Of Martha and Mary: A Call to Discipleship
Dear Friends,
In this weekend’s reading, our Gospel brings us to the context of the Martha-Mary narrative. This is a story that makes a point about attitudes and behaviors, foundational to understanding our call to discipleship. It begins by telling us of the visit of Our Lord Jesus, to which both sisters respond differently.
The comparison and contrast between the sisters’ responses is very significant. Both of them are hostess and they love Jesus equally as their Lord. However, Martha, on the one hand, behaves as a hostess who is fussing around, worried, bothered and distracted by all the preparations that have to be done. On the other hand, Mary, not engaging in the preparations to be done, sits at the feet of the Lord and listens to his story. “Sitting at the feet of the Lord” is important to discern because it signifies a Jewish tradition of being a disciple.
Looking closely at the story, Martha’s work was certainly important. Only she is worried about all the things that have to be made. Her service drags her attention away from Jesus. Our Lord did not condemn Martha for serving but admonished her for being so distracted with serving that she neglected “what is better.” Mary, in contrast, sitting at the feet of Jesus, has chosen “what is better.” “What is better” here simply means listening to Jesus. Thus, the most important response of a hostess (or host) is to receive Jesus’ word.
Reckoning this from the perspective of discipleship, the Gospel in this Mary-Martha story is intimating that Mary is a disciple, and as such, her behavior is to be emulated. To be a disciple is to determine priorities, and the highest priority must be to listen to the Word. It is like setting a priority to our Sunday obligation to listen to the Word of God amidst the weekend’s distractions.
The gospel is a reminder that it could be very easy for us to focus on less-essential tasks, assuming that these can produce more effective results. Yet we need to be very careful with our “busy-ness” that distracts us from the real business of hearing Christ. It is always good to remember that through the Word, Christ renews our lives and builds our Church. Let us be aware of our worldly concerns that divert us from the priority of the Word. Amidst the “busy-ness” of and in this world, do we find time to “to sit at the feet of the Lord?”
Fr. Bart
Parochial Vicar
