January 16. 2nd Sunday C.  Fr Francis invited the congregation to consider.  When does a family begin?  Is it with marriage, or with the birth of a child to a mother?  Is it when two people or even a group of people move in together?  In accordance with God’s plan contained in the creation stories in the book of Genesis a man and a woman together are blessed by God and commanded to be fruitful and multiply.” He continued, “Whenever I take a pilgrimage to Cana in Galilee we all remember the marriage feast where Jesus performed his first miracle and celebrate with great joy. It is an affirmation of the importance of marriage and the miracle that with Jesus present the ordinary water of relationship can be changed into sparkling wine of greater intimacy and deeper joy. How important it should be to have Jesus as the 3rd partner in their marriage, which ideally is at the heart of a family!”  “Portia muttered under her breath, “but remember not to drink and drive after all that excellent wine.  It was different in the days of donkey-carts!” Becoming an eco-friendly family:  Invite married couples to do an examination of conscience on the subject of water and wine.  

There was a marriage at Cana in Galilee and the mother of Jesus was there: Jesus was also invited to the marriage with his disciples.   When the wine failed  ………….  This is the first sign Jesus did and manifested his glory and his disciples believed in him.    Read the whole story in John 2:1-11. Pope Francis:  The ability of human couples to beget life is the path along which the history of salvation progresses.  The couple’s fruitful relationship becomes an image for understanding and describing the mystery of God himself. The triune God is a communion of love and the family is its living reflection.  Adam, who is also the man of every time and place, together with his wife, starts a new family. AL11-13.