There is nothing more necessary<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n
The episode is somewhat surprising.\u00a0 The disciples who accompany Jesus have disappeared from the scene.\u00a0 Lazarus<\/b>, the brother of Martha and Mary, is absent.\u00a0 Jesus is alone with two women in their home in the small village of Bethany.\u00a0 They adopt two different attitudes at his arrival.<\/p>\n
As the homemaker, Martha<\/b>, who is undoubtedly the elder sister, welcomes Jesus and puts herself wholly at his service.\u00a0 It is normal.\u00a0 According to the mentality of the time, doing housework is exclusively the woman\u2019s task.\u00a0 But then the younger sister Mary sits besides Jesus at his feet in order to listen to his Word.\u00a0 Her attitude is surprising since she is occupying the place belonging to a \u201cdisciple,\u201d something restricted to men.<\/p>\n
At one point, Martha, overtasked and exhausted, feels abandoned by her sister and misunderstood by Jesus:\u00a0 \u201cLord, do you not care that my sister has left me by myself to do the serving?\u00a0 Tell her to help me.\u201d\u00a0 Why does he not order her sister to devote herself to tasks appropriate for women and quit occupying the place reserved for male disciples?<\/b><\/p>\n
Jesus\u2019 reply is very important.<\/b>\u00a0 Luke composes it thinking probably of the disagreements and small conflicts that arise in the first communities at the time of the designation of various duties:\u00a0 \u201cMartha, Martha, you are anxious and worried about many things.\u00a0 There is need of only one thing.\u00a0 Mary has chosen the better part and it will not be taken from her.\u201d<\/p>\n
Jesus does not criticize at any time Martha\u2019s attitude of service, an essential duty of every follower of Jesus, yet he invites her not to let herself be absorbed in her work to the point of losing her peace.\u00a0 And he gives the reminder that listening to his Word has to be everyone\u2019s priority, the women\u2019s as well, and not some kind of a male privilege.<\/b><\/p>\n
It is urgent today to understand and organize the Christian community as the place where attention is given, first and foremost, to the welcoming of the Gospel in the midst of\u00a0the secular and pluralistic society of our day.<\/b>\u00a0 There is nothing more important.\u00a0 Nothing more necessary.\u00a0 We have to learn to gather together, men and women, believers and\u00a0less than\u00a0believers, in small groups in order to listen to and share together the words of Jesus.<\/p>\n
This listening to the Gospel in small \u201ccells\u201d can be today the \u201cstem\u201d from which is regenerated the tissue of our parishes in crisis.<\/b>\u00a0 If the simple people know first hand the Gospel of Jesus, enjoy it and demand it of the hierarchy, it will draw us all toward Jesus.<\/p>\n
Jos\u00e9 Antonio Pagola<\/b><\/p>\n
July 21, 2013
\n16 Ordinary Time (C)
\nLucas 10, 38-42<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"