16^th Sunday in Ordinary Time [C] – July 21, 2019 – Luke 10:38-42

To perform works to serve the Lord is certainly good and praiseworthy. And these works are numerous and varied. These acts may directly serve Him in the Church, especially during the liturgy. We may participate in the worship as the choir members, lectors, altar servers, ministers of the Holy Communion, or even as the presiders of the Eucharist itself, the priest. Yet, we may also serve Him through others as we involve in charitable initiatives to help the poor, to fight for justice and peace and integrity of creation. We have many ways, but the goal is one: to honor and glorify Him.

In today’s Gospel, we encounter Martha and Mary of Bethania. They both are serving Jesus, and they perform it according to their unique characters. Mary, more reserved and perhaps an introvert, chooses to stay close to the Master and listen to Him. While Marta, predominantly active and perhaps extrovert, prefers to provide Jesus with the best accommodation. Both want to make Jesus feel welcome in their way. However, there is a little problem. It seems that Jesus is playing little favoritism. He favors Mary over Martha and tells Martha that Mary has chosen a better part.

Surely Jesus does not play favoritism, and surely it is not because Mary is more beautiful than Martha!  Yet, we still have to explain Jesus’ choice. First, we need to see that both are good, but one is just happened to be better than the other. Is it the act of listening better than the act of giving hospitality? In an ancient Jewish context, to provide the hospitality to a guest is one of the prime values. We remember how Lot was offering even his daughters to protect his guests [see Gen 19]! By this standard, Martha is doing a better thing, but Jesus insists that it is not hers. Why?

Again, we need to understand better our Scriptures. The act of listening is fundamental in both Old and New Testament. Every devout Jew in the time of Jesus as well as in our time, daily prays a creedal prayer they call as “Shema Israel” – it was taken straight from Deu 6:4-5 “Hear, O Israel! The LORD is our God, the LORD alone! Therefore, you shall love the LORD, your God, with your whole heart, and with your whole being, and with your whole strength.” Acts of listening do not only mean to hear voices and receive information, but it is also to obey what one has heard. Jesus Himself says, “Everyone who listens to these words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. (Mat 7:24)” Mary is taking a better part because she has listened to Jesus, who is the LORD, and she listens because she loves her LORD.

Martha has a little problem with her service because she imposes her ways to Mary, perhaps thinking her way of service is the best one. But more than that, Martha becomes overburdened in her serving, and Jesus points out that Martha is anxious and worried with many things. Martha is losing the purpose of her service; she is losing Jesus in the process of serving. What a loss!

Learning from Mary and Martha, we may ask ourselves, “What is the point of our services? Where are we going with many activities we have in the Church? Do we hear the voice of Christ in our ministries? Do we love Jesus in our serving or we discover ourselves in the end?”

Deacon Valentinus Bayuhadi Ruseno, OP