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St. Charles Episcopal Church - Saint Charles, IL

The Eighth Sunday after Pentecost - Proper 11 RCL – Year C

Sunday, July 18, 2010                                                                                                                                                                                    

Amos 8:1-12 – Psalm 52 – Colossians 1:15-28 – Luke 10:38-42

Rev. William R. Nesbit, Jr.

In the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, Amen.

Well, here it is. That wonderful Gospel we in America love to hate. Mary and Martha. In the land that has lifted up anxiety and busyness to a high art form, the tale of Mary and Martha just sticks in our craw. While Mary sits at the feet of Jesus doing nothing, Martha is bustling around preparing the meal, setting the table, probably preparing sleeping rooms as well. A little help would be nice, but Mary just sits there. And when Martha has the temerity to ask Jesus to remind Mary of her duty, it is Martha that gets scolded. It just doesn’t seem right, somehow! If Mary would just help a bit to get everything done, then everyone could sit and learn from Jesus. Wouldn’t that be a more equitable, more just solution? Wouldn’t that be better for everyone?

One of the problems with hearing the Gospel a little at a time over the course of a year is that it is easy to lose both the context of the story and the narrative line in the gap between segments. In the case of our Gospel this week, that can end up changing many parts of the meaning of the story. So how about filling in the context and seeing what it is we might be missing.

First, let’s remember that these are Jewish women and they are friends of Jesus, probably dear friends. For Jews of this time, there is a strong mandate in society for hospitality. Look how many times, in both the Old Testament and the New, people great visitors and feed them even though they barely have enough to feed themselves. The Jews are a desert people and so both food and water are precious commodities, and yet the injunction to share with visitors and travelers is absolute. It is what they do. As dear friends of Jesus, the desire of Mary and Martha to share a meal and offer hospitality would be doubly so. In the face of both this societal pressure and the personal relationship between them, the situation of Mary sitting at the feet of Jesus and listening to him without lifting a finger is so much more than mere selfishness or laziness. It borders on an insult, it is so offensive in this situation... and yet, Jesus lifts up this behavior as appropriate. What’s going on here?

If we look at the narrative a bit, I think we can get a little more of the true picture. Did you happen to notice that little throw away line at the very beginning? “As Jesus and his disciples went on their way...” By now you should know that there are very few, if any, throw away lines in the Bible. Our narrator is using this line to remind us of something because it is important to the story. Jesus and his disciples are on their way. Do you remember where? On their way to Jerusalem. Remember a couple of weeks ago, Jesus had turned his face to Jerusalem? They are still on their way. Jesus is going to the cross and this is the last time he will visit Mary and Martha before his death and that changes everything. Now is definitely not the time to be distracted. Now is the time to be focused. Now is the time to be paying attention. Like your life depended on it. Because it does.

 OK, that is what the story has to say about two sisters sharing some time with their friend long ago, but what does it have to say to us today? Why is it relevant to us? Well, one of the things about Christians is that they work out their salvation in a lot of different ways, and so there are a lot of different ways to catagorize Christians. It has been going on since the beginning. One of the classic arguments that arises when different Christians get together is the argument between faith and works... which of them is more important. You can see that this argument began even before the Bible was written down, because there are different books that weigh in on different sides. I suspect that this argument is even more ancient, and may be an archetype in the world of arguments. Which is more important talking the talk, or walking the walk. Is it more important what you say or what you do. I think that in this story of Mary and Martha, we have an opportunity for Jesus to weigh in on this classic argument, but his position is not as obvious as you might think.

At first blush it may appear that Jesus is saying that faith is more important than good works, but let’s not jump the gun. There is a lot to this brief story. Notice that the work that Martha is doing is never directly mentioned. We assume that it is good because she is fulfilling the ancient Jewish mandate of hospitality, but we don’t really know what she is doing. What is mentioned are the distractions caused by the work she is doing. They are mentioned twice. The problem isn’t the work it is the distraction. So the correction isn’t to stop working, but to be mindful in her work. In my mind that says a lot about faith and works. Works for the sake of works are dead. It is the faith that gives root to the works that gives them meaning.

Our church is full of busy people. Come in on a Saturday morning and watch the Altar Guild and the Flower Guild about their business as they prepare for Sunday morning. Watch the Soup Kitchen folks or the Hesed House folks preparing for their ministry. Watch the Vestry or the Fund-Raising Committee or the Finance Committee as they go about their business. You will see a lot of activity. It is good, important work, but there is always the risk that it will become a distraction. What Jesus is reminding us this morning is to beware of the distractions. Beware of the distractions that are always a risk when you are doing good work. The distractions that try to separate the work from the faith that gives it life. When the work that you are doing, in church or out of church, at work or at home, begins to distract you from your relationship with your Lord and Savior, it is time to take a break and take the time to sit and listen again to the words of salvation. Your salvation. Those words come from the loving heart of the Savior who knows you better than you know yourself. That relationship, the bond of love between you and Jesus is more important to you than anything else in the world. To let it grow cold or distant is to put your very soul at risk. It is the one thing, the only thing that you truly need. Choose the better part...It will never be taken away. Amen.