Photo by Pixabay
John 2:1-11
When I was a kid, my brother loved fresh mushrooms. Me…not so much. My mom would take white button mushrooms out of the package and start cleaning them for dinner, and my brother would stand next to her and help himself to the mushrooms on the cutting board. If she didn’t stop him, there wouldn’t be enough to go into her chicken a la King recipe, not that I minded much if the mushrooms didn’t make an appearance on my plate. I remember asking my brother one time why he liked mushrooms so much. “They taste just like an eraser!” I would argue. He would respond to that by saying, “They just taste like they’re good for you.” As much as it pains me to say this, he was right. Mushrooms are good for you, and it turns out they are good for more than just human beings. They are excellent for the world in times of crisis too.
I recently learned that the city of Cleveland is overrun by abandoned houses. The houses need to be torn down, but so much waste would be generated that the city doesn’t really know what to do with it. In addition, a lot of the materials used to build these now-abandoned homes are hazardous, so it’s not as simple as tearing them down and throwing it all away. Enter mushrooms. It turns out, mushrooms are masters at breaking down toxic materials and leaving behind clean materials that can then be turned into building blocks called “mycoblocks.” These new blocks have “the consistency of hardwood” and when manufactured correctly they are “significantly stronger than concrete.” [1]
In the wild, mushrooms do this too. They break down materials around them and infuse needed nutrients back into the soil. But, it’s even cooler than this. Did you know mushrooms communicate with one another under the ground–and with other plant life, like trees–through a series of networks called mycelium? If a tree is lacking a nutrient or dealing with a pest, it puts out that message, and the mushrooms respond. Mushrooms demonstrate for us the radical act of living: they grow when things are tough, and they rely on one another to make the world healthy and strong. I’m guessing there are strong opinions here on whether or not mushrooms are delicious, but even if we aren’t going to eat them, mushrooms show us the kind of good work that we are called to.
In John 2, Jesus, the disciples, and Jesus’s mother are invited to attend a wedding. It was not uncommon for a wedding celebration to last for a week, all the while the wine would be flowing. As you can imagine, it would be quite costly to have high quality wine for that length of an event, so hosts would often start with the best wine, and once the guests were…enjoying themselves enough…not to notice what the wine tasted like anymore, the cheaper stuff would be served.
In our story, the newly married couple was completely out of wine, which would have been tremendously embarrassing for them. During the time of Jesus, hospitality was one of the most important values. To be unable to provide for your guests would be a disgrace. Jesus’s mother notices the problem, and rather than pass judgment, she asks Jesus to help. I can’t help but wonder if she remembered what it was like to be judged by others when she was a young, unwed mother.
Mary tells Jesus the couple is out of wine. He responds, “Woman, what concern is that to you and to me? My hour has not yet come.” Just a note that Jesus wasn’t being rude. His response was pretty common for the time. Jesus says it is not yet time for his glory to be fully revealed, and yet…he does what his mother asks and then some. He transforms a massive quantity of water into wine. The text tells us that the six jars for ritual purification held 20-30 gallons of water each. I’m not that great at math, but 6 times 20-30 would be 120 to 180 gallons. When the chief steward tasted the wine–without knowing where it came from–he declared it to be the best wine that had been served at the wedding. Not only did Jesus save the couple from shame and embarrassment, he brought them honor because the best wine was served last.
As I studied this story from John, I noticed what happened on either side of it. Right before the miracle at the wedding, Jesus called his first disciples. Among those disciples was Nathanael who proclaimed that not only was Jesus the Messiah, he was also the King of Israel. Right after this story, Jesus sees the corruption of the moneychangers in the temple, and he overturns their tables and drives them out. These are two startling events. The moment that Nathanael proclaimed Jesus to be the King of Israel, the movement of Jesus was put on the radar as a threat. There can only be one king, and anyone else claiming to be king is a threat to the throne. This sets Jesus at odds with the empire. The moment that Jesus overturned the tables in the temple, he was perceived as a threat by the religious powers that be. This sets Jesus at odds with the religious leaders.
Right in the middle of this, Jesus goes to a wedding and celebrates with his friends. Right in the middle of this, Jesus performs his first miracle–a miracle that might seem unnecessary. As I read this story again, I am amazed by the way Jesus entered into the celebration of a wedding, even with all the tough stuff going on. Jesus was here for all of it: the good and the bad, the painful and the heartwarming, the terrible and the wonderful.
In this beautiful story at the wedding at Cana, we are urged to remember that God is with us through everything we face. He’s with us as we watch the news and wonder how much more suffering the world can take. He’s with us as we sit down with our child’s teacher and learn that he or she is falling behind academically. He’s with us as we celebrate the birth of a new child, grand child, or great grandchild, and he’s with us when we enjoy a really good sandwich and feel a surge of gratitude. As we navigate the difficulties in the world, we might feel guilty when we have celebrations. But, Jesus not only celebrated with the couple, he made sure their celebration could continue. He does the same for us.
So, what does all this have to do with mushrooms? We are living in a time where there is so much toxicity–in the environment, yes, but also in our systems and way of life. We are bombarded daily with difficult news, with voices all around us trying to make us afraid, and with daily realities that make it hard to cope. How much do eggs cost right now? Which countries are currently at war? What decisions will be made in different legislative bodies, and who will those decisions have an impact on? Our temptation is to turn all of it off and hide from it. And sometimes, we need to do that for a time to keep ourselves healthy. But, in the example of Jesus celebrating with his friends, even while difficulties are on all sides of him, we see the importance of being there for each other, the importance of celebrating what is good.
Like mushrooms planted in a toxic location, we are called to work together to begin healing the landscape. I want to emphasize that we are called to work together. Mushrooms have their underground network of mycelium that allows them to communicate their needs with each other and to listen to the rest of the world and what it needs. None of us can shoulder all of the burdens of our lives alone. As we grow and as we support and encourage each other, we will change the landscape. As we listen to the needs around us, we will discover a sense of purpose, and will be called to help others, which is where we will find the fulfillment we need to help us keep going. We are called to be planted in this place, to reach out to each other, and to listen to what the world is telling us. This is how transformation will be possible.
Friends, what good news do you have in your lives today? What blessings are filling up your heart? What life events are making you give thanks to God? New babies born? An unexpected phone call from a friend? A beautiful sunrise, or a beautiful bird at the feeder? Jesus is there, celebrating with you. Sometimes we feel guilty for celebrating good things when so many tough things are also happening. The story of the wedding at Cana reminds us that celebrations are still worth having. Joy is still worth sharing. Memories are still worth being made. Let’s share that good news along our mycelium–our networks of connection with each other–and let’s rejoice. God is rejoicing with us.
What tough stuff is weighing you down? Worry about the state of the world? The higher cost of everything without more money coming in every month? Health concerns? Trouble in relationships? Jesus is there, sharing the load with you. Let’s share these struggles in our networks of connection with each other–and take heart. God is in this place with us.
If you weren’t a fan of mushrooms before you read this, I may not have succeeded in getting you to change your mind. But I do hope you’ll remember that no matter how hard this world is, there’s always hope. We are here to lighten the load for each other, and we are here to celebrate what’s good together. Through the power of the Holy Spirit, I firmly believe we will work together to transform the landscape–one little bit at a time.
[1] Nick Hilden “In Cleveland, mushrooms digest entire houses: How fungi can be used to clean up pollution” https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20240314-fungi-can-be-used-to-clean-pollution-and-combat-climate-change
For more on mushrooms and mycelium: The Magic of Mycelium: How Mushrooms Can Heal the World https://festival.si.edu/blog/mycelium-mushrooms-heal-the-world