December 13, 2006 (L2) Arginine

Arginine - the Wedding Feast at Cana (L2)

December 13, 2006

Today's mystery, as yesterday's, is one of the "epiphanies" - the showing forth of the divine power of our Lord. In the Office for the feast of the Epiphany (traditionally January 6) both L1 and L2 are also recalled as a mystic trinity of relevations at different levels... there is very much to be said about this, as it touches on what Chesterton calls "God's literary style" and perhaps someday someone will write about that. But not me, not here, and not now. I have far too little time tonight, and I am already late.

This mystery is the only non-Joyful mystery in which we hear Mary - indeed, in L2 we hear her very last recorded words. Not, of course, that she never spoke again! But none of those words were recorded for us by any evangelist.

In order to emphasize this dramatic character, in a drama which her role transcended any guess as to the impact a human can have on God, I have selected Arginine.



Arginine (abbreviated Arg or R)
RNA Codes:


C G U
C G G
C G C
C G A
A G A
A G G


Like Leucine (J4) and Serine (L1), Arginine has six codes: any of the four beginning with CG (and the wobble base), and the two starting with AG, followed by a purine (A or G) - the other two AG codes are used by Serine, as you may recall.

Arginine is hydrophilic, and "the most basic" amino acid - that is, in terms of its pH. It is the only amino acid to have three nitrogens in its side chain - which urged me to select it to stand for Mary's bold, but completely motherly and perfectly respectful words. After she had told Jesus that the wine had run out, and He had said, in an almost casual manner, "Mother dear, does it matter just now? My time has not yet come."

She does not argue. She lets it up to Him. She just says: "Do whatever he tells you."

Yes, this is the most basic of all instructions we have, from His own mother's mouth. And if we DO do whatever He tells us, why - then, without fail, we shall also hear those other words, better by far than even GKC's hints and paraphrases of them, and better even than those words of the parable about "the good and faithful servant".

We shall hear this:

"But you have kept the good wine until now."

It's up to us. Are we going to ignore Him, and bring the wedding-feast to ruin?

Or will we hear His words, as silly and inconsequential as they may sound - and do the little task He instructs us to perform (just fill up those six jugs with water... WATER - I told you these were the Mysteries of Water!) and behold, the new and far better wine, which is drunk in the Great Wedding Feast which never ends.