GOOD WINE
Jesus has always been known as the founder of Christianity. Today however a different approach has begun to open up: Jesus is for everyone, not just for Christians. His life and message are patrimony of humanity.
No one in the West has had such a great power over hearts. No one has better expressed the concerns and questions of humans than he did. No one has awoken so much hope. No one has communicated such a healthy experience of God, not projecting ambitions, fears and fantasies onto God. No one has come close to the human pain in so deep and tender a way as he has. No one has opened a hope so solid in the face of the mystery of death and human limitation.
Two thousand years separate us from Jesus, but his person and message keep attracting many. It’s true that some environments aren’t much interested, but it’s also clear that the passing of time hasn’t erased his seductive power or lessened the echo of his word.
Today, when ideologies and religions are experiencing a profound crisis, Jesus’ figure escapes every doctrine and transcends every religion, in order to directly invite today’s men and women to a life that’s more worthy, happy and hope-giving.
The first Christians experienced Jesus as a fount of new life. From him they received a different breath for living. Without him, everything turned out dry, sterile, snuffed out for them. The Gospel writer John redacted the story of the wedding at Cana in order to symbolically present Jesus as the bringer of a «good wine», capable of reviving the spirit.
Jesus can bring about the fermentation of a new humanity today. His life, his message and his person invite new ways of healthy living. He can inspire more human paths in a society that seeks well-being but smothers the spirit and kills compassion. He can awaken a thirst for a more human life in people empty of inner life, devoid of love and needing hope.
José Antonio Pagola
Translator: Fr. Jay VonHandorf
