A Discipleship Moment | July 28, 2024

I once knew someone who had three children and joked that she got them at “three different garage sales” because they were so different from each other. They each had their own unique look, temperament, interests, and personality. Not a matching set, but a set nonetheless. The same could be said for my family. I have an older sister who was the rebel of the family; tiny and mighty, she blazed her own path with confidence. My younger brother was the athlete; from baseball to bowling, every sport he tried came very naturally to him. Then there was me, Jan Brady - the middle-child band/choir/drama nerd who loved school, was always reading, and joined all of the (non-athletic) extracurricular activities possible. Three kids, same family, different gifts and talents.
July 29 marks the Memorial of Saints Martha, Mary, and Lazarus. This is a family of three siblings with their own distinct personalities who all loved the Lord and showed it in their own way. Our beautiful patroness, St. Martha, had a servant’s heart and is depicted with a strong charism of hospitality. She saw to it that the physical needs of her guests were met and took care to make sure that they were comfortable in her home. Her sister, St. Mary (not the mother of God, just one of his pals), had the love language of quality time. She was graced with a desire to learn from the Master and could push out the noise of the current moment to focus on her relationship with the Lord. St. Lazarus, the only boy (and if they were anything like my family, the golden child), was one of Jesus’s most beloved friends. In fact, there is a popular belief among Biblical scholars that it is Lazarus, not John, who is referred to in Scripture as the “disciple whom Jesus loved”.
In this weekend’s gospel, we hear one of the most relatable family scenes in the entire bible. Jesus shows up at the house in Bethany, and Martha kicks into hostess mode. Meanwhile, her sister does nothing to help, and Martha is annoyed. I don’t know about you, but annoyance was a common occurrence in my household growing up, and I identify greatly with Martha in this passage. Why should she have to bear all of the responsibility while Mary, quite literally, just sits on her butt? To quote [insert the name of any child ever], “It’s not fair!”
When Martha’s frustration bubbled over and she spoke up to Jesus, he replied, “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.”
Ooof. That was not the response she desired or expected, but it was the response she needed. Martha was busy being Martha but was so fixated on what her sister was doing (or not doing) that it diminished her experience with Christ and turned her serving into a burden. In the words Jesus spoke, he allowed Mary to be Mary and taught Martha that the important thing to focus on while he was there were the needs of the soul, not the body. He did not tell Martha to stop serving but reminded her that the joy and blessing of service is the orientation of your heart while doing it. This was a lesson that was taught just as much by Mary and her actions as it was from the mouth of the Lord.
We all learn something from our family members - like what to do and what not to do. For example, my brother taught me how to dribble a basketball, and my sister taught me to never leave a Barbie doll next to a light bulb or it will melt. Within the Body of Christ, we find a great many brothers and sisters. Our family of faith is not limited to this life, and so we are blessed to be able to look also to our heavenly siblings, the saints. These holy relatives, like Martha, Mary, and Lazarus, as well as our brothers and sisters in the pews beside us at Mass have profound knowledge to impart to us from their gifts, talents, experiences, and the way that they show their love for the Lord. We just need to stop our anxious worrying long enough to open our hearts to what they have to teach us.
Diversity of gifts is essential for a thriving family, and it keeps things interesting. We are blessed that our Church is not a matching set of people, but, by the profound wisdom of God, we truly are a beautiful set nonetheless.
Peace to you,
~ Hallie