The Better Part

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What is the better part?

I sat in the fading sunlight yesterday.  To the West, the glowing remnants of a day that had been given its best, even in the 103 degree weather.  To the East, a darkening sky that seemed ominous and full of terror.  To look around the sky, there was a contrast between the radiant warm colors of the setting sun and the cold dark clouds of the oncoming storm.  And then,  the lightning!  At first it was one bolt that struck with the focus of a college professor with his red pen in hand!  Sharp and fast, it struck and then it was gone, but the witness of its presence remained.  After that first lightning bolt, there were plenty more and while my initial instinct was to run and shelter, I stayed put and in awe as the weather put on this glorious production.  The Heavens were telling the Glory of God and I was privileged to be a spectator, admiring such beauty.
For many years, I did not like Mary, she seemed lazy and careless to me. She had clearly skirted all her responsibilities and left her sister Martha to do the work and to make matters worse, when Martha mentions her sister's lack of assistance, it is she, Martha, and not Mary who gets a Jesus reprimand.  The "big brother" in me always cringed at poor Martha.  I always imagined her to storm off and then do the rest of her work in a huff, like I would have.  So this is the part where I wish I could say that I am no longer like Martha.  This is the part where I would triumphantly announce that I am more like Mary and so much attune to the voice of the Master...  yeah, right.  If only! In actuality, however, there is an important lesson to be gleaned from this story.  In reality, the story calls us to never be afraid to sit at the feet of the Master and listen.  It is a pleasant reminder that no matter what, we are invited to approach Christ and sit with Him in Love.  But the flip side of the story is that Martha is not completely wrong either.  Sure, she's told that Mary is right, but notice also that she isn't ever told that she is wrong.  I believe this is because the Love of God calls us to listen and act.  Or if you prefer, to put it in the words of St. Benedict "ora et labora."  It is in this exchange of listening and acting that we encounter Christ in a very different manner.  You see, it is easy to say "I'll keep you in my prayers."  It is much more difficult to then become those prayers, to en-flesh what we proclaim, but this is exactly what our Christian call to evangelize is.  It is a becoming recharged and renewed int he Love of God so that we can in turn share that love, or become that love for others.  A relationship with God is always good, but if that relationship only stays within the confines of my heart, then there is something seriously lacking.  Now don't get me wrong, this doesn't mean that I get to be a holy jerk to other people, especially those I perceive as bad.  As I have come to know God's love more and more, I have come to realize that sharing God's love does not have to take the militant form of evangelization that has so prevailed in our times.  Instead, evangelization is a partaking in the present time, the hear and now and being available to what the Spirit may be doing.  In many ways, it is about being like Mary and then Martha or Martha and then Mary.  it is about being able to stand in awe of the Divine and then share, not because the Divine forces us to, but because we can't help but share the good we have just encountered.  it is standing in the middle of the storm and allowing yourself to be immersed in the wind, the rain, the light and the darknes and then sharing the experience with others.  The love of God is not exclusive to one group or one person, but there can be no doubt that each of us, in our own unique manner, have the grace to encounter that love in radically different ways.  As I sit and reflect on this amazing love, I also hope that each one of you has that experience which inspires you to share.  If nothing else, sit and enjoy and then go and do.  As always, know that you are beautiful and you are loved.  God bless you.  Fr. Rick