Sunday, July 22, 2007

Martha, Martha

Today's Gospel was the story of Martha and Mary. Terry over at Abbey Roads 2 likens Martha to the stereotypical, nosy "church lady" who is always getting mixed up in everyone else's business, complaining to the priest that things are just not going the way she thinks they should. (My dh likens Jesus' refrain of "Martha, Martha" to "Oscar, Oscar".[!])

At any rate, traditionally, this story has been said to represent the two ways of expressing faith: contemplation and action. I think we each need a bit of both. We cannot contemplate to the point of neglecting our daily duties, but we should not be so focused on what we do that we neglect our life of prayer.

And, further, those who cannot accomplish what most people think is necessary in this life, are not worthless. They are not to be looked down on or treated unfairly. As John Paul II showed us in his later years, their lives can be a shining example of patience and prayer.

5 comments:

Paul said...

Our pastor pointed out that, in sitting at Jesus' feet, Mary had assumed a posture usually only reserved for men.

Staying in Balance said...

Really? I hadn't heard that. Wow.

Anonymous said...

My sister, I wish to invite you to join the team of Mount Carmel Catholic Bloggers. If you are intrested, please email me at larkiniv@msn.com. I love all of your articles, and will continue to pray for great spiritual sucess in your blog. May the Lord give you peace.

Staying in Balance said...

Wow, thanks so much for the honor! I've emailed you.

xxxxxx said...

I always love this, because I need to hear it every so often (funny how easy it is to forget!)

Dymphna's favorite quotes


"Slavery ended in medieval Europe only because the church extended its sacraments to all slaves and then managed to impose a ban on the enslavement of Christians (and of Jews). Within the context of medieval Europe, that prohibition was effectively a rule of universal abolition. "— Rodney Stark

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