Homilies

16th Sunday Year C

I would like to call this Gospel as something like, “knowing the right moment”. And it is also about knowing that hospitality asks not just a generous heart, but also that of a selfless focus of attention to the guest. We see the perfect contrast of welcoming guests in Abraham and Martha. Abraham, in the first reading, was so full of attention to his guests, even if he was preoccupied on how to make his guests feel at home. Martha, on the other hand, was focused on the tasks, and the attitude which instead of being joyful in the tasks, there was a bit of resentment to be observed. Mary seemed to be doing nothing, yet her listening to Jesus was seizing the right moment. The Master was talking while she was listening. I would like to think that there should be a balance between working and listening, both done with joy. By doing so, we offer the best in us. These may come seldom, yet we know that when we do it, we know that we are doing “the better part that will not be taken from us.”

With this, we shall say that we can be Martha, or we can be Mary too, or we can combine both with joy. That is the one thing that is necessary. We would be having hospitality to God and neighbor with our whole heart. Knowing that when we do that, we are fully aware of the presence of God. Abraham was able to exercise that. Mary also did that. Martha somehow missed the point and she was able to recover after hearing Jesus’ words.

I can recall a small book I read some years ago. It was a collection of Saint Mother Teresa’s sayings, and clips from her speeches. I was amazed at her words, but most especially on how she lived what she said. She was a true witness. In that book she instructed her sisters to begin the day with the Eucharist, and then silent Eucharistic adoration. Then they could begin their day by helping the poorest of the poor. After a tiring day of labor in the streets of Calcutta, they would end their day again before Jesus. They were just like Mary ‘who sat beside the Lord at his feet listening to him speak.’ I would like to think that these sisters of Mother Teresa know for whom they are doing their work. The focus is no longer on the task at hand, or having been overwhelmed by the task, but the focus is always Jesus, both in their work and in their listening.

Pope Francis was quoted by Anne Odieck: “It is important to understand that this is not the contrast between two attitudes: listening to the word of the Lord in contemplation, and practical service to others. They are not two opposing attitudes, but, on the contrary, they are two essential aspects of our Christian life, aspects that should never be separated, but lived in profound unity and harmony.” “Why is Martha rebuked, even if gently, by Jesus? Because she considered only what she was doing essential, because she was too self-absorbed and preoccupied by things. … For a Christian, the works of service and charity are never detached from the main source of all our actions: listening to the Word of the Lord, being, like Mary, at the feet of Jesus, in the attitude of the disciple. And therefore, Martha is reprimanded.”

Dear brother and sisters, in this 16^th Sunday of Ordinary Time, we ask for the blessing that we will be able to observe this beautiful balance of work and prayer, and to know when the right moment is. To be able to be hospitable to people, with full attention, and do it with joy. That we may possess a generous heart, willing to give time to listen to people, and willing to work hard in what is asked of us. That we may be able to strike a balance of contemplation and action. That we may be welcoming people, realizing that we are welcoming God in the persons of our brothers and sisters. Amen.

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