Tuesday, January 17, 2012

The Great Biblical Scholar Cornelius a Lapide, S.J. On The Wedding Feast At Cana

Cornelius a Lapide records that the marriage festival at which Christ turned water into wine at the request of the Blessed Virgin Mary was that of Saint Simon the Apostle. Here's the quote:
With more probability, Baronius, following Nicephorus (Hist. l. 8. c. 30), thinks that the bridegroom at this marriage was the Apostle Simon, who was surnamed the Cananite from Cana. And Baronius adds from the same Nicephorus that the place where the marriage was celebrated was adorned by a famous church built there by S. Helena, the mother of Constantine the Great. As soon as Simon had seen this miracle of Christ at his wedding, he bade farewell to his bride and the world, and followed Him, and was chosen to be one of His twelve Apostles. This was the reason why Christ came to this wedding; and by coming, indeed, honoured marriage; but by calling him to Himself, He showed that celibacy and the apostolate were better than marriage.
An interesting tradition, to say the least. By the way, Saint Simon the Cananite was the son of Cleophas who was the brother of Saint Joseph.

Link (here) to  the full post at Canterbury Tales

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