Tuesday of week 27 in Ordinary Time

The gospel story today about Mary and Martha provides an interesting contrast between the choices made by these two women. Both of the sisters surely love Jesus, but demonstrate it in different ways. Mary expresses her love by taking advantage of the opportunity to be close to Jesus and hear His every word. Martha expresses her love in a much more active way, tending to the practical needs of Jesus by going out to greet Him and assuming the burden of preparing a meal.
When Martha asks Jesus to tell Mary to help her, He tells her that Mary has made the better choice. It may seem somewhat puzzling that Jesus does not support Martha’s request for Mary’s assistance. Jesus is not saying that Mary is the better person, but just for that time she has made the better choice. In each of us there needs to be a balance between the practical activities of Martha and the quiet listening of Mary. We need to take the time to listen to Jesus telling each of us how much he loves us. It is the awareness and acceptance of His love that will enable us to share that love while performing all of the activities.