Fr. Jerome Pistoni sx
16TH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME YEAR C 17th July 2022
LUKE 10: 38-42
Every Saturday morning, after the daily Mass a group of children and youths come to church here in Makeni, to clean the compound in order to have it tidy for the people who are coming to attend the Sunday mass.
When I come out of my office to check what is going on, I usually see a group of them sweeping and another group collecting the scattered paper, but always there is a third group sitting on the steps of the church just talking.
My usual reaction is to rebuke those who are sitting idle and instead to praise those who are working and serving the community.
Today Jesus seems to be doing exactly the opposite of what I usually do. He is in the house of Mary, Martha and Lazarus in Bethany. Mary is sitting down at the feet of Jesus and Martha is doing the house chores. Martha complains to Jesus because Mary is sitting idle, just listening. She tells him to invite Mary to stop idling and do something. But Jesus gently reproaches Martha for her complaint: ‘Martha, Martha,’ he says ‘you worry and fret about so many things, and yet few are needed, indeed only one. It is Mary who has chosen the better part; it is not to be taken from her.’
What is Jesus saying? Serving is not important? Is this not the last message he left during the Easter meal when he knelt at the feet of the disciples and started washing their feet?
Were not these his words: “the greatest among you is the one who serves?”
Now it seems that the greatest is the one sitting idle!!
Well, it is not really like this. Jesus considers both these kinds of behaviour important: listening and serving. They are not contradictory.
If we only listen, but always exclude serving and working, we may be wasting time.
If, on the contrary, we serve and work without having listened to the word of Jesus, our service and work may be selfish and purposeless. We may be doing it because of self interest or attachments: I need something from a person, therefore I help him; I want something from this institution, therefore, in order to gain its approvals, I serve the institution.
It may happen also that I get tired of serving because of ingratitude or lack of recognition.
Service that is born from listening to the word of Jesus is free from selfish interests and will last. This is what we need to learn: Sitting at the feet of Jesus and listening to him. This gives us the capacity to serve as he did.
Anyway, I am convinced that Mary, too, when Jesus was not present, was doing her share of serving.
16TH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME YEAR C 17th July 2022
LUKE 10: 38-42
Every Saturday morning, after the daily Mass a group of children and youths come to church here in Makeni, to clean the compound in order to have it tidy for the people who are coming to attend the Sunday mass.
When I come out of my office to check what is going on, I usually see a group of them sweeping and another group collecting the scattered paper, but always there is a third group sitting on the steps of the church just talking.
My usual reaction is to rebuke those who are sitting idle and instead to praise those who are working and serving the community.
Today Jesus seems to be doing exactly the opposite of what I usually do. He is in the house of Mary, Martha and Lazarus in Bethany. Mary is sitting down at the feet of Jesus and Martha is doing the house chores. Martha complains to Jesus because Mary is sitting idle, just listening. She tells him to invite Mary to stop idling and do something. But Jesus gently reproaches Martha for her complaint: ‘Martha, Martha,’ he says ‘you worry and fret about so many things, and yet few are needed, indeed only one. It is Mary who has chosen the better part; it is not to be taken from her.’
What is Jesus saying? Serving is not important? Is this not the last message he left during the Easter meal when he knelt at the feet of the disciples and started washing their feet?
Were not these his words: “the greatest among you is the one who serves?”
Now it seems that the greatest is the one sitting idle!!
Well, it is not really like this. Jesus considers both these kinds of behaviour important: listening and serving. They are not contradictory.
If we only listen, but always exclude serving and working, we may be wasting time.
If, on the contrary, we serve and work without having listened to the word of Jesus, our service and work may be selfish and purposeless. We may be doing it because of self interest or attachments: I need something from a person, therefore I help him; I want something from this institution, therefore, in order to gain its approvals, I serve the institution.
It may happen also that I get tired of serving because of ingratitude or lack of recognition.
Service that is born from listening to the word of Jesus is free from selfish interests and will last. This is what we need to learn: Sitting at the feet of Jesus and listening to him. This gives us the capacity to serve as he did.
Anyway, I am convinced that Mary, too, when Jesus was not present, was doing her share of serving.