Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
~ The story of Mary and Martha has always bothered me a bit. So we have these two sisters. One of them, Martha, really goes all out to welcome Jesus, preparing all kinds of food and getting the place ready. The other, Mary, as soon as Jesus comes in, sits down at his feet, and the only thing she seems good at is sitting around.
So, what’s Martha to do? Sit down, and let the pasta boil over? If she does what Mary did, who is going to serve? How will they eat? Nothing will get done.
Then Jesus gets on her case, telling her that she is getting all hot and bothered about many things and that Mary (of all people) has chosen the better part by just lounging around doing nothing.
I wish I could have been a fly on the wall to hear what Martha might have said. “O.K., you two make the dinner, and clean up the place. I’m tired of working and being taken for granted.” At least that’s what I would have said or maybe muttered into the fire.
Of course, my response shows why Jesus would chasten the Martha in me. He would see the resentment that surfaces when I think others are not doing their part, especially when I am doing mine. But of course, my attitude reveals something other than kindness.
But there are those other days, thank God. Those moments when I’m not looking over my shoulder at how well I am doing or how little others seem to accomplish. Like Abraham’s Sarah, sometimes I can go about my tasks knowing they also reflect the presence of God. My work is no longer something I grudgingly drag out of myself. Instead, it flows freely, demonstrating how good it is to be alive, to be here, to be now—in the moment.
The Martha in me isn’t distracted on those good days. And I don’t feel the need to complain to God that others around me aren’t following my script. Best of all, I don’t complain that I am doing it all by myself.
I am sad to say those days are rarer than I would like to admit. But when they come, I realize that my annoyance with the story of Mary and Martha isn’t about the value of work, but about how we go about working. Martha, like me, doesn’t need to stop the work — just the fuss.
What is the one essential thing? It is a relationship with Jesus Christ. Authentic hospitality involves a two-way relationship where both the host and the guest open up to each other and stay fully present. Good hosts might work hard, but they should never forget the visitor while they are preparing. Excellent hosts somehow manage to get everything ready while genuinely listening and engaging with the person who has come.
That is how we are supposed to behave every day. We should find God in everything and everyone we know. No matter how busy we are, we must connect with others because God resides within them, deep in their souls. Touch them. Listen to them. Prepare meals for them without forgetting about them. When we do this, we are extending hospitality to God himself.
Jesus wants us to create a space for Him, not only in our hearts but also in our homes and everyday situations.
When we sit, eat, sleep, and entertain our friends and guests, remember that the Lord Jesus is also the guest of our home. The Lord wants us to bring Him glory in the way we treat others and use the gifts He has given us.
God then blesses us with His presence and fills us with joy.
There is Martha, that saint, in all of us. Just as there is Mary as well. There is a lot of Mary in Martha and a lot of Martha in Mary. The challenge is in letting them coexist peacefully. And when we sit down before the feet of God, don’t let our Martha forget to rejoice in the moment. When we go about preparing the meals of life, let us labor not with comparisons or resentment, but with the joy of seizing the moment.