Two readings today invite us to reflect on a virtue that stands out as an essential characteristic expected of any Christian: the virtue of hospitality. To open our doors and hearts to friends and strangers, as Abraham and Martha did, is what God expects us to do, not just here in this gathering, but in our homes, our neighborhoods, at work and in the marketplace as well.
Like Martha, most Christians are a welcoming people but how readily do we really welcome Jesus and what he has to say into our daily lives? How well do we know him? Those questions brings to mind the story of a little black boy in a small Southern town where blacks lived on one side of the tracks and everyone else on the other side. One Sunday morning, he set out to see what people did on that side so he crossed the tracks, came to a huge church, heard the singing and decided to go in. When an usher spotted him, he went over to the boy and said, “Son, why don’t you just go back to where you came from? Now, scoot!” Heart-broken, the boy sat down on the steps of the church and cried.
Jesus came, sat down next to him, and asked, “What’s the matter, son?” “Oh,” sobbed the little boy, “They don’t want me in there.” “Don’t worry,” said Jesus, “I’ve been trying to get in there for years and they won’t let me in either!” Are we really letting Jesus and his message into our lives?
While Martha scurried about the kitchen busily preparing a meal to make Jesus feel at home, Mary really made him feel welcomed. She wasn’t giving her sister much of a helping hand yet she is the one whom Jesus commends for making a better choice. Unlike Martha, Mary is paying attention to the guest himself. The more we place Jesus at the center of our lives, the more his message begins to make sense.
Hospitality may be the obvious lesson here, but Jesus insists that there is something equally important, namely listening. By listening, Mary is being present to Jesus and that is what we are urged to do as well, so how well do we actually listen to him, much less one another? Listening well takes practice whether we are listening to each other or to God in prayer.
Listening is an amazing way to show respect for one another and to honor each other’s human dignity. Real listening also requires that we be open and vulnerable to what others have to say. That can be challenging if we don’t agree with what is being said and feel strongly about it. But maybe our view that we think we are so right is actually more narrow than we realize. By listening carefully to a different viewpoint, we might learn some things that help us to know better, to think more broadly, and be more compassionate.
How often do we find ourselves in situations where the person we are talking to just does not seem to be tuned in? The facial expressions and eye movements loudly hint that his or her mind is elsewhere. Sometimes we do that too. Instead of really listening to what is being said, we are either preoccupied with our own agenda or busily articulating a rebuttal to what is being said and apt to interrupt. A conversation took place but the experience of being truly present and listening to one another was lost.
Early in my ministry, I once gave a homily that prompted someone to hotly disagree with me in the presence of others after Mass. Sixteen years later he came here and publicly apologized to me in a Knights of Columbus meeting. I was touched by his graciousness in apologizing. In his apology, he made clear that regardless of why he disagreed with me then, his behavior had been out of line. It takes class and courage to publicly apologize as he did.
My task as a homilist is to take scripture, reflect on its message, that is, listen to what is being said and then find ways to make that message relevant in today’s world. If I, as a homilist, cause you to always feel good and think that all is well and believe that praying here at Mass is sufficient, then I am not doing my job. As Christians, we are called to action, to do the corporal and spiritual works of mercy, to be the evident face of Christ in a broken world.
The epidemic of violence, most recently felt in Nice, whether in words or action, on the streets, in homes, in boardrooms and classrooms, in parks and restaurants, reminds us that our world urgently needs healing. God is calling us to do as Jesus did, to help diminish the violence and heal the wounded, to welcome the stranger and to love those whom we judge as not being lovable. My job as a homilist is to help us hear and realize what that call from God entails.
Like Martha, some of us are anxious and worried about many things. That is evident in our attitude toward certain minorities but we are all God’s children, regardless of ethnicity, religion, gender, physical or mental limitations, sexual orientation, addictions, illnesses, income, or citizenship. The mission of every disciple is to uphold the dignity of every child of God. Unless we listen to Jesus, we can easily gloss over what he is prescribing as the means for us to build a better, more loving and compassionate world.
Mary knew her presence would be more satisfying to a heart hungry for attention than any meal served by her sister could ever be. We are fooling ourselves if we think we have a close relationship with Jesus yet find ourselves too busy, like Martha, to really listen to what he has to tell us through prayer, scripture reflection, and those whom we encounter.