praise the Lord for this time of prayer, for the grace is given and the life shared. And now together with Mary, let us pray. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, Amen. Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.

Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Amen. Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death. Amen. Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death. Amen.

Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death, amen. Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death. Amen.

Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death. Amen. Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death. Amen. Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is our death. Amen. Hail Mary full of grace the Lord is with thee.

Blessed art thou among women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb Jesus. Holy Mary mother of God pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death. Amen. Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners. Now and at the hour of our death. Amen. Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.

Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death. Amen. Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death. Amen. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, it is now and ever shall be, world without end. Amen. In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, amen. Alright, thanks so much for joining me and praying with me again today. I look

forward to continuing this journey with you again tomorrow. Poco Poco friends. God bless y'all.