As they continued their journey [Jesus] entered a village where a woman whose name was Martha welcomed him. Lk 10: 38
This is the first moment we encounter the figure of Martha in the Gospels. From this initial meeting we can see she is a kind woman in her welcoming of Jesus to her village. But why Martha? Was she chairperson of the Village of Bethany Welcoming Committee? Or rather perhaps she already heard something about this great man and wanted to meet him personally. But just how much did she know about Jesus? We know later that she confesses his divinity (Jn 11:27) but did she hold that same understanding now? Therefore, there are two possible reasons as to why she extended an invitation to him: 1) she truly knew who he was and/or 2) she wanted to come to know him.
She had a sister named Mary (who) sat beside the Lord at his feet listening to him speak. Lk 10: 39
Now we meet Martha’s sister, Mary. Why did she not come to welcome Christ earlier? Did she not yet know of this new prophet? Surely, being Martha’s sister, she had to have some inclination of this man. Could she have already been at home preparing and hopefully anticipating the arrival of a guest? Regardless, we now see that her entire focus is on the words of her guest who has indeed accepted Martha’s invitation.
We’re already familiar with the significance of her position at the master’s feet but I will offer another rumination: consider today’s schools. From an early age we literally sit at the feet of our teachers beginning at kindergarten. As we progress we trade the carpet mats for desks – or our “intellectual workbench” if you will – so that we can begin practicing what the teacher hands down to us. However, progressing further I now think of the great lecture halls common in many universities. In these vast rooms, we are no longer at the master’s feet. In fact, he is literally at ours. We look down upon him, placing a greater burden onto him, expecting him to deliver up to us the knowledge we think we rightly deserve. Do you know what other facility has this same seating arrangement? A theater. The expectation is what is placed down below should be entertaining what is placed above. And dare I say isn’t it troubling that many of our modern churches are now architected in this same format?
Martha, burdened with much serving, came to him and said, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me by myself to do the serving? Tell her to help me.” Lk 10: 40
I don’t think Martha fully anticipated the consequences of extending an invitation to Jesus of Nazareth. What she got was an open house. To clarify, I can’t imagine Martha being burdened with the amount of serving required for a single guest. What must of transpired is that the populace of Bethany showed up at her doorstep when they got wind of who was present in her home. To Martha’s credit, the kind person that she is, she couldn’t simply send them away. What would the Lord of all Kindness say in response? And on the same accord it would be unthinkable for the host to ask Jesus to leave. From her perspective, the only reasonable thing to do was to don the apron and get to work.
But why was it that she felt she was compelled to “serve” these people? Was it an outward or inward coercion? To put it another way, was it what was expected of a host or did Martha feel like it was something that “had” to be done?
Regardless, Martha decided that serving is what needed to be done. Any hope of spending time with Jesus would have to wait until later. We can tell immediately though that she is not pleased with her course of action – she sees her work as a burden. Furthermore, she is doing it herself and is troubled when she finds her sister – could it truly be – turning a blind eye to Martha? Does she not live under the same roof and therefore be under the same obligation to tend to the guests? Obviously, this perturbed Martha deeply and she felt compelled to do something about it.
Before going further, let’s prepare an analogy. Imagine that you are standing outside the door of a classroom and the teacher is already in the midst of delivering a lesson. You so happen at that very moment require the use of an attentive student sitting in the front row. There is no way to obtain her presence without disrupting the session already in progress. With that being said, there are two courses of action you can take in removing the student. One is to approach the student directly, convey your need of her presence, and exit the classroom with the student in tow. The problem with that course is that the perceived fault from both the teacher and the class would fall squarely on you. You alone are made out to be the perpetrator. The second approach, however, is a bit more cunning. You can enter the classroom and first plead your case to the teacher. Surely the master will listen carefully because what you have to say must be of great importance since you saw it necessary to interrupt the lesson. Upon hearing your plea for assistance the teacher will fully understand, agree, and – perhaps with a bit of contempt for her wrongful arrangement of priorities – dismiss the student to tend to her rightful duties. Therefore, the fault for the disruption slides off you and onto the student. You are now the victim. It is this later option that Martha had chosen and entered the classroom…
The Lord said to her in reply, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and worried about many things. Lk 10: 41
The Lord first responds graciously. Martha must have felt a bit reprieved now that the master acknowledged her anxiety. However, now it is time for her lesson…
There is need of only one thing. Mary has chosen the better part and it will not be taken from her.” Lk 10: 42
And now we must contemplate Martha’s reaction. Did she hang her head low and sulk to the back of the room? Did she continue serving or perhaps take a seat at the back of the class? Was her heart now full of bitterness, shoulders bearing guilt, and head reeling from being “put in her place”?
Or did Martha take a more humble response? Perhaps she came to understand the master’s words, recognized her own fault in the matter, and took a seat upon the floor by her sister.
The truth is we don’t know, and perhaps it is a good thing. It gives us a chance to reflect on what our own response would be when we find ourselves in Martha’s role.
For further reflection:
- For what reason should I invite Christ into my heart and home?
- Am I already prepared for Jesus’s arrival or do I plan on waiting for the last minute?
- What is my expectation from the master? Do I sit at his feet looking for Wisdom or do I stand above him seeking unwarranted endowments?
- Do I see it as a burden or a joy when I serve the Lord and his people?
- How do I perceive the Christian life of my bothers and sisters in faith? Do I think they spend too much time in prayer and not enough action?
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