What would Mrs God do?
In order to go forward on this one, we first need to go back. Join us on a trip back 2,000 years and pretend we are guests at the Wedding Feast of Cana. It is a jovial and happy wedding, so much so that the guests drank till they ran out of wine. Running out of drink is an extremely embarrassing situation either for a host or a publican.
One of our fellow guests is a young Jesus Christ, accompanied by his mother. I can’t remember if Joseph was there, but anyway, he was such a quiet man you would never know he was in the place.
‘They have no wine,’ Mary said to Jesus… holding eye contact, thus letting him know that this wasn’t just an idle remark.
The son wasn’t too pleased: ‘Woman, my hour has not yet come,’ he replied with a hint of sharpness.
Nonplussed by the reply, the mother instructed the waiters: ‘Do as he says.’
The die was cast and several pitchers of water were turned into the best wine ever known. Even those with a rake of cheaper wine in them already could tell the difference.
No matter what symbolism future theologians might place on this first miracle performed by Jesus, we ordinary dropouts would have to conclude that it was an awful waste of a good miracle. It wasn’t to do with sickness (apart from adding to the hangover) life or death. But this dazzling deed told us something more than the power of God. It showed how much he could be influenced by the woman who held his heart. He couldn’t say no to a good woman.
The fact is that it was the kindness and generosity of spirit shown by Mary, and how much she cared about her friends, that were responsible for this miracle.
The kinder streak that women seem to have in them is often the antidote against the macho man. I have often noticed how the Gorls can bring out the softer side of the Lads – and the next paragraph shows it is official.
A Swiss study has found beyond doubt that women’s brains show a stronger signal towards kindness, compassion and generosity than do those of men. Hold that thought, please… and here is another one you can hold with it. At a press conference in Australia some time back, the Dali Lama said that the world needs more leaders showing compassion. “In that respect, biologically, females have more potential. Females have more sensitivity about others wellbeing,” he said.
The world is in some mess at the moment and this column doesn’t need to comment on the type of powerful leaders who are running the show. Every day it is getting worse by way of atrocities and the wastage of innocent human lives. More and more, we see bad things happening to good people while good things are happening to bad people. Is it not a legitimate ceist to ask again why God allows such unfairness among those who have no other hope?
Yes, yes. We are taught that God doesn’t interfere in what is said to be man’s free will. ‘Suffering refines faith and fosters spiritual growth,’ we were told. Can there be spiritual growth among the children in Gaza, still denied humanitarian needs, as truck loads of food and medicine are still denied entry and charitable establishments are raised to the ground?
Despite the assertion that God isn’t responsible and doesn’t interfere, Donald Trump claims that God intervened to save his life when the bullet [alleged] from the rifle fired by the assassin [alleged] only grazed his ear. Those who believe Trump’s claim believe God interferes when he likes.
We are running out of time here, so we shall cut to the chase. What God needs is a wife! A woman like his mother who couldn’t even look at a thirsty drinker without showing compassion. When that assassin had his target in his sights, Mrs God would likely have advised. ‘Remember what you said about man’s free will!’
In our society, girls are brought up encouraged to share, be gentle and look after people. Boys are told ‘stand up for yourself in order to achieve what you want and don’t allow anyone bully you’. Again, we can learn from the animal world, where it is the females who show the caring and unselfish traits of the breed.
God needs that wife next to him to get the best out of him – like a lot of the rest of us! Then when invading boots are threatened to hit the ground in Canada or Mexico, the question will have to be asked; ‘what would Mrs God do…’
Don’t Forget
Attending a match today I felt gratified by seeing the number of young people who attend our games. This is just great, and with so much talk about online activity, streaming, digital this and digital that, phone-fun and passive pastimes, we don’t give enough credit to the huge numbers who get out in the fresh air and become involved in real life.