Martha, burdened with much serving, came to him and said
The serving itself was not the problem. Hospitality was an extremely praiseworthy work of mercy. We see this in the first reading, when Abraham was attentive to the presence of the Lord himself by his immediate and comprehensive response to the three mysterious travelers. Hence the letter to the the Hebrews uses that event specifically to encourage hospitality, encouraging us that we do not neglect "to show hospitality to strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unawares" (see Hebrews 13:2).
burdened with much serving,
Something about Martha's relationship to the service was unhealthy. The action itself was good but the way she pursued it caused it to become burdensome. Jesus said that Martha was "anxious and worried about many things", that she was being pulled in too many directions, that her focus was divided between two many apparent goods. We should by sympathetic because there were all of the many requirements of hospitality in that culture at that time, all of which seemed to depend on her alone. She was aware of the proximity of Jesus himself and of the fact that others were now enjoying rest at the feet of the master compared to this thankless work which her sense of duty caused her to pursue. From a merely human perspective there were many things justifiably competing for the title of necessary. But from the perspective of Jesus there was, "need of only one thing".
Lord, do you not care
that my sister has left me by myself to do the serving?
Do we suggest or believe that, after all, Mary had been correct and Martha simply should have sat on the other side and listened as well? We don't presume to say so. She may have been correct in the need to focus on serving in order to welcome Jesus into her home. But it seems that it would have been possible to do that serving with a focus on the one necessary thing and thereby avoid burden, anxiety, and worry.
Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you (see Matthew 66:31-33).
In comparing herself to Mary, Martha exposed herself to the danger of considering her own merit, the unrewarded virtue she showed in serving. But in doing so she unwittingly assumed a responsibility for the service so entire that it was entirely dependent on her, with no room for God to be present with his grace and help. She desired what Mary found at the feet of Jesus, but pleaded for it on the basis of what she was was doing. Jesus desired to untangle this knot which Martha had created for herself. He wanted to her to understand that she would only be able to do these important tasks well when they were ordered toward the Kingdom, organized as concentric rings around the center of the one thing necessary.
There is need of only one thing.
Mary has chosen the better part
and it will not be taken from her.
Those who seek first the Kingdom and order their lives around the one needful thing experience the truth that it will not and cannot be taken from them. It is a supernatural reality that is available at the feet of Jesus, during service in the kitchen, and even, with Paul, imprisoned and persecuted for the Gospel.
Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake,
and in my flesh I am filling up
what is lacking in the afflictions of Christ
on behalf of his body, which is the church
Before we are too critical of Martha we should recognize how easy it is to be pulled in so many different directions, in our thoughts and intentions if not always in our actions. Keeping the one thing necessary as our center and focus is not something that happens by accident. It takes our being conscious and intentional, turning back to the Lord every time we feel ourselves being pulled away. The point is that we can bring all the things we need and desire, all that we must do to do to him, so that he can put it all in order, and assume the final responsibility for it, so that we, in turn, can experience his peace both at work and in contemplation and rest. Or better still, when we find ourselves distracted and anxious we can listen for Jesus himself speaking our name bringing us back into the hear and now in his presence.
Martha, Martha
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