July 20: The Day of the Lord / El Día del Señor

In Sunday’s account of “a day in the life of the sisters in Bethany,” Martha, took the opportunity to welcome Jesus into their home. Her sister, Mary, apparently as soon as Jesus came in, sat down at His feet and seemed to hang on His every word.

So, what was Martha to do? Sit down, too, and let the stew boil over? If she also rested at Jesus’ feet, who was going to serve? How would they eat? What would they have? Can you imagine being there in Bethany that day? Can you imagine hearing what Martha might have answered? “OK, you two make the dinner, set out the meal, and clean up the place. I’m tired of working and being unappreciated.”

Let’s not forget, though, that there is a lot more going on in Luke 10, 38-42 than a sibling squabble. The Gospel account is showing us that there is a part of Martha, the Saint, in all of us. Just as there is a part of Mary, a Saint as well, in all of us. In fact, there is probably a lot of Mary in Martha and a lot of Martha in Mary!

The challenge which faces us day after day and week after week is letting these sisters get along – in us. When we sit down before the feet of God, let’s not let our Martha fail to rejoice in the moment. And when we go about preparing the meals of life and all the other related chores, let’s labor, not with comparisons or resentment, but with the joy of having been given an opportune moment to see and hear the Lord, to encounter Him very much present in every aspect of our lives.

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El ejemplo de Abrahám (Génesis 18, 1-10, la Primera Lectura de la Misa hoy) es muy elocuente. Da hospitalidad al Señor bajo la forma de los tres mensajeros. Los acoge en su tienda, les dedica tiempo, y prepara todo lo necesario para servirlos. Da órdenes, pero también él se mueve y pone manos a la obra. Más tarde tendrá un sabroso coloquio con ellos. Ha sabido integrar la atención a las personas y el servicio concreto a su necesidad de comer.

Aunque la tradición cristiana ha visto en las hermanas Santa Marta y Santa Maria algunas veces la representación de la vida activa y de la vida contemplativa, parece que más bien encarnan dos de las dimensiones de la vida, que todos debemos cultivar. En todas ellas somos a la vez activos y pasivos. En la vida, recibimos y damos: damos para recibir y recibimos para dar. Ante todo, queremos recibir amor para dar amor. Y ese amor uno lo experimenta cuando presta atención a la fuente del amor: Dios – que nos ha amado primero. Alabemos y demos gracias a Dios por ello.