Today's gospel we have heard on numerous occasions: homilies, lectures, retreats. This moment in the lives of Jesus, Martha and Mary might be one of the great "guilt trip" gifts that are given to us throughout the course of the year. We either condemn ourselves because we come to know that we are so driven at times that we put our own spirituality, our own relationship with Jesus Christ, on the back burner of our day-to-day lives.
The pace of modern society is becoming more and more set by the presence of computers and 24/7/365 new reporting on radios and televisions. Are there not days when your inner being wants to scream out "Give me a break. Ease up for God's sake!" Are there not times when frustrations, caused by seemingly non-ending problems and demands from others, bring about overwhelming desires to walk away from what we are doing?
The story of Martha and Mary is really a one-act play about each person's having to deal with who he or she truly is: my quiet, reflective side and that "go get 'em" side that is far from reflective. What we have to acknowledge is that Jesus is trying to do a little teaching with his audience. He is not condemning Martha. Clearly there was no catering company present to make the dinner and prepare all that was need for the invited guests. No, Jesus is simply teaching this: the great personal riches and satisfactions come from the quiet, reflective moments that should be a part of daily life. There will always be the need for work, for attention to others rather than aloneness with ourselves and our God. The message is simple: there's a time and place for work, a time and place for doing but there is also a time and a need for quiet, for reflection.
Our lives will always present the challenge for us to choose: quiet or doing at different parts of the day. Winston Churchill is known for this thought: "We make a living by what we get [the Martha side of our lives]. We make a life by what we give [the Mary side of our lives]. Only when we take quiet time, distancing ourselves from the business of our existence, only then can we begin to know who we are, what we are and where we should be with our lives. We cannot fully give of who we are with all its wonder if we don't know what that abundance is that we have. And this is true: the more you give of yourself to that quiet time to hear the Lord, the more you will receive in your life.
