Martha and Mary: opposition or unity? Martha and Mary - work and worship.

HEALING OF TEN LEPERS. ZACCHEUS. JESUS ​​CHRIST IN THE HOUSE OF MARY AND MARPHA In a village near Jerusalem, Jesus Christ met ten men with leprosy. They did not dare to approach Him and, kneeling down, prayed to Him from a distance and asked: “Jesus, Teacher, have mercy on us.”

The Story of Martha and Mary One day Jesus and his disciples came to a village in Judea, where a woman named Martha invited Jesus to her house. And that woman had a sister, whose name was Mary. Mary sat down at the feet of Jesus and began to listen to Him. And Jesus spoke like this: “Ask, and it is given to you

Alexander Pol'shin

Conversation in the church of St. John the Evangelist

Today we will talk about the episode with Martha and Mary. It is described in the Gospel of Luke very briefly, but it contains many nuances that are important for the Christian life. Let's read this episode slowly, remembering all those few words that are pronounced here.

So, Lk.10, 38-40.

“In the course of their journey, He came to a certain village; here a woman named Martha received him into her house; she had a sister, named Mary, who sat down at the feet of Jesus and listened to His word. Martha, however, was anxious about a great treat, and, coming up, said: Lord! Or do you not need that my sister left me alone to serve? tell her to help me. Jesus answered her and said, Martha! Martha! you care and fuss about many things, but only one thing is needed; Mary chose the good part, which will not be taken away from her.”

This small text seems simple and clear, especially since we are already used to understanding it in a certain way. Many of us, and myself until recently, perceive the situation with Martha and Mary according to the final words of Jesus: "... Mary chose the good part ...". I used to see this as contrasting what Martha is doing with what Mary did - quitting her job and listening to "spiritual" conversations at the table. It seems obvious to us that with the words about the "good part" Jesus contrasts the "earthly" with the "heavenly", that is, the efforts of Martha about the "great treat" of Mary sitting at the feet of Jesus. And some people draw an extreme conclusion from this, leaving all worries about their basic life needs in order to live only “spiritual”.

But isn't this evidence deceiving us? Is this episode so simple, and is Jesus so simple, to fill the time of his life with well-known oppositions: good versus bad, spiritual versus non-spiritual, earthly versus heavenly? If you think like this, understand the Gospels like that, then everything can become simple and easy. Then entering the Kingdom of Heaven, entering the “new life” will become as easy as shelling pears, it is enough to turn away from all earthly worries and live only “spiritual”. Do not worry about food, about treating friends and relatives, do not burden yourself with earthly concerns about children, and expect, expect the arrival of "heavenly".

Of course, a Christian cannot reason in such a simplified way: earthly things are bad, but heavenly things are the best, so let's discard everything that is earthly and collect only what is needed for heaven. It's not about opposition. It's about something else, completely different.

Contrast something with something easier than easy. One person to another person, one nation to another nation, one faith to another faith. And one is called good, and the other is called bad. It is very easy for me to become good by attributing myself to a good nation, to a good faith, to a good party. So I attributed myself to a good party and became good myself. So I attributed myself to the good Jesus and immediately became good. And all those who have not attributed themselves to Jesus, they are all bad. Then I have the right to hate them and even have the right to demand their destruction, because they are bad, they are not with us, the good ones.

We fall for this trap all the time. We very easily divide into our own and others, into good and bad. And of course we attribute ourselves to the good, the right. And then it turns out that we are always good, we are always correct, we always have the most wonderful faith and we are generally excellent people, and everyone else is bad. And then all issues are resolved, and there is no need to find out who is right and who is wrong. Because we are good and we are always right, and they are bad and they are always wrong. I just need to quickly figure out what it will be more convenient for me to call bad, and what will be more profitable to call good.

And in this episode there is nothing to think about, it is obvious that the earthly vale, earthly life is bad. Diseases, misfortunes, poverty, humiliation, that is what earthly life is. Of course, this is a bad life, of course, earthly life is bad. But heavenly, where peace, joy, pleasure awaits us - this is very good. Therefore, we immediately vote for the heavenly, and curse the earthly.

And then who is Martha? She is bad, because she serves earthly concerns, takes care of a big treat. And Maria? Of course, she is good, she is better than Martha, she is correct - because she rejected everything earthly (helping her sister) and wants only heavenly, "spiritual".

Some time ago I was sure that it was right to think so. That, of course, Martha is a downtrodden "clue", who does not understand anything spiritual, and she is not my "hero". But Mary is very correct, "enlightened", she is not afraid of her evil, soulless sister, but stubbornly sits at the feet of Jesus and listens to speeches about "spiritual". That's what I thought.

And yet I felt sorry for Martha, I wanted her to be able to join the “spiritual”. Therefore, I continued to read the Gospels, trying to understand other episodes where Jesus speaks of "spiritual". And then I realized that Jesus was not talking about “spiritual” at all, but about something, for my philosophically minded mind, that was completely incomprehensible.

At that time I read not only the Gospels, but also various spiritual teachers, such as Gurdjieff and Uspensky, Castaneda, Bhagavan Shri Rajneesh, various philosophical teachings. And somehow I thought, because what Jesus says in the Gospels is very similar to what these teachers and philosophers say.

So what then is the essence of Christianity, if its teaching is similar to the teachings of other teachers? Or do I really not understand what the Gospels are talking about at all? How can I adjust my thinking, my mind, so that I see the real essence of the Gospels? After all, if they go to execution for the sake of loyalty to their ideals (I understood this well), then in any case, because of this loyalty, none of the great teachers has yet been resurrected.

But if fidelity to the teaching of the Gospels is marked by such an incredible event as the Resurrection of Jesus, then his teaching itself cannot be a mere repetition of what was known before him. He had to speak, proclaim, something completely different from what other "spiritual" teachers said.

In the episode with Martha and Mary, a very important feature of Jesus' preaching about the "new life" appeared. “New life” cannot be expressed so simply through the opposition of “earthly” to “heavenly”. The mystery of this life requires some other thinking, some other understanding than simple opposition.

Contradiction is not the Christian way. The Christian way is what is called the "new life." And about this “new life” we need to somehow understand, based on what Jesus says, and even more so on what actions He does.

Let's try to see the manifestations of the "new life" in this episode.

There is a very important aspect of this situation. We, adults, look at the behavior of Martha and Mary through the prism of responsibility for our duties. And, of course, Mary behaves extremely irresponsibly before Martha and before Jesus himself, leaving her duties as an assistant to Martha. And Marfa for us acts as an adult and responsible person, who goes to any trouble for the sake of fulfilling the work she has undertaken.

Therefore, if we understand the words of Jesus in such a way that Mary behaves correctly, and Martha behaves incorrectly, then such an understanding will naturally cause bewilderment and inner protest in us. Then, after all, with this understanding of ours, it turns out that the responsible and serious behavior of Martha in the eyes of Jesus is not at all as valuable as the irresponsible, frivolous behavior of Mary. And we wonder how can a good, just Jesus be so unjust in a situation that is obvious to any adult? And we "split" into two camps. One camp - people who are serious and responsible, find in this episode a reason for a distrustful attitude towards the Gospels and towards Jesus himself. The other camp - people who are frivolous and irresponsible, find in the words of Jesus about the "good part" an appeal to the complete neglect of earthly concerns for the sake of pure spirituality.

It is obvious to me that Jesus could not put the essence of his sermon on the “new life” in opposing responsible behavior to irresponsible, Jesus could not simply encourage the neglect of earthly concerns, which are vital for every person. This means that the essence of the words that Mary chose the “good part” is not to encourage the neglect of helping her sister in the “big treat”, but in something else.

It is also not necessary to imagine that this was Mary’s usual reaction, already familiar to those around her, to the arrival of Jesus: as soon as he entered the house, Mary immediately sits down at his feet, and nothing can drive her away. In this case, Martha would not count on Mary's help, and would not demand from Jesus to force Mary to help her in the kitchen. Then there would be nothing that could be the reason for the words of Jesus about the "good part." If this has already happened more than once and everyone is already used to the behavior of Mary (sitting at the feet of Jesus), then there was nothing special for Jesus to specially compare the work of Martha and the behavior of Mary. And there would be no reason to remember this situation, and even more so, to keep it for so long until it was written in the Gospel.

But Mary's behavior turned out to be unexpected for Martha, so she is angry and indignantly demands from Jesus to restore order, to return Mary to her usual behavior. Such an event as a conflict in the house of Lazarus, a close friend of Jesus, caused by the unusual behavior of the youngest in the house, which violated the sedate ritual of the “big treat”, and the involvement of such a significant guest as Jesus in this conflict - all this, of course, could not but attract the close attention of all those present. And so this situation was remembered very well, and was retold later as a vivid example of the unusual behavior of Jesus himself, and not just Mary.

Let's start with the obvious. If this episode actually happened, then it was a specific situation with all the circumstances of the real life of that distant time. That is, people walked the earth, in certain clothes, there were certain rules on how to meet guests and how guests should behave in the owner's house, and so on. Therefore, we can fill a brief description of the episode with these real circumstances.

Let us then imagine that it was so. After a long journey, Jesus and his disciples come to the house of Lazarus, after the obligatory greetings they put themselves in order, perform a ritual bath, somewhere in the shade, under the trees, rest for a while. And only then they are invited to the table, to a meal. According to the eastern custom of that time, they reclined around a low table at a meal. If the meal was large, then the dishes were brought and taken away in a certain order. There was always a head at the table, distinguished guests, just guests, etc. During the meal, unhurried conversations were conducted with respect for the seniority and authority of those present.

Therefore, it would be incorrect to imagine this episode in a simplified way, as if Jesus, having entered the house, immediately began to speak, and Mary immediately sat down at his feet, and therefore Martha cannot set the table without Mary and immediately expresses her claims, and Jesus immediately answers her with words about the "good part." The evangelist, with his brief description, conveys only the essence of the episode. And in order to reveal and understand this essence, one must take a closer look at the situation slowly, taking into account all the features of that time, which were obvious to the evangelist, but seemed insignificant to convey the essence of the conflict that arose.

Let's start with Martha. So she "took care of the big treat." Imagine that she is a good hostess. And besides, she is the oldest woman in the house. This is the house of Lazarus, he is the head of this house, as a man, and Martha is the eldest in the female half. Maria is the youngest in the house, so she is completely subordinate to her older sister. Such were the laws of the tribal hierarchy at that time, and these laws remain such even now, especially in the countries of the East.

Martha knows that in the evening guests will come to their house, the teacher Jesus and his disciples, and maybe other people, there are always a lot of curious people around Jesus. She sends servants to the market early in the morning, makes sure that everything is ready on time, and there is a lot of other troubles.

She knows that her brother's close friends will come. That is, people for her are very important, respected. And of course she already knows who Jesus is. Moreover, he is not only a friend of her brother, but he is also her friend. Therefore, she tries to do everything in the best way.

But this is still an Eastern society, friendship is friendship, and hierarchy is much more important. Jesus for Martha is not just a friend, he is a teacher. Therefore, in the eyes of Martha, Jesus is a very respected, big man. And according to the law of Eastern hospitality, he even becomes higher than the owner of the house, and the owner of the house, like a servant, fulfills the wishes of the guest. So, hierarchically, Jesus comes first, then Lazarus, as the owner of the house, and then Martha, as the eldest in the female half.

And so, Jesus comes with the disciples. Lazar meets them, invites them to the table, everyone sits down. Jesus and Lazarus are in places of honor, the rest also sit down in a certain order. Martha serves the best dishes to Jesus, while others are served by the servants, or the least in the house, Mary, if they had no servants. A table conversation begins, an important, unhurried male conversation is going on.

Of course, women serve at the table, but they come and go without showing their attitude to what is happening at the table in any way, they do not give remarks about the overheard conversation of men. Their role is purely functional, bring-take away, maintain order on the table, and communication, conversations are only for men. To break this order in the distribution of functions always means showing disrespect to the guests and especially to the main, dear, important guest, in this case it is Jesus. And even children cannot arbitrarily violate such an order, but only if the main guest wants it.

After a while, Marfa sees that the guests like her dishes, they are satisfied with the delicious food. She understands that it was not in vain that she gave so much strength to prepare treats, thus expressing all her respect and love for her teacher and friend. And she tries to ensure that all subsequent dishes are no worse than the first. Therefore, every person counts for her, it is very important for her that all her assistants in the kitchen, including Maria, do everything quickly and correctly.

Now let's talk about Mary. She is the youngest, she is subordinate to Martha, her task is to serve properly. Let's pay attention to the words of Martha: "... she left me ...". That is, until a certain moment, Maria helped Marfa, brought, carried away, maybe washed something, added, cut, in general, she worked, as it should be the youngest in the house. And, of course, she couldn't possibly linger anywhere. And suddenly she dropped the whole thing and fell out of her duties.

She must have had some very good reason for this. It is this moment that seems to me central, key to understanding the essence of the entire episode.

Of course, Mary's act - to leave Martha and "sit at the feet of Jesus", is an impulse of a deep and strong soul, and not the result of a mental analysis of different behaviors. But in order for us to understand the full depth of this act, we need to analyze it and see all the circumstances, among which Mary was.

The text says: "...and sat down at the feet of Jesus...". This means that Maria, from the status of serving at the table, moved to the status of a participant in the meal, even if she did not take anything from the table. In other words, “sat down at the feet of Jesus” means that Mary violated the order, violated the rules of behavior for a woman whose duty is to serve a man. Of course, Jesus was familiar with Mary, and probably treated her in a special way. But order is order, and knowing Jesus does not justify breaking it.

You know the old custom, when one or more students could sit at the very feet of the teacher so as not to miss a single word of his. Only the chosen of the disciples could receive such mercy, an outsider could not do this, for this it was necessary to be accepted as an apprentice.

Therefore, the words "... sat down at the feet of Jesus ..." can either express an allegory of the fact that Mary listened to Jesus very carefully, absorbing his every word, but in fact she was still sitting somewhere at a distance, not intruding into the confines of the male world. Or they point to the actual position of Mary, who simply sat down at the feet of Jesus, not paying attention to the fact that she crossed the line separating the male world from the female.

Probably, Martha, not finding Mary in the kitchen, went out to see if everything was in order at the meal, and saw that Mary was sitting near the men. Why would she sit next to men? Of course, it's time for her to choose a husband, but not in the same way! It is indecent for a girl, without the permission and consent of Jesus, or at least Lazarus, to sit near the table where the men gathered.

Martha was outraged by this behavior of Mary. Not only does she behave so indecently in front of elders, in front of men, but also in the kitchen everything can go wrong because of her, because of her such a wonderful meal can end in some kind of embarrassment. Therefore, Marfa could well approach Mary and say, for example, this: “Listen, sister, why are you sitting here? Well, march to the kitchen! We still have a lot of work to do, you see how many guests there are (at least 12 disciples and Jesus, and maybe there were some other neighbors). It is necessary that everything is in order at the table, and you sit down here, but come on, come on, work.

Mary could well not answer these words of Martha and continue to sit and listen to what they say at the table. Martha could come up a second time, and a third time, and finally, even give a cuff on the back of the head, or in a particularly stern voice somehow spit at Maria. But, as we know, Mary continued to sit "at the feet of Jesus."

Falling out of the cycle of her duties, Maria goes into a very serious conflict. She ignores her status as the youngest in the family, she ignores her status as a helper, she ignores Martha's status as the eldest. And even more so, she went into a very serious conflict with her older brother Lazar, the head of the family and home.

See how interesting. Before us unfolds a conflict in the family. This is one of the few examples of conflict between generations that is recorded in the Gospels, the conflict of a teenager Mary with her older brother and sister. And besides, this conflict is connected with Jesus, because it was he who provoked Mary to rebel against Martha. The same conflict as now in thousands of families.

On the other hand, did the guests, and above all Jesus, as the leader of the male half, did they really not see this situation? Of course, they saw that Maria violated all the rules of behavior at a decent table. And what does Jesus do? He is now the eldest, the outcome of the situation depends only on him. Everything converges to him, as he determines and evaluates all the participants in the conflict, so it will be.

What is the duty of the elder - at the table, in the family, at work? His duty is to maintain order, so that everything is in order, in order, in order, according to hierarchy. So that the elders sit in places of honor, so that the younger ones sit in their places, so that the servants go about their business. This is the duty of the head of the house. It was perfectly natural in those days, it remains accepted today.

Who is in charge of the situation with Martha and Mary? Of course, Jesus, as a guest, as a teacher. Should he keep order? Yes, of course you should! Imagine that everyone sitting at the table looks at him in surprise, and those sitting next to him, perhaps, say to him in a whisper, as if hinting: “This is not good, this is a violation of all orders, Maria spoils the whole picture for us, you are like a senior, come on, restore order ". And what was Jesus supposed to do? Yes, he could lead with one eyebrow, and Maria would immediately run to the kitchen. She also knew who Jesus was. So not only to his word, but to a barely noticeable gesture, she would have reacted in the appropriate way. And she wouldn't listen to him. But Jesus is silent.

Look at this strange behaviour. Jesus in many episodes manifests himself very strangely, unexpectedly, unusually. Everyone expects only from Him that this is how it should be done, that adults, serious people, men generally do this. And he takes it and somehow acts in such a way that all adult decent, normal people immediately “fly by”. And it's annoying and infuriating.

Jesus is silent. Jesus does not restore order. Weird. This should have alerted the students and, knowing their teacher already, they could well focus on the situation that had arisen. The teacher behaves in a strange way, does not restore the broken order, what did he have in mind?

And now look what other plot arises in the situation. Martha cannot stand it, she directly addresses Jesus: "... or you don't need it ...". A woman to a man, but when he is still at the table, with guests. This, too, was not very encouraged, such an invasion of women's problems in a man's company. Jesus or Lazarus could well have said to Martha: “You are a woman, you are the head of the female half, you have authority and power, you have servants, so make sure that everything is in order, and do not interfere in our male conversations.”

But Martha can't stand it. She herself goes to the violation of order in order to call on Jesus to restore global order. That is, she is so irritated by Jesus' unwillingness to restore order in the house that she is ready to accept reproaches herself for the fact that she behaves indecently, in order to restore global order and generally put everyone in their place. She seems to be saying: “Jesus, you see, Mary stopped obeying me, it’s not far from a riot, so come on, quickly put us all in the places where we should be, and then everything will be fine, I will calm down, I nothing else is needed, just restore order.

Now let's ask ourselves the question: what could attract Mary so much in the conversation between Jesus and the disciples that she went into such a serious conflict?

And the conflict is really serious for her. Let's imagine - the meal is over, Jesus and the disciples left, and Mary was left alone with Lazarus and Martha. And here, of course, Maria will receive "in all respects" from both Lazarus and Martha, now they will tell her everything they think about her. And where are you going? Mary can only live here, in this family. She can't just pick up and leave. Then there was no such freedom as now, when teenagers run away from home for the smallest reasons. That is, physically Maria can leave, but how can she live then? Go to strangers - as whom? In those days, society was very tough: either at home, or get married, or for maintenance, or you die and very quickly.

Therefore, there must have been something very important for Mary in what happened at the meal of Jesus with the disciples, for which she decided on a conflict, knowing how it could end for her.

What was so special between Jesus and the disciples and so important for Mary that for the sake of him she deliberately abandoned her usual duties, not thinking what would happen next, what kind of conflict she plunged herself into. She does not want to know all this, she wants to be close to what is happening at the table of Jesus now.

And we ourselves, for what we can risk? In what situations are we generally willing to suffer some kind of loss? Of course, for something important enough for us. For trifles, we will not subject ourselves to unnecessary reproaches. And Maria, as a good, exemplary younger sister, she will not provoke a conflict for the sake of idle interest or in order to somehow show herself in front of the guests: “Oh, how independent I am, oh, but I don’t care what you think” .

Let's try again to imagine who Mary is. She is a young girl, not yet married, but already old enough, by the standards of that time, to understand how to behave in the presence of guests. And, probably, this is not the first time she helps Marfa in the household, in receiving guests, she already knows the scope of her duties, knows how important her help is to Martha, and. she must have been praised more than once for her agility and exemplary behavior. And therefore, such a sharp transition from obedience to self-will was a very serious decision for Mary, and so outrageous for Martha, who was used to Mary's humility.

Now let's try to imagine what happened at the meal of Jesus with the disciples. What could constitute the content or subject, as philosophers say, of their communication? We can assume the following options.

Of course, they could talk about what happened to them that afternoon, who they met, who asked what, what Jesus answered, and so on. That is, a conversation about the affairs of the current day. I wonder if it will be Mary? Not good. It is interesting only for those who directly participated in it.

What else could they be talking about? For example, about what we call “politics”. They could say that Herod did "such and such", and the Sanhedrin demands "such and such", but John the Baptist denounces "such and such". In general, also purely male conversations. Is this interesting for Maria? Also not very.

And even more so, it would be uninteresting for her to talk about prices at the market, about the weather, about everything else, everyday. For the sake of such conversations, she would not risk relations with the elders in the house, even with the known curiosity of women.

Of course, the disciples could also discuss these topics with Jesus. After all, the disciples are living, normal people, they have a lot of impressions, especially since in the company of Jesus there were always enough impressions. So they had a lot to talk about. But this could hardly have interested Mary.

What else could they be talking about? They could talk about the Torah, about the Law, about the prophets, about the Messiah, that is, to discuss some theological topics. Why don't you talk to Jesus about it! Yes, who else can talk about it! Truth? Could? Of course they could. Beloved disciple John was educated, Peter was also smart, with rich life experience, and other disciples, they are not completely illiterate fishermen if they continue to walk with Jesus. Would it be interesting for Mary? Also no. For a girl at that age, "philosophical" conversations, well, just "fly past" and that's it.

What other options might there be?

And I imagined such a "scene", which, it seems to me, is quite applicable here. In general, it helps me a lot when reading the Gospel, when I transfer this or that Gospel situation to a specific, life situation. And most often these situations are connected with the relationship between children and parents, between children and adults. Many of the Gospels "fit" into such relationships.

Here is the situation that presented itself to me. When the children, as they say, can not be kicked out from the table? When they are so interested in being with adults that they resort to all sorts of tricks to not leave? It’s already time to sleep, the whole children’s regime has already been violated, tomorrow you have to go to school early, and they all sit with adults, and you won’t expel them in any way. When are they so interested in being with us adults? Is it when we talk about the weather, or prices at the market, or philosophize, or argue about politics? Of course not.

They are interested in being with us when something arises between us, which is usually called in adult jargon "we sit well." When do we "sit well"? When a certain openness, warmth, benevolence, joy appears between us. That's when there is joy at the table, and everyone is glad to each other, and they sing good songs together and tell something funny. I think that each of us has this experience. That's when the kids don't want to leave. And the kids don't care if they are fed candy or not. Because they feed on that joy.

And joy is one of the most important properties of the Kingdom of Heaven. What else can give us extraordinary joy, except for the presence in the Kingdom of Heaven? There is no greater joy that "will not be taken away from us."

And then the children remember for a long time that their parents could “sit well” at the table. Each of us can recall such an incident among our childhood memories. Why do children remember this? Because this is “real”, this is real joy that you cannot create with any alcohol. In such joy, we return to something sincere, the most important thing in our soul. This is the "golden reserve" that supports us in life, in difficult circumstances, and which "will not be taken away" from us.

Such situations, such joy, this is the "heavenly wealth" that will forever remain with us. Everything will pass, life will pass, but this will remain. And children feel it, they collect it and store it. And we should continue to do this, feel and collect just such wealth. Not in the sense of reading smart books, or performing spiritual feats. This, of course, God forbid everyone, but not everyone can do it. But each of us is able to collect such pearls, such gold pieces, which are also wealth for the Kingdom of Heaven.

And note that this is a very important feature of such situations. It is not at all necessary that in this case it was about God, about the Gospel, about the Church, about prayers. Sincere joy from communication can be for any reason. And vice versa, it also happens that you start talking about the Church, you start talking about the Gospel, and a feeling of boredom and internal protest arises. Unfortunately, it also happens. You see, there are no automatic correspondences here. It is not at all necessary that if I speak about the Gospel, then immediately everyone will have a feeling of joy, like “Pavlov's dog”. The joy of the Kingdom of Heaven is not as straightforward as we would like, so that as soon as I opened the Gospel, I immediately got into the Kingdom. No, it's not that easy. And when it does happen, you can't tear children away from it.

And so I think that Maria just "grabbed" just such a situation. She felt that among the disciples there is this joy of the Kingdom of Heaven. And for her it was dearer than anything, dearer than work in the kitchen, dearer than relations with Martha, dearer than anything in the world! She wanted to be only in the midst of the joy of the Kingdom of Heaven. And when she left everything and stopped to touch such joy, she became involved in the Kingdom of Heaven.

And what do you think Jesus didn't see? After all, he saw what she eats, what captured her here. And He didn't want to kick her out of the Kingdom. The Lord does not expel anyone from the Kingdom.

If a person felt, fell, entered the joy of the Kingdom - yes, thank God, yes to health, and it doesn’t matter who he is, poor or rich, older or younger, in clean clothes or dirty. The Kingdom has a completely different hierarchy, different rankings. Jesus talks about this all the time, both in parables and in deeds.

Look here. Who is in charge of the house? Lazarus and Martha, and Mary is the youngest, she is the last in the hierarchy. And suddenly she was closest to the joy of the Kingdom of Heaven! But this is outrageous, this is a violation of the ranking, because the first should be Lazarus and Martha, and only then, if there is room, maybe Mary. And Jesus, by his silence, by his unwillingness to restore order, says very loudly that these rankings do not work in the Kingdom, that the Kingdom is organized differently than the usual earthly hierarchies.

Question: So Mary received grace?

Answer: Yes, and this grace does something with us that opens up a feeling of "new life" in us. Maria felt that a new life was present here, that she could enter into it. Only for this you need to take the risk of conflict, you need to drop out of the cycle of functional duties, out of the “senior-junior” relationship, come to terms with the fact that later you will “get it” for this. To become part of the Kingdom, Mary had to take a big risk.

important words. He says: "Martha, Martha, you fuss a lot and worry, but you only need one thing."

What is this "one"?

Look here. Jesus doesn't say, "Martha, stop your nonsense, you're always in the kitchen, it's all nonsense, but here we have the Kingdom of Heaven, come on in here." Jesus doesn't say that. He does not oppose the occupation of Martha with a large meal and the Kingdom, he does not separate one from the other. In fact, Jesus is telling Martha, “What you are doing is very important, but you have already done it. Now we need the next step. Stop being in charge, stop feeling so important, sit down where Mary is and you will be in the Kingdom with us.”

Jesus tells Martha that she, too, can become a partaker of the Kingdom, she only needs to step down from her pedestal, the main one in the female half, and decrease to the level where Mary is.

But for Martha, Jesus' proposal to be compared with Mary, to diminish to her level, sounds like an insult, like an insult. How can Jesus compare her, who created it all, who holds it all in her hands, leads everyone - with the smallest, the most extreme in the hierarchy? Did she expect such an assessment of her work from Jesus, from a friend and teacher?

You understand how it is intertwined when it is much more important for us not our proximity to the Kingdom of Heaven, to its joy, but the correct assessment of our work to achieve the Kingdom, to overcome all difficulties and obstacles. And often we miss the opportunity to enter the Kingdom, being carried away by disputes about the accuracy of the assessment and payment for our labors.

When Martha says to Jesus: "... tell her to help me ...", then this is a direct accusation of Jesus that, as the head of the table, he does not fulfill his direct duties: he does not restore the order violated by Mary. With these words, Marfa seems to be saying: “You, who must restore order, you do not follow this, you generally do your job poorly. What kind of teacher are you? You can’t even force a girl to keep order.”

Do you see how much disappointment Martha could feel in Jesus? He disappointed her as a leader, as the head of the table, as a teacher, because he was not able to restore order in the simplest situation, he could not force the youngest in the house to fulfill her direct duties. And now, comparing her with Mary, he disappointed Marfa as a friend. After all, she expected support from him and a worthy assessment of her work, and in front of strangers, in front of respected guests, he insulted her, not just equating her with Mary, but even putting Mary above her, Martha. Imagine what could happen in her soul!

Here's what's important to note. For Martha so far (later, as we know, she will become different), the main criterion for evaluating a person is his compliance with his social and family status. If you are an elder, you should behave like an elder. If you are at the bottom of the hierarchy, obey all the requirements of those above and do not be self-willed. When everyone is in their place and responsibly fulfilling their functions, then there will be a "kingdom of heaven", because everyone will receive according to their status and their merits.

In the text of the episode, there is no Martha's answer to Jesus' words: "... but only one thing is needed." But what could Martha answer to these words? Most likely, she could look at him in surprise, maybe, somehow grunt, turn away and silently leave. Or she could say something similar to what we also have when reading this episode: “While Maria is messing around here, you will remain hungry, but I have important business, I should do business, and not mess around like Maria.”

And then, after such an answer to the words of Jesus, both for Martha and for us, the essence of what happened to Mary and why she went into conflict with the elders remains completely incomprehensible. Martha, like many modern parents, probably explained to herself the rebellion of the teenager Maria against the authority of her elders by her harmfulness, stupidity, disrespect for elders, etc.

Martha thinks about her relationship with Jesus in terms of generic notions of power and strength, of primacy in the hierarchy. For her, it is still much more important that such a “big” teacher came to her house, and she was able to prepare for him a “big treat” corresponding to his status. She showed him her respect, which means that he, having accepted her treat, in the future will show her reciprocal respect, will distinguish her from all others, so that she will excel among the women who served Jesus and his disciples "with their property."

Mary, looks only as an addition to the correct behavior, to the strict observance of primacy in the hierarchy. It is natural for Martha to think this way, because all life is built on this, on the generic principles of power, strength, hierarchy.

Question: So, I understand correctly that Martha is still worse than Mary?

Answer: Actually, I'm trying to show that it is impossible to think about this episode, and about the entire Gospel, using the principle "who is better - who is worse." After all, then for me it will be necessary to evaluate everyone according to this criterion. But is the point of the gospel to call some people bad and others good? Therefore, in fact, it does not matter which of them is better and who is worse, Martha or Mary.

What is the "Kingdom of Heaven"? Jesus gives many parables about what it is. And nowhere does he say that the Kingdom of Heaven is somewhere far, far away, where you have to go for a long time, overcome incredible difficulties, climb mountains, sit in incredible poses, in general, perform some feats in order to accomplish all this, get to the Kingdom of Heaven. Nowhere does Jesus give such an image.

On the contrary, he has the Kingdom of Heaven always somewhere nearby. This is also an ordinary field on which a certain pearl is hidden; this is also a neighbor who has a wedding feast, having come to which you will find yourself in the Kingdom; this is also a drachma, which you just need to find, and you will be in the Kingdom. You don't have to go far and overcome a lot. The Kingdom of Heaven is what is nearby, at arm's length or at a glance.

Then why don't we get into it? What is the reason? Of course, the reason is in myself. More precisely, in my attitude to the possibility of getting into it.

You know what the focus is. If I wanted to enter the Kingdom but couldn't, then I would have to overcome whatever is blocking me. But I don't even want to go into it, even when it comes close to me. It came close to Martha. And Martha said: “No, on such conditions that I will stand where Mary is, I do not need such a Kingdom. I want to enter the Kingdom with all the rights that I have earned. I worked, endured, cared for and I want to enter it by right. And the way you suggest, no, it doesn't suit me. I want another entrance to the Kingdom of Heaven, with trumpets blowing, with honor and with all the proper salutes.”

In fact, this is a complex issue and a big stumbling block for us. The crux of the stumbling block is that we understand the Kingdom somehow in our own way, not at all the way Jesus understands it. He talks about the Kingdom in such a strange way that our understanding of the Kingdom turns out to be inconsistent and even often contradicts his idea.

After all, in fact, with the words “or it doesn’t matter to you that my sister left me alone ...” Martha said to Jesus: “You know, your Kingdom of Heaven is wrong, and I don’t want to change my status as an elder to your Kingdom. And the correct Kingdom is, as I understand it, that everything is according to the rules, that there are elders and younger ones, and the younger ones obey the elders. And we often end up just like Martha, staying with our principle of “it's either my way or it's not” and we lose the Kingdom.

See how interesting. The Lord has given us books in which He speaks about Himself. In doing so, He has given us the freedom to treat Himself however we choose. And we can read these books, we can interpret them, we can print them in millions of copies, or we can burn them. He agrees to any of our attitude. He gave us this right to treat Himself, to His word, to His good news about Himself in any way. Treat it the way you want. And this is an amazing property of God's love: not to expect any gratitude, or honors, or that we will run to meet Him in orderly rows. Treat it the way you want.

You see, we can look at Martha's work in a way that she preferred Jesus' preaching of the "new life" to the hustle and bustle of the "old life." And then Jesus could take offense at her that she ignores his mission, his work, his preaching, preferring to demonstrate the importance of her mission, her work. And then what? Then they should, like rivals, drag Maria each in their own direction?

Is Jesus' statement that Mary chose the good part a dispute over primacy between him and Martha? No, this is not the beginning of a dispute about primacy between them, but a statement of the fact that Mary has made her choice, and that Martha can also see the possibility of this choice. That Martha can also see that the Kingdom of Heaven is not only a great treat in which she expressed her love for her friend and teacher, but also the joy of communicating with him, when your love is expressed not only through service, but also through the acceptance of reciprocal love, through receiving the peace and joy of God's love.

But Marfa wanted to show everything that she had cooked, to show all her dishes, how delicious they are, what a wonderful hostess she is and how well she manages the kitchen. And she could not stop at half of everything cooked, could not accept that not all of her work would be presented and appreciated, that there would be some part of her complex and hard work that would not be appreciated by the guests, which means that she herself would not be appreciated. fully, but only partially. Therefore, Martha demands that all of her work be presented, even if it destroys the Kingdom's presence at the table. In this way, Martha claims the greater importance of her work than that of Jesus.

Jesus does not condemn Martha or argue with her about which of them is more important. He tells Marfa that in this situation there is a choice that to sit at his feet and serve a great treat is not only the cause of the conflict, but also the opportunity to enter a "new life".

For Martha, her work and conversation at the table of Jesus are different worlds that do not intersect, you just need to do everything right, observe the hierarchy and distribution of responsibilities. Thinking like this, she forbids herself any contact with the Kingdom, makes the meeting with the Kingdom impossible. Not because it is really impossible, but because she rejects this possibility. And then she cannot see the opportunity to choose the “good part”, the opportunity to enter the Kingdom here and now..

You see, when we think about God, about Jesus Christ with the help of hierarchical representations: “we are below, and God is far above”, then we cannot admit the possibility that we can meet with Him, become together, that we can enter into Kingdom, enter into a new life.

For Maria, this was possible. And not because she doesn't like to work. You see, for Mary the Kingdom of Heaven did not begin the moment she sat at the feet of Jesus. The kingdom began much earlier for her. And when she heard the words of Jesus, she heard exactly what was already close to her, already dear and desired.

This is the most amazing thing. We live for years, all our lives we live close to the door of the Kingdom. Even close to the open door of the Kingdom - the Royal Doors in the temples are open. The doors to the Kingdom are already open; Jesus has already opened them.

But we have a lot of reasons why we don't want to go there now. We want to enter the Kingdom in our own right, with our own requirements, and not in the way that Jesus suggests to us in the example of Mary. And we want like Martha. And then nothing happens. Then it's a very long road until we change our way of thinking about the Kingdom, until we change our image of the Kingdom to that of the Gospels.

Where does our path to the Kingdom begin? From metanoia, from a change in thoughts, from a change in our habitual view, a change in our way of thinking about the Kingdom of Heaven. Because somewhere in the way we think about the Kingdom, there is some mistake. And we don't notice it. We keep slipping past the Kingdom, but that doesn't change our confidence that we're right about it. And the result? Alas, such that the Kingdom is separate, and we are separate. And we all beat around the bush, but we do not fall into it.

“The way you think about Me, about what is happening now, does not work for you, you are passing by the Kingdom. You are a wonderful hostess, you have a wonderful future as a wife and mother. But take the next step. Stop fixating on it as the only value of your life.

See how it turns out that a big meal is needed much more for Martha herself than for Jesus and the guests. What did Jesus come for? Is it just for the sake of eating and drinking a lot and tasty? No, of course not, because he can get by with very modest food.

I imagined another scene. For example, how Martha, along with Mary, listened to the words of Jesus so much that they completely forgot to put food on the table. Wouldn't Jesus notice this? Wouldn't he have noticed that the students and guests are hungry, that they want not only to listen to his words, but also to eat earthly food, like all people?

After all, Jesus is not some kind of romantic, carried away by his fantasies, forgetting about food for the sake of his inspirations, not seeing or hearing anyone but himself. So I am quite calm for the students and guests. Jesus would not have starved anyone with his speeches if Mary and Martha had forgotten themselves so much that they stopped thinking about a big meal. He would calmly remind them of this, without offending anyone, neither Martha nor Mary.

Therefore, when we contrast Martha with Mary, we actually think that without Martha there would be a catastrophe, that her fuss about a big treat is the most important thing, even more important than what Jesus says and what Mary chose, more important than the “good part”.

You see, Jesus nowhere demonstrates that He is God's wisdom and knows all human wisdom, multiplied by a square or an infinite power, surpasses man in wisdom infinitely. He doesn't show it anywhere.

But He constantly shows that our human wisdom is not all, that there is something else that we can see and choose the Kingdom of Heaven, that we can take a step towards Him in the midst of any of our worries and problems. He invites us to take this step, He helps us to take it. But we must do it ourselves. We must somehow see it, feel it, figure out what this step is.

And our very first feat, our very first step, is that I cease to be proud of myself, to be important to myself. And this is not necessarily pride from the successes achieved. It can also be pride in one's misfortunes, in one's sufferings.

I cannot look at my misfortunes and my sufferings with a smile, get rid of them, stop being captured by them, stop suffering as if my suffering is the only thing in my life, that they are the most valuable thing in my life.

That's when I suffer as if this is the only value in my life, I will suffer forever. I can't refuse the most valuable! If I have made my suffering the most valuable thing in my life, then I cannot refuse it. And so it will be all my life. The situation is hopeless, a dead end.

Jesus says - get rid of, be small, sit down, where is Mary. Mary "sat down" at the feet of Jesus, not so much literally, but in the sense that she stopped thinking of herself as an important cog in the system. She wanted what she wanted herself, herself as such. She allowed herself to think, to want, to wish what she herself wanted.

And I took the risk that it might cause problems. This always causes problems. Because all other people need us only when we function correctly, when we fulfill our role, when we have been cleaned, prepared, delivered, provided. As long as we function, everyone loves us. As soon as we fell ill, fell out of the flow of functions, we became inconvenient for those who “everything is in order”, we already became a problem for them.

We even need to stop perceiving our illnesses, our sufferings as something very important, central in our lives. And this will be our small achievement, this will be our small step in the right direction, in the direction of Mary.

The point is not that Martha was a great housewife and could not think of anything but the household. Yes, good, yes very well. She is a professional. You see, unlike Maria, she is a professional, she is a person with experience, with knowledge of life. This is a very valuable thing. But in a strange way, her experience, her professionalism worked against her when she met Jesus. She could not take her experience and professionalism more calmly, stop seeing the whole essence of her life in this professionalism and in this experience.

Because the essence of our life is still different. Life experience gives us a lot, it is important, it is very good. But actually there is more than life experience. This is the ability to look at your experience more calmly, from the outside, not to be important from the fact that I have such a great experience.

"Be like children" what does it mean? It means to be open, spontaneous, simple. Be simple. As an adult, to be able to be simple, not to rush about with yourself, with your illnesses, with your problems, with your successes.

For Marfa, her professionalism became a problem.

It seems to us that we will get into the Kingdom if we overcome all our shortcomings, if we overcome all our sins, if we get rid of all bad habits, if we stop being angry at those near or far. And when we are so cleansed, when we are completely polished, then we will rightfully enter the Kingdom of Heaven. This is mistake. This is not the way to think about the Kingdom of Heaven that Jesus opened. About someone else's Kingdom, you can probably think so, but not about the gospel Kingdom.

As a Christian, I see Jesus talking about the Kingdom in a very different way. Was it then that all the righteous gathered around the table? Were there no sinners at the table? Yes, Peter alone was worth something with all his arrogance, ardor, with all his maximalism. No, there were ordinary, normal people at the table. Ordinary like us. And the kingdom was opened to them. And Mary immediately jumped at the opportunity to enter the Kingdom like this, here and now, although she was an ordinary girl with all her problems. And the kingdom was opened to her.

You see, there are no restrictions in Christianity for us to be in the Kingdom. Jesus says the Kingdom is possible here and now. Not the Kingdom of the next age, that's completely different. And here is the Kingdom that is available to us now. At every Liturgy it is revealed to us, at every Communion it is revealed to us. And it opens when Jesus is among us. Here is the Christian greeting: Christ is among us! There is and will be! When He is among us, here is the Kingdom, and nothing else is needed.

Question: And if Martha immediately sat down next to Jesus, then who would serve them on the table?

Answer: Of course, Maria. She is even more important in this matter than Martha. After all, who is Mary? Is she dreamy, sighing languidly, with her eyes turned to the sky and not knowing everyday work? No, she is an ordinary girl for her environment and her age, for whom, since childhood, the main occupation has been to help elders in all areas of life: clean the house, sweep, cook, go to the market, bring water, not to mention work in the garden and, perhaps, on the field. And in this episode, after all, from the very beginning she helped Marfa, and, probably, she took part in the preparation of the “big treat”.

One should not think that Martha herself, without the help of other women, neighbors or servants, could prepare a “big meal” for at least 15 people. “Big” is not only in the sense of “for many people”, but also with a large number of different dishes. Moreover, it is possible that for the "dear" guests there were their own dishes, and for the rest - some others, not so exquisite. So only a hard-working team could prepare all this. And Maria was far from the last worker in this business.

Moreover, if we compare which of them worked more and invested more energy in cooking, and then in receiving and serving guests, it was Maria. Because Martha carried out, so to speak, the strategic leadership of the process, and Mary was one of the executors of Martha's grandiose plan. It is possible that Martha decided to make a reception with a “big treat” because she had Maria in her subordination, executive, diligent, dexterous and quick-witted. It was Maria who had to turn around like a “squirrel in a wheel” in order to have time to do everything, to submit everything and carry everything away.

If Mary from the very beginning had not been one of the “engines” that ensured a large meal, then Martha might not have noticed the disappearance of an insignificant participant, or delegate her duties to someone more executive. But no, Martha demands from Jesus that he make Mary return to her duties, because no one could replace her, she provided so much during the meal. That's what Mary is in my understanding.

Therefore, the difference between Mary and Martha is not at all that one works in the “earthly”, tirelessly, and does not have the physical opportunity to join the “spiritual”, and the other is a kind of white-handed woman who covers up her “earthly” laziness with an interest in “ spiritual." In fact, everyone is in the same situation with regard to having to work to provide "earthly" food. I emphasize once again that Mary in this sense works even more than Martha. Therefore, any kind of opposition between "earthly" and "heavenly" at the expense of these two women becomes completely meaningless.

You see, in such a situation, Martha had much more opportunities and time, not to mention attention and memory, to listen and hear the “words of new life” that sounded at the table from the lips of Jesus. It was precisely Martha who could afford to be a little distracted and stop following the work of Mary and the servants in order to stand near the guests and hear that “something” that so captured Mary. And Maria had to do a lot of small things without a break, not forgetting the main thing - so that all dishes were served in order and without a hitch. It was precisely Maria who least of all had the opportunity to shift her attention from kitchen chores to conversation at the table.

But here, too, the paradox about which Jesus spoke was suddenly manifested: the last will become the first. The youngest, the last in the hierarchy, the most busy with worries, not having even a minute for herself - suddenly turns out to be the first who “has ears”, and heard, and entered the Kingdom of Heaven.

But why Mary? Because she was already attuned to "hearing" the Good News. Because, helping her sister in the “big treat”, she did everything with full dedication, with all her soul and all her heart. And at the same time, she did not suffer from resentment towards her older sister, that she exploited her so mercilessly, instead of giving her an indulgence and not driving her with a thousand things. Mary did not feel offended by Martha, Lazarus, that she was the most extreme, the very last at the meal of her dear friend, Jesus. Her soul and heart were not free from deeds and worries about the “big treat”, but from sorting out relations with those higher in the hierarchy. We can say that the soul and heart of Mary were free for the Kingdom of Heaven even before she felt his presence among the disciples of Jesus. And when she felt this, it was no longer difficult for her to leave her job, to leave her hierarchical duties, in order to listen to the words of the Good News with all her soul and with all her heart. Mary was outside the hierarchical chains even before the opportunity arose to enter the Kingdom of Heaven, which opened at the table of Jesus.

Look here. From an external view, Mary's obedience looks like an obvious result of her hierarchical position, the younger is obliged to fulfill all the requirements of the older. But for Mary herself, her obedience to Martha was the result of completely different reasons: love and respect for her elder sister, love and respect for Jesus, a sincere desire to please the guests with a well-prepared treat. That is, it was not at all a hierarchical position that forced Mary to be a good assistant to Martha, but sincere love. But this reason is not at all obvious to the external view. But not for the eyes of Jesus.

What about Marfa? Martha is sure that everything is going so well only because she is a good boss, that she is the eldest in this household, that everything will be even better if she becomes more and more in charge, if her hierarchical status rises more and more. Martha and Mary's departure from the kitchen process is perceived not so much as a threat to spoil the meal, but as a threat to her status. And the fact that Jesus does not drive Mary back to the kitchen, Martha regards as a threat from Jesus to the strength of her status. Therefore, she so decisively and rudely addresses Jesus with the words: “Or do you not care ...”, demanding from him full confirmation of her status as the eldest in the kitchen. Confident in the paramount importance of her status, she cannot hear what Maria heard. Although Mary was loaded with work more than Martha. But Maria was not fixed on keeping track of her status, her soul and heart were free, despite the need to perform a large number of kitchen chores important for a good feast.

And once again I want to emphasize. To think that the Kingdom of Heaven can begin only sometime, but cannot now, means to limit His presence by some conditions and reasons. But this cannot be so, the Kingdom cannot be limited by our conditions and causes. I think so that It can start at any moment. And if we read about the experience of the lives of various ascetics and saints, they testify that people became saints who worked anywhere and by anyone, including in the kitchen, and in charge of some kind of household.

Therefore, Martha could do her job, prepare a great treat, keep order during the meal - and be already in the Kingdom of Heaven, which is not limited either by the time or the content of our work. Jesus had just come into the house, had not yet begun to talk about the “new life,” but Martha was already tuned in with all her hearing, sight and soul to see and hear the Kingdom, and to enter into it. And then, if Martha saw that Mary “hears and sees” the presence of the Kingdom at the table of Jesus, she could say to her: “you are done, you are doing everything right, so I will strain and pull your work while you are here, it's more important to you." Martha could even tell Mary the words of Jesus: “You chose the good part, and I also chose it, only I don’t have to sit here anymore, I already have the Kingdom, and I can work and be in the Kingdom at the same time.”

Here's what the situation could be. But then, then, it became so, we know who Martha and Mary became. Then it all formed. But really, the episode could be like this.

And the last question. Why was this episode so engraved in the memory of its participants that many years later they told it with all the details? Is it really just because Jesus gave them the formula of "happiness" - earthly is bad, but heavenly is good? I do not believe in such an explanation, because I do not believe in Jesus, who repeats well-known platitudes. There was something in the behavior of Martha, Mary, Jesus that turned the banal situation of the disobedience of the younger sister to the elder sister into evidence of the presence of a “new life” among them, that they all found themselves inside the “new life” and felt its difference from the ordinary life to which they used to.

But the manifestation of the "new life" causes a conflict, not only external, when Mary stopped helping Martha. A much more important conflict is internal, when my old understanding of the situation that has arisen suddenly finds itself in blatant contradiction with the meaning of the new one that has just arisen, when Martha refuses to accept Jesus' invitation to be with Mary in the “new life”.

And what will win in me? Habitual, correct understanding, or a new, unusual, incorrect understanding of the essence of the meeting with Jesus, with the "new life"? How to avoid the mistake and not take the imitation "like Jesus" for the true essence? How to learn to distinguish between "spirits", to distinguish high-flown "spirituality" from the outwardly everyday, but essentially Christian "new life"?

And I also want to draw your attention to one important feature, although this is a completely different topic. The Gospels do not speak of a "new man" but only of a "new life." Why?

So why is this episode so memorable? After all, Jesus and his disciples visited many different people many times, and there were a variety of conversations and even disputes. But only some of them are recorded in the Gospels. Wasn't all the other conversations so interesting, didn't they cause such an acute experience of the conflict between habitual behavior and behavior in the "new life"? We do not know. But even more so, we need to pay more attention to what was preserved in the Gospels.

Jesus loves conflict. He loves to create conflict situations and loves when others create them. Because conflict is a chance to see yourself in the true light. In conflict, we pronounce our most important and most sincere feelings and desires. And if I am attentive to what the other person says and to what I myself say, then I can hear true desires and grievances. And this makes it possible to see my inner conflict between how it should be “correctly” and what my soul wants.

Precisely because in this situation everyone decided to go to the conflict, it became possible for the Kingdom to manifest itself among them. Mary went into conflict with Martha and Lazarus. Martha went into conflict with Mary and Jesus. Jesus went into conflict with the disciples and Martha.

If Martha had endured Mary's behavior and, clenching her teeth, silently swallowed her refusal to work, then, of course, later, when everyone left after the meal, she would have given Mary everything that she had accumulated. But would it get into the Gospels? No. Because there are a million such home fights a day, but if there is any sense in them, then only for its participants. Does this create a need for the Kingdom? No, we somehow manage without it.

If Mary had not left Martha, but had stepped on the throat of her desire to enter the Kingdom and continued to help her, would this have entered the Gospels? Also no. You never know good helpers in the household. But does this require the Kingdom? No. And so everything is fine.

If Jesus had immediately put Mary in her place and gently, tactfully let her know that she should help Martha and not interfere with the men in their conversations. Would it be included in the Gospels? No. It is common for the elders to teach the younger ones proper behavior. Do you need a Kingdom for this? Also no.

And one more option, absolutely without conflicts. For example, everyone loved Maria so much, and she was so sure of a good attitude towards herself from all adults that she did not see any conflict and any danger to herself in her act. And everyone around really treated her so well that they simply did not notice where Maria was sitting. And what could be remembered in this case? There is nothing to remember here, nothing draws attention to itself, everything goes on as always, peacefully, sedately, with respect and reverence. And this idyll could not have got into the Gospels. Because nothing important would happen. Important from the gospel point of view, and not from the point of view that Jesus was kind to children, and in general, to all people.

In a paradoxical way, the Kingdom arose out of conflict. But here's an important point. For each it was their own conflict.

So he means exactly what Jesus is talking about when he says: "...but only one thing is needed ...". What is this "good part" that Mary has chosen? What is this, "the one thing that is needed," which he speaks of elsewhere? Or are they just different designations of the Kingdom that we need to seek, and to which everything else will be added? What else? What else could Jesus be talking about, except that "the Kingdom is at hand." But we have to make an effort to enter into Him. What is this "effort" and what should it be applied to? What was the “effort” that Mary made to enter the Kingdom?

Martha ended up outside the Kingdom not because she “took care of a big treat,” and not because she didn’t fulfill some special “spiritual” requirements, didn’t accomplish some feats, and the like. The kingdom was near, the door was open, it was only necessary to enter. She did not enter, not because there were some insurmountable external obstacles, but solely because she conceived the Kingdom in a very definite way and thought of the Kingdom in a very definite way. Her image of the Kingdom and her way of thinking about the Kingdom proved to be insurmountable obstacles on the very threshold of the real Kingdom of Heaven. Martha could not agree to enter a Kingdom that was different from what she imagined it to be.

The gospels are not newspaper reports about troublemakers. The gospel stories are only separate languages ​​of the flame that flared up around Jesus, around the “new life” that he showed in conversations, behavior and actions. And by these "prominences" we can imagine the intensity of the conflict that arose in the souls and minds of not only the immediate disciples of Jesus, but also all those who even happened to be near this "fire".

Let's read the Gospel of Luke 10:38-42:

Luke 10:38-42
“In the course of their journey, He came to a certain village; here a woman named Martha received him into her house; she had a sister, named Mary, who sat down at the feet of Jesus and listened to His word. Martha, however, was anxious about a great treat, and, coming up, said: Lord! Or do you not need that my sister left me alone to serve? tell her to help me. Jesus answered her and said, Martha! Martha! you care and fuss about many things, but only one thing is needed; Mary chose the good part, which will not be taken away from her.”

Marfa was an active woman: she cooked, sewed, cleaned. The Word says that when Jesus came to her house, Martha took care how best to take it. However, she was so absorbed in these worries that did not realize the main thing - the Lord Himself visited her house. In her worries, she no longer noticed His presence, and she had no time to sit at His feet and listen to His Word - taking care of refreshments was more important for her. She overburdened herself with business and began to complain to the Lord: "Why is no one helping me? ... Tell Mary to stop all conversations and help me with the preparations." There are brothers and sisters who look like Martha. Great workers who do not know peace - they simply have no time to sit at the feet of the Lord. No, just imagine: you are alone with the Lord. No mobile phones, no noise, and no activity, even if it's about serving Him. Just you and Him. Turn off your computer and mobile phone, close the door, put aside even the article you are currently reading and give Him some time. Pour out your soul to Him as to your best friend. The Lord, while on earth, did exactly this: He spent time alone with the Father. Work should not be at the top of our list of priorities, even if it is work in the Lord's field. The Lord said: And you only need ONE...". Mary, who was sitting at the feet of Jesus, in contrast to Martha, who “took care of a large treat,” chose the good part. Sitting at the feet of Jesus should be your number one priority. There is nothing more important than spending time with the Father. Sometimes early in the morning (Mark 1:35-37) and sometimes late in the evening (Matthew 14:22-23) the Lord spent time alone with the Father. This is written in Matthew 14:22-23:

Matthew 14:22-23
“And immediately Jesus compelled His disciples to get into the boat and go ahead of Him to the other side, while He sent the people away. And having dismissed the people, He went up the mountain to pray in private; and in the evening he remained there alone.

And also Mark 1:35-37
“And in the morning, getting up very early, he went out and retired to a deserted place, and there he prayed. Simon and those who were with him followed him, and when they found him, they said to him, “Everyone is looking for you.”

The first of these passages says that Jesus sent the disciples in a boat to the other side, dismissed the people, and went up the mountain alone to pray. And in chapter 1 of the Gospel of Mark it is said that He again went into a lonely place for solitary prayer, while "everyone was looking for Him." His goal was not to hide from people. He just wanted to spend time alone with the Father. Nothing was more important to Him than this fellowship, and in this we must follow His example.

If you are absorbed in business, do not know peace, and you constantly have no time, if you, like Martha, work tirelessly, then - even if it is serving the Lord and working for Him - the Lord still says: “But ONE thing is needed ...” , referring to what Mary did - "sat down at the feet of Jesus and listened to His Word." The motto of many is "First of all - work (service), and everything else - then." And I would say this: "The first thing is the Lord, and everything else - then." For Mary, with the coming of Jesus, all household duties receded into the background - the first place was taken by fellowship with the Lord.

Luke 10:42
"... Mary chose the good part, which will not be taken away from her."

Teaching the people, Jesus Christ came to Bethany. This village is located near Jerusalem behind the Mount of Olives. Here a woman received Him into her house, named Martha who had a brother Lazar and a sister Maria.

Bethany

In the house of Lazarus, Jesus Christ instructed that concern for the salvation of the soul is above all other concerns. The reason for this was the reception given to Him by the sisters of Lazarus. Both of them greeted Him with the same joy, but expressed their joy differently.

Mary sat at the feet of the Savior and listened to His teaching.

Jesus Christ with Martha and Mary

Martha, meanwhile, was taking care and strenuously fussing about His great treat.

Did it seem to Martha that she would not have time to quickly cope alone in her troubles, or did it seem to her that her sister did not accept Jesus Christ with such zeal, as it should: - only Martha came up to the Savior and said: “Lord! Or do you need no, why did my sister leave me to serve alone? Tell her to help me."

The Lord Jesus Christ answered her: Martha! Martha! you care and fuss about many things"(excessive, i.e., Martha's concerns are directed to what you can do without, which is only worldly, transient vanity), and only one thing is needed(this is attention to the word of God and the fulfillment of His will). Mary chose the good(the very best) the part that(never) won't take away from her".

It happened another time, when Jesus Christ was talking with the people, then one woman could not keep in her soul the joy of His words and loudly exclaimed from the people: " blessed(extremely happy) The mother who gave birth to you and nursed you!"

MARPHA and MARY, the sisters of Lazarus, mentioned in the gospel story about Christ's visit to Bethany. Diff. the characters of the sisters - the practical Martha and the contemplative Mary - became a symbol of decomp. attitudes in the life of Christians ... Biographical Dictionary

Sisters of Lazarus, mentioned in the gospel story about Christ's visit to Bethany. The various characters of the sisters of practical Martha and contemplative Mary have become a symbol of various attitudes in the life of Christians. * * * MARF and MARIA MARF and MARIA, sisters… … encyclopedic Dictionary

Sisters of Lazarus, mentioned in the famous gospel story about Christ's visit to Bethany. The different character of these sisters, the practical Martha and the enthusiastically contemplative Mary, has become a type of different moods and directions in life ... ... Encyclopedic Dictionary F.A. Brockhaus and I.A. Efron

Martha and Mary- (1 c) holy myrrh-bearing women (commemorated on the Sunday of the holy women-bearing women), sisters of Lazarus the Four Days. The differences in the characters of these sisters, the practical Martha and the prayerfully contemplative Mary, symbolize different types of life as ... ... Orthodox Encyclopedic Dictionary

Martha and Mary- (I century) holy myrrh-bearing women, sisters of Lazar the Four-day. The differences in the characters of these sisters - the practical Martha and the prayerful contemplative Mary - symbolize the different types of life activity of both individual Christians and ... ... Orthodoxy. Dictionary-reference

Martha and Mary, the sisters of Lazarus, mentioned in the gospel story about Christ's visit to Bethany. The various characters of the sisters of practical Martha and contemplative Mary have become a symbol of various attitudes in the life of Christians... Big Encyclopedic Dictionary

MARFA and MARIA- the sisters of Lazarus, mentioned in the gospel story about Christ's visit to Bethany. Diff. the characters of the sisters - the practical Martha and the contemplative Mary - became a symbol of decomp. attitudes in the life of Christians ... Biographical Dictionary

Martha and Mary- - the sisters of Lazarus, are known from the gospel story about the visit of the Savior to Bethany ... Complete Orthodox Theological Encyclopedic Dictionary

Picture of work ... Wikipedia

Martha is a female given name. Persons known by the name of Inokinya Martha (in the world Xenia Ioannovna Romanova) (d. 1631) mother of Tsar Mikhail Fedorovich, wife of Fyodor Nikitievich Romanov (Patriarch Filaret); Maria Staritskaya Princess Staritskaya, Queen ... ... Wikipedia

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