More on the Feast Day of Saint Martha

My blog post on the feast day of Saint Martha is up at the Living Lutheran site.  Go here to read it.

Here are some quotes to whet your appetite:

"Some scholars see the Mary and Martha story as examples of how to live the Christian life and the difficulty of navigating the two ends of the spectrum of possibilities.  Do we engage in service or do we adopt a more contemplative stance?"

"Some years, I see the Mary and Martha story as one that tells me to forgo the earthly chores to focus on God.  All of our busyness takes our focus away from God. God will not appear with white gloves to assess our spiritual progress by way of household upkeep. The assessment of our spiritual progress will focus on much more serious issues than those."

"I love that Martha has a sharp tongue, and Jesus doesn’t cast her away.  I love that we can come to Jesus with our sorrows and our irritations, and Jesus will still stay at the table to eat with us.  I love that Martha tries to make Jesus behave in the way that she thinks he should.  He refuses, but he doesn’t reject her for her attempts.  He understands her all-too-human response to him, and he continues to try to shape her to be the better human that he knows she can be."

While you're there at the Living Lutheran site, you should also check out Anita Tebben Nuetzman's post--more good stuff on Mary and Martha!