16^th Sunday in Ordinary Time (C); July 20, 2025

Gn 18:1-10a.  Ps 15.  Col 1:24-28.  Lk 10:38-42

Deacon Jim McFadden

          The Gospel for this Sunday’s Liturgy presents us with a lively domestic scene with Martha and Mary, two sisters who extend their hospitality to Jesus in their home.  Luke notes that it is Martha who invites Jesus into her home, which is not just a physical dwelling, but is the locus which frames the way she thinks and acts.  You get the feeling that Martha is a very take-charge person, that this is her house.  But when Jesus enters the domicile, the dwelling turns into the Lord’s house.  In order for this to happen, Jesus is going to gently correct the way Martha thinks and acts.  This correction is not unwanted criticism, but is done to guide her to a deeper level of living.  She asked the Lord into her home; but what follows will not be the typical house-party for the guest from Nazareth, but will be a transformative encounter.  What follows is not what Martha expected, but it will be what she invited.

          The venerable tradition has interpreted this story as a tension between the ‘active’ and the ‘contemplative’ life.  Martha is bustling about providing hospitality, which probably began days prior in getting the house in order.  As Martha is preparing the meal, Mary is sitting at the feet of Jesus, a posture which stands for the contemplative life.  Now when Jesus says that Mary has chosen the better part, that seems to be a validation of the contemplative life over the active one.  But, I wonder if something else might be going on.

          Martha is a good host: she realizes that hospitality demands that you roll up your sleeves, make sure that everything gets done to make the guest feel at home.  Jesus is aware of this and acknowledges Martha’s good efforts.  But he wants her to understand that there is a new order of priorities, different from the duty bound list of responsibilities.  Mary had sensed that there is something more, a good portion that must be placed first.  Everything else comes after.  Mary has tapped into it, which is like a stream flowing from a divine source.  We ask: what is this good portion?  It is listening to Jesus’ words.  Note that the Gospel says that Mary  “sat at the Lord’s feet and listened to his teaching” (Lk 10:39).  Mary wasn’t listening as she was bustling about hearing Jesus’ teachings in the background.  No she understood that Jesus is not some ordinary prophet, ancient guru, but she sensed that he was someone radically different, like no other guest.  At first sight, it seems that Jesus entered the house to receive hospitality, because he needed food, lodging, rest, and companionship; but in reality the Lord came to give himself through his Word.

          The word of Jesus is not some abstract philosophy or an ancient self-help manual, but his teaching is one that radically changes our life at the very core, which frees us from the attachment to false gods, satisfies the deepest longing of our hearts, and brings with it a joy that never fades away.  Jesus’ word IS the good portion and Mary got it: that’s why she chose it.   Therefore, Mary gives the word of Jesus first place: she stops and listens.  The rest will come after.  This does not detract from the practical effort, which includes all of our activities outside the home involving our political, economic, and social domains.  But these must not come first, but rather everything in our ordinary experience must flow from listening to the word of Jesus.  It must be enlivened by the Holy Spirit.  Otherwise, our life will be reduced to frenetic activity, fussing and fretting over all sorts of things, in which are life is reduced to sterile activism. 

          Jesus is the Word of God and his teachings come right from his Father.  As such, the Word is the very foundation  of our being; it is the ground that grounds everything else.  It is the horizon against which we know our destiny and reveals the fulness of all things.  As this is not a static concept but the Word is a person, who is a Emmanuel, God among us, who calls us to participate in his divine, Trinitarian life now and forever.

          So, when we start our day—perhaps even entertaining the ancient practice of a Holy Hour—let us not begin by throwing ourselves headlong for stuff to be done, or begin by scrolling the internet.  Our first go-to option is the good portion, in which we seek inspiration and direction from the Word of God.  We don’t start our day by just doing things, but we begin by looking to the Lord, absorbing his Word, allowing it to permeate our consciousness and heart.  If we leave the house in the morning internalizing the Word of Jesus, the day will take on a tone marked by that Word, which has the power to orient our lives according to the Father’s purposes. 

          May the Virgin Mary teach us to choose the good portion, which will never be taken from us.  Amen.

Reflection Questions:

1. Has your dwelling turned into the Lord’s house?
2. Is the word of Jesus the good portion of your life?
3. Do you regularly sit at Jesus feet and listen to his teachings?