July 18, 2010

Mary and/or Martha?

Pastor Phil Holtan

Genesis 18:1-10a, Colossians 1:15-28, Luke 10:38-42

I had an aunt Cecil, dead now several years, who lived quite close to my family and we did things together. When I was a high school senior, I showed the slides of an exchange student trip to Peru to my uncles and aunts and cousins at Cecil’s house. Cecil must have really liked the slides, because she stayed through all of them. But when the slides were over and it was time for some refreshments, Cecil had not even started to get them ready. The coffee wasn’t made or the cake cut or dished up. I overheard my mother making a pretty harsh comment, something like, “What a poor way to be a hostess.” quickly seconded by my other aunts. I remember being shocked and saddened that Cecil had to make such a tough choice, learning or serving. Mary or Martha.

Or many years later, you would have enjoyed sitting with us on a patio in the bright French Burgundy sunshine, as in a small Bible study group, we sat with some very wise women, a lawyer from Vienna, a teacher from Belgium, a grad student in Philosophy from Hanover, Germany, a college student from London, and a writer from America. They were all very upset that Jesus picked on Martha. She’s the one who gets things done. She’s the one I’d want working with me. She holds up her end of things. She’s the one who welcomed Jesus, after all, who changed the sheets and cooked the meals. Martha or Mary.

I don’t get it. Isn’t Jesus the one who just told us last week in the Good Samaritan story, a partner story in the gospel of Luke, to welcome the stranger in need of food, shelter, clothing and friendship, as if we were welcoming Jesus himself? So then, who is he to criticize the one who does it?

On that French patio I loved what Karla, the German woman said, “If Jesus wanted Martha to listen to him, he should have grabbed a dish towel and talked in the kitchen, while drying dishes.” Mary or Martha.

So who is Mary, then, besides Martha’s sister? We probably meet the same two sisters in John chapter 10 as they mourn the death of their brother Lazarus. It’s obvious that these are very good friends and supporters of Jesus. From both stories, it seems that Martha is the spokesperson, the one who speaks for both.

But in Luke’s story, Mary is the more unusual woman for that age. She chose to sit at Jesus’ feet and listen to what he is saying. She wasn’t helping with the fancy lunch for Jesus. In that day sitting at someone’s feet meant to become their student, as a disciple to a rabbi. Women in that time just didn’t do that. Women were to be 1-dimensional Marthas, serving the men. But Jesus welcomed Mary and many women into his Rabbinic, almost Socratic community of fellow learners, students gathered around this teacher Jesus. Jesus took Mary and Martha seriously as intellectual and spiritual persons. I don’t know how the 12 disciples felt about that, but this was an unusual group in which women also were respected intellectually and spiritually.

So, back to Mary and Martha. Martha said to Jesus, do you care that Mary has left me to do all the work by myself?” Now there is a ring of truth to that statement. How many times have sisters and brothers carefully measured the fairness of the job distribution.

When I hear Martha’s words, anxious and rather harsh, even toward Jesus, I think of the way I have resented others who made different choices than I have, or my mother and aunts for chiding my aunt Cecil. We have some strong emotions about fairness and everyone doing their share.

Jesus doesn’t play along with Martha. He does not become anxious, even though Martha certainly is. When Martha chided him for letting Mary get off without helping in the kitchen, he responded, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and distracted with many things, perhaps that means many food dishes. There is really only need of one thing, again perhaps, one food dish. So here Jesus invented the hotdish, a one dish meal. But Jesus is also using a play on words, “Only one dish is necessary.” Yes, at one level he probably meant a simple meal, so Martha can also be with Mary, listening and learning. You don’t need to go overboard with something fancy. But also, only one thing is necessary, the Word of God. Mary has chosen the better part, probably the better role, which will not be taken away from her.

Jesus asserted that life is not just about working and doing, making and achieving. There needs to be time for listening and receiving the gifts of God in Jesus. Life isn’t just scurrying around getting and accumulating- it’s full of grace too, of receiving the gifts of another.

We have had wonderful days of “doing” lately at Calvary. The ice cream and pie social showed off great cooks, great musicians, and great hospitality. We were all so proud to be from Calvary on that day.

We work hard as members of this parish, and it shows in so many ways. I am simply amazed at the ministries that we have going on here. You do a lot for the needs of others. You are often Good Samaritans, doing for others as if for Jesus himself.

But being the church is not all about being Martha. We have to be Mary, too, sitting at Jesus’ feet. We need to keep regaining our balance to learn as well as serve.

Let’s look a little more deeply at this story and its neighbor, the Good Samaritan story. In these two stories of Mary and Martha placed next to the story of the Good Samaritan, there is a lesson here about how the Bible is put together. Can you hear how they are very different? The Good Samaritan story, and many others, are about serving others, but the Mary and Martha story says that serving must find its place along with listening to the Word, to Jesus. This way of pairing stories is very common, and it is one of the ways that Luke and his community of faith put together all the stories of Jesus into a gospel.

This story is only found in the gospel of Luke, while most of the gospel stories are in several of the gospels, especially between the Synoptic gospel, Matthew, Mark, and Luke. We call them synoptic gospels because we can look at them together, alongside each others, and see how they are alike and different.

Luke, in putting together his gospel of many stories of Jesus, written and oral, picked this as one that helped his community find some balance in their life of faith. These two stories then mean even more when placed side by side. The lawyer said correctly, “You shall love the Lord God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength, and your neighbor as yourself.” And here, along with the care for the neighbor, we have a more inward way to love God with all our senses and spirit.

I think there are even more differences between these stories, of Mary and Martha and of the Good Samaritan.

Looking at these stories together, I think we can see that the contrast is not between doing and listening, but even more so between being anxious and not. It also shows unexpected actions -- a Samaritan who cares and helps (presumably a Jewish man in need); and a woman who sits and listens and learns as a disciple. First century, Jewish society, would not have expected either person to be praised for their actions. Both the Samaritan and Mary, a woman, are people on the edge, marginalized persons, out of the mainstream of power. But they are those who “hear the word of God and do it.”

So, to summarize, the story of the Good Samaritan develops the meaning of the command to love one's neighbor, and the story of Mary and Martha highlights the even greater importance of loving God by listening to God’s word.

I’ve often heard that employers on the East and West Coast love to hire Midwestern employees, because our work ethic is so strong. They will more than get their money’s worth from people who know how to work hard.

I love our Ice Cream Social and the buzz of hospitality and hard work that it develops. I wish we could get as many people to join bible studies. I think that word balance is very important. This story says we can’t work all the time, or we will miss the most important part. Other stories emphasize the need to serve. Together, they demonstrate a balance, a rhythm to our life between work and worship, service and sitting at Jesus’ feet.

We have many opportunities for service, but far fewer to sit at Jesus’ feet to study and learn. Few of us are involved in any on-going Bible study or discussion group. Few of us, especially we men, are in any small fellowship group. Our children and youth show us up by their Sunday School and confirmation, Bible studies and discussion groups. We adults also need to keep learning. I will be pushing you this fall to be involved. I believe that every one of us needs some small group setting outside of worship to be involved in. There are great gifts to be received when we come together to sit at Jesus’ feet. Help us put together opportunities that will fit your time and needs.

And finally, I expect that Mary and Martha will go with you this week. As they walked with Jesus, and so do you, they will be walking with you, gently nudging you both to serve your neighbor, and to share some time with just Jesus. He is the source of our life and salvation. Spend some time with him this week. Amen.