Soon after Jesus raised Lazarus to life, he visited him again. “Six days before the Passover, Jesus went to Bethany, where Lazarus lived. There they gave a supper for him. Martha served, and Lazarus was one of those at table with him.” (Jn 12:1-2)
With what grateful love Martha must have attended to the Messiah in her house; God was in need of her services. She was able to wait on him. God became man in order to identify with our human needs, so that we might learn to love him through his most Sacred Humanity and be able to become his intimate friends.
We must always consider that the same Jesus of Nazareth eagerly awaits us in the nearest tabernacle. He is in need of our attention and services. “It is true that I always call our tabernacles Bethany. Become a friend of the Master’s friends, Lazarus, Martha and Mary, and then you will no longer ask me why ...” (St Josemaria Escrivá, “The Way”, 322)
There Christ is sacramentally present. We must visit him each day and keep him company, unhurried and without anxiety, during those precious moments of thanksgiving after we receive Holy Communion. How profitable this time can be for us!
St Thomas teaches that the Incarnation was the most effective and beneficial way for God to redeem mankind. (“Summa Theologiae”, II, 1, 2) His reasons are: “as far as faith is concerned”, it was easier to believe since God himself was the one speaking;
“as far as hope” -- by the great proof of his salvific will that this act of revelation represents; “... as far as charity” -- since greater love than this no man has, that he lay down his life for his friends (cf Jn 15:13);
and “as far as actual deeds of love” -- since God himself was going to be our model. By taking on human flesh, God shows the tremendous value of every human creature. Through his humility, he cures our pride ...
Through the Sacred Humanity of Jesus, God’s love assumed human form for us which gently opens up an inclined plane that leads to union with God our Father.
Therefore, Christian life consists in loving, imitating and following Christ. The example of his life inspires our friendship with him.
Our sanctification should not focus on the struggle against sin. It is not a question of avoiding evil, but of loving and imitating the Master who “... passes by doing good ...” (Acts 10:38) Christian life is profoundly human.
Our hearts have an important role in the work of our sanctification since God has chosen to become man.
If we are lacking in affectionate care in our life of piety and recklessly allow the heart free reign among creatures, our personal friendship with the Master will suffer and find our strength of will insufficient for us to push ahead on the narrow path of holiness. We must make an effort to be always aware Jesus is at our side.
On another occasion Jesus and his disciples stopped by his friends at Bethany en route to Jerusalem. Martha and Mary prepared what is necessary to provide hospitality for the Master and his companions. But Mary, perhaps shortly after Jesus arrived, sat down at his feet and “listened to his teaching” (Lk 10:39) while Martha went on alone with the housework.
Mary set aside everything and gave her full attention to the Master. “The familiarity with which she settles down at his feet, her habit of listening to him, and her hunger to hear his words show that this is not a first encounter, but that there is a rare sympathy here.” (M J Indart, “Jesus in His world”)
Martha certainly was also listening attentively to the words of Jesus; but the domestic chores occupied her mind more. Jesus moves the conversation onto a higher plane.
She becomes uneasy and perhaps feels overworked. Upset at Mary’s action, she trustingly tells Jesus, “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me.” (Lk 10:40)
Jesus responds in the familiar tone and manner: “‘Martha, Martha’, he tells her, ‘you are worried and concerned about many things; only one thing is necessary’.” (Lk 10:41-2)
Mary, who most assuredly would have been willing to help her sister, did not forget what was most essential: to have Christ at the center of her life. Our Lord does not praise Mary’s disposition, but precisely the most important part of it: her love.
Not even ‘the things of the Lord’ should make us forget the ‘Lord of all things’. Martha would never forget the Lord’s friendly counsel. Indispensable as her work was, her care not to relegate Christ to second place should have been even greater.
Our activities and concerns that refer directly to God’s service should never cause us to neglect the Person of Christ.
In our daily life we must keep in mind that matters which seem very important, like work, financial gain and social relations should never take precedence over the family itself. These means are meaningless if family life suffers. A father or mother earns more money but neglects the children, what good would this be?
The Blessed Virgin who enjoys the ineffable presence of Christ in heaven forever, will gain for us the grace of better appreciating an active friendship with the Master.
She will teach us to take diligent care of the things of the Lord without forgetting the Lord of all. She will intercede for us before Jesus so that we may learn never to value the family itself less than those noble gains we seek for its sake.
Ref: cf F Fernandez, “In Conversation with God”, 7:41-5
· “St Martha, I resort to your protection and my faith. Comfort me in my difficulties and to the great favor you enjoyed in the lodging in the house of our Lord. Intercede for me and my family that we may hold God to our hearts and to be provided for in all our necessities.” (Novena to St Martha)
In the year 1546, it was decreed at the Council of Trent that respecting the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin, the constitution of Pope Sixtus IV, should be strictly observed under the penalties therein imposed. — Balingham on the Calendar. (“Catholic Gems or Treasures of the Church” Historical Calendar; http://www.bethlehemobserver.com); (www.marylinks.org/Mary-Calendar.htm); (maryfest.htm / www.starharbor.com/santiago/m_feasts.html)
‘Nuestra Señora dela Deliverance’ / Our Lady of Deliverance. Madrid, Spain. [See December 16.] (www.marylinks.org/Mary-Calendar.htm);(www.iskandar.com/ourlady/ourladyfeasts.html)
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment