The Unauthorized Homily

By Bill Dunn

A commentary on the Scripture readings from the Sunday Lectionary

(Scripture readings for Sunday, July 22nd: Genesis 18:1-10; Colossians 1:24-28; Luke 10:38-42)

ARE YOU A MARY OR A MARTHA?

This week’s gospel reading has always struck me as somewhat odd. Jesus and His disciples visited the home of two sisters, Martha and Mary. Martha was in the kitchen busy with food preparation and all the other details of entertaining guests, while Mary sat at Jesus’ feet and listened to His words.

Finally, Martha came out and said, in effect, “Whoa! What’s wrong with this picture?! I’m slaving away in the kitchen and Mary’s sitting on her butt doing nothing! C’mon, Jesus, tell her to give me a hand out here!”

I remember the first time I ever heard this gospel story being recited, and right at that moment I fully expected Jesus to say to Mary, “Y’know, Mary, it’s not very polite for you to sit here while your sister does all the work. Why don’t you go help her now, and we can talk later, OK?”

It would’ve been an excellent lesson on sharing the load and assuming personal responsibility. Or better yet, I thought, in that brief instant before the priest continued with the reading, maybe Jesus will get up, put on an apron, and go into the kitchen and start slinging some hash Himself. That would be a great example of humble service.

But no, Jesus didn’t say a word to Mary. He looked at Martha, the one with flour on her hands and sweat dripping down her brow, and He said, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and worried about many things. There is need of only one thing. Mary has chosen the better part and it will not be taken from her.”

When the priest read that line, back on the first time I ever heard this reading (or I should say, the first time I ever paid attention to this reading), my jaw dropped open. Holy mackerel, I thought, Jesus praised the one who was doing nothing and criticized the one who was working her butt off. What gives?

You have to dig a little deeper to find out what Jesus was doing in this situation. On the surface, it seemed pretty plain: one sister was being responsible and working hard, while the other sister was being irresponsible and ignoring her duties.

But as usual, Jesus was in tune with the person’s heart rather than outward appearances. He praised Mary, not because she ignored her chores, but because she understood the importance of listening to the word of the Lord. He even described it as the only thing required.

In the same way, Jesus rebuked Martha, not because she was responsible and hard-working, but because she was so focused on her own goal—that of being the Martha Stewart of Palestine—she had no time to listen to the word of the Lord. In fact, she was so intent on having things go according to her plan, it made her anxious and worried.

Very possibly Martha was the kind of person—maybe you know someone like this?—who genuinely does a lot of good and important things, but who makes darn sure that everyone else knows it. And if he or she does engage in some helpful, sacrificial activity and no one notices or acknowledges it, look out, here comes the Hissy-Fit Express arriving on Track 12 right on schedule.

There are a lot of Marthas running around in our own churches these days. Some people are on every committee, they volunteer for every event. They cook and they clean and they set up tables and they take down tables and they sweep the floors and they go to meetings and they organize and they make a million phone calls—all to help the church do its job.

And many times, these people are so involved in doing all these important activities, they don’t have time to worship. They are so focused on making each event successful, they forget to listen to the word of the Lord. They become just like Martha.

Like Martha, these people often become anxious and worried, frustrated and bitter. They feel like all the chores have been dumped into their laps and no one is lifting a finger to help. (Usually, they’re right. In most churches 90-percent of the work is done by 10-percent of the people. How can we increase the volunteer rate? If I knew the answer, I’d write a book and make a zillion bucks.)

People need to strike a balance between Mary and Martha, between the spiritual and the physical, between the sacred and the mundane. If someone belongs to too many committees and is getting frustrated and resentful, maybe it’s time (some pastors are reading this right now and are shouting, “Don’t say it! Don’t even think it!”) to quit some of those jobs. Let someone else in the parish do it for a change. (Sorry, Padre. But we’ve got to put first things first.)

If someone has been so busy doing “church stuff” that he or she hasn’t had time to sit at Jesus’ feet and listen to His words, it’s time to come out of the kitchen and relax for a while. Listen to the word of the Lord. Let it sink in and transform your life. It is the only thing required.

©2007