Cana

 

Haiku of promise

Cana, the third day;

grounding it in time and space,

John says: This happened!

Jesus and his Mum,

invited to a wedding.

Great celebration!

Two people bringing

themselves, deeply committing

to life together.

They've run out of wine,

says his Mum, expectantly.

What will Jesus do?

It's not my problem,

not my time. She ignores him.

Do what he tells you.

Six stone water jars;

six hundred litres of plonk!

Somewhat excessive.

Water into wine,

ignoring chemistry's laws!

Some of us struggle.

The steward's impressed.

You have saved the best for last!

What a metaphor!

Life in abundance,

better than before; and with

the best yet to come.

© Ken Rookes 2022

Royal Wedding

 

Haiku of failed RSVPs

Stories that provoke

and challenge entitlement,

making leaders squirm

A wedding banquet.

The invitations are sent.

No one wants to come.

Look, a second chance!

The servants go out again

to call in the guests.

It all turns ugly

with disturbing violence;

inexplicable.

The king is enraged,

understandably. Sends troops

to exact justice.

Here’s the new order:

all sorts of common people

called to the banquet.

The good and the bad;

all are called, all invited

to this wedding feast.

Postscript.

A strange conclusion

to a strange story: make sure

you’re properly dressed.

© Ken Rookes 2020

Cana

Haiku of celebration

Coming together,

two people joining in love;

great celebration.

Gospel writer John

builds wonder right from the start:

spins his wedding yarn.

They were all present:

Jesus, his Mum, disciples;

for the wedding feast.

The Cana couple,

all bouquets and bridal waltz!

Then the wine gives out.

Mother Mary comes

with her high expectations.

My son, do something!

Son, Jesus, resists.

Why bring your request to me?

It isn’t my hour.

She tells the servants,

Do whatever he tells you.

Water jars are filled.

They draw some water,

take it to the chief steward.

What a splendid drop!

The good wine comes first,

the lesser when folk are drunk;

you’ve held back the best!

A kingdom image;

the inferior gives way

to the surpassing!

© Ken Rookes 2019

When the wine gave out

Those things that have grown weary

and no longer serve their purpose,

are to be cast aside;

their place will be taken

by the eager and determined.

The caterers' miscalculations

threaten to bring the nuptial celebrations

to a premature conclusion.

Water's cold austerity

gives way to wine by the bucketful;

joy flows abundant and free,

and the party continues.

The attendant throng is suitably amazed;

the man's mother, who provoked the action,

is merely impressed.

In the hands of her son

the wedding feast is made into

the metaphor par excellence:

life that is fruitful and expectant,

filled with hope, joy,

and laden with possibility.

© Ken Rookes 2016

Ready

In the parable of bridesmaids

bringing light to the wedding celebrations,

it is their state of preparedness

that finally determines

who will gain entry to the banquet.

We can work the maths out

on the fingers of two hands.

Five go in; five are knocked back.

For the girls in the story

it was flasks of spare oil

that made the difference,

keeping their lamps burning, shining bright,

and keeping the invitation current.

It appears that gospel invitations

to come to banquets, to follow Jesus,

to attend wedding feasts,

are all invitations to live truly.

Stay awake, be ready.

Prepare yourself,

discipline your body, train your mind;

carry sufficient oil – whatever that might be

for you. Keep your Swiss army knife handy.

When you find the invitation extended,

determine to accept it.

Grasp hold, enter in, live to the fullest

and love in the extreme.

© Ken Rookes 2014

not sure whether this is colouring or cartoon? :)

http://www.sermons4kids.com/water_into_wine_gk_colorpg.gif

Cana

Gospel writer John springs a miracle

to get things going. It’s a strange one,

a classic conundrum: water into wine.

Fortunately the miracle was never replicated

by Jesus, or any of his followers since.

In every age there have been those

who reached out to grasp

the dubious gift of drunken oblivion,

but they all managed to do so

by more conventional means.

Let’s quietly pack the miracle away,

let it age and gather dust in the cellar;

it proves nothing, never did.

The coming together of two people,

pledging their love and devotion

and becoming one flesh,

is made the occasion for this story

of joyous and abundant celebration.

Jesus, Word made flesh,

is both purpose and provider

for the party.

Buckets of water into buckets of wine;

dance until you drop!

Glorious excess;

there are no limits to joy.

Human existence has been unexpectedly infused

with something far more wondrous

than any mere miracle.

Jesus from the divine parent’s heart;

bearer of grace and truth,

and shining his light into the darkness,

lives among us.

Pour some wine: we have to celebrate!

© Ken Rookes 2013