Martha and Mary

Gen 18, 1-10
Col 1, 24-28
Lk 10, 38-42

Service Hospitality and Presence Hospitality

When I was in high school, my barkadas used to come to my home to ask me to join their gimmicks or spend time with them exchanging stories. I would then entertain them at the front yard of the house especially when I have not yet cleaned the sala area. My mother would always say then, invite your classmates or visitors to come in and offer them some merienda. My Mama and Papa once explained that it would be best to entertain my guests inside the house where they can sit comfortably and relax rather than have them stand outside the house. With the comments of my parents, I realized the importance of welcoming and accommodating guests warmly.

Today’s readings, both the First Reading and Gospel, talk about hospitality. Hospitality can be viewed in two different levels — First, hospitality through service and second, hospitality through presence. Let us reflect on the first one – hospitality through service or action. In the first reading, when Abraham saw the three men, he approached them without any hesitation and he took the initiative to render service for them. Together with his wife, Sarah, and his servant, they prepared some food for their guests. Abraham’s welcoming attitude reflects a kind of mutual aid and generosity even toward strangers. Abraham’s hospitality was rewarded by God. The reward was for Sarah to be able to conceive a son.

Moreover, as described in the Gospel, when Jesus entered the house of Martha and Mary, Martha immediately prepared something for Jesus. The difference between Abraham and Martha was that Abraham patiently waited until the three men finished their meal while Martha complained, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me by myself to do the serving?” Martha protested because she might have felt the burden of the work in preparing everything. Or maybe, Martha wanted Mary to help her so that the preparation would have been less burdensome. But Jesus replied, “Martha, you are anxious and worried of many things.” These words of Jesus could mean that Martha was so bothered with unnecessary things. She did things of less importance. Jesus was telling Martha that there were far greater things to do than mere preparation. The remark of Jesus to Martha should lead us to a deeper level of hospitality.

The other level of hospitality is hospitality through presence. Upon noticing Martha’s anxiousness, Jesus added, “There is need of only one thing. Mary has chosen the better part and it will not be taken from her.” We might be tempted to ask, “What did Mary do?” The first part of the Gospel stated, “Mary sat beside the Lord at his feet listening to him speak.” Mary’s mere presence beside the Lord speaks a lot. It could mean Mary’s interest in listening to Jesus’ stories and teachings. It could also be Mary’s way of showing her love for the Lord.

Isn’t it beautiful to see that a husband and his wife or a boy and a girl who are into a relationship sitting side by side, even though they are not actually talking to each other? It seems to be such a sweet and special moment for both of them. This is because the mere presence of their partners by their side is enough to give them so much happiness. One’s presence can make a difference – a sweet smile, a helping hand, a pat on the shoulder, encouraging words, inspiring messages, good jokes, and most especially, by merely listening to one’s story – which can make another person’s heart leap for joy. It can make one feel that he or she is important. It is not the quantity of tangible things we give to others that can make them happy, but it is the quality of time we spend with them that matters most.

The Gospel shows us the interplay between service and presence; between work and prayer. Sometimes, if not most of the time, we are like Martha. We are concerned with so many things — things that we want to do, things that give us pleasure, things that satisfy our needs, things that please others. We do lots of things that are not necessary. We even reach the point of being saturated even with the simple things that we do or easily get tired in our work. We feel the burden on our shoulders. Why? Because we do it through our own efforts. We rely so much on our own capacity. The worst thing that can happen is when we feel stressed out and disappointed in the things that we do.

In our lives, there were times when we do not imitate Mary – Mary who recognized the presence of Jesus; Mary who listened to Jesus; and Mary who was so calm. The readings showed that Mary was just seated beside Jesus; yet Jesus gave her the credit simply because she opened her heart and allowed Jesus to talk to her.

Jesus has visited Mary and Martha centuries ago. Jesus continues to do the same thing with us now. Jesus comes to our house everyday. He knocks at the doors of our hearts every moment, but sometimes we do not recognize Him because we are too busy. We are not aware of his presence because we focus only on the things we want to see; on the things we want to do; and on the things we want to happen in our lives. Mary teaches us to be more hospitable to Jesus. How? Simply make time for Jesus to talk to us. All we have to do is to sit, stay quiet, and pray. Praying does not mean that we do all the talking before God and asking for the things we desire, but praying is more of listening. We listen to what Jesus is whispering to us. I recall what my Spiritual Director in Tagaytay would always tell me, “Abs, you don’t need to talk before the Lord. Your presence is enough. The Lord knows what you need. All you have to say is, ‘Lord I’m here and I am listening to you.“ We lend our hearts to what Jesus is communicating to us.

Thus, the Gospel challenges us to make a balance between service we render to others and our presence for them; or between our daily work and our prayer life. The more we stay close to Christ, the more we become like him. I believe that if we start our day with a prayer, everything will fall into their proper places. We may encounter difficult tasks, but we don’t really feel the burden because we are not alone and we have totally surrendered everything to God. In this way, we will always find joy in the things we do. Let our prayers bear fruit in our work and let our work be a part of our prayer. Amen.