Letting Compassion Rule

As I was reflecting on the story of the Wedding Feast at Cana, I suddenly had the following insight: Jesus was an introvert.

Think about it. We know nothing about his life between the ages of 12 and 30; he didn’t adopt the fiery persona of his cousin John, but instead quietly walked along the seashore and invited fishermen (also solitary sorts) to join him in his mission; he was reluctant to perform his first miracle, and only a handful of servants and his disciples even knew about it; he was constantly telling people not to broadcast the miracles he performed; and whenever the opportunity arose, he slipped away to be alone with God. 

Introverts often are slow to act because they tend to overthink things and don’t want to draw attention to themselves. At the time the wedding feast occurred, Jesus was probably struggling to figure out how to begin his public ministry; the problem of a lack of wine would seem like an ideal opportunity, but it arose too suddenly for him to grasp it. His mother, who had been observing her son carefully since his birth, surely knew why her son was hesitant to act and was testy when she drew his attention to the problem. However, she also was aware of the depth of his compassion, which is why she had the confidence to say to the servants at Cana, “Do whatever he tells you.”

It appears that compassion ruled Jesus’ life. He spent long hours healing people and teaching them, against his better judgment, because he knew it would draw unwelcome attention from the high priests. He spent most of his time with the marginalized and downtrodden. In the last hours of his life, as he was suffering on the cross, he had compassion for his persecutors (“Forgive them, Father, for they know not what they do”) and for the man hanging next to him (“This day you will be with me in paradise”).

Jesus’ study of scripture led him to understand that he should be compassionate as his heavenly father was compassionate. Those of us who are followers of Jesus, whether we are introverts or extroverts, also should let compassion be our guide in our encounters with others on the road to everlasting life.