Column by Mary Lee Talbot
Two of the most well-known and beloved women in the Bible are Martha and Mary. They are two poles of living — Martha doing and Mary being.
“I am not going to highlight the sibling dynamic; it is Martha’s hospitality I want to highlight. Martha welcomed Jesus into her home. It was rare for a woman to own a home in that time; she was not dependent on men,” the Rt. Rev. Mariann Edgar Budde said. Her sermon title was “Lord, Tell My Sister to Help Me,” and the scripture reading was Luke 10: 38–42.
Jesus was not wandering when he stopped at Martha’s house. He had set his course toward Jerusalem to complete his mission, and he did not have patience with those who had still not made a decision to follow him or not. Martha’s home was a place of rest for him — one of two mentioned in the Gospels.
“The importance of hospitality and refuge have taken on new meaning these days,” Budde said. “Our country is less safe, and people speak with contempt of people with other worldviews.”
What is needed, she continued, is a refugia faith, a concept taken from author Debra Rienstra’s book Refugia Faith: Seeking Hidden Shelters, Ordinary Wonders, and the Healing of the Earth.
The book begins with the explosion of Mount St. Helens in 1980. Many people thought it would take generations for new life to appear, but it only took several years.
In the midst of the devastation, tiny pockets of safety for plants and creatures were overlooked. It was from those pockets of safety that new life emerged.
“It is a powerful metaphor,” Budde said. “When so much is being destroyed, we need to create pockets of resilience when societal storms pass over.”
Martha’s home was a pocket of safety for Jesus, and our communities, homes and Chautauqua should be places of renewal and shields of joy as the world becomes harsh, Budde told the congregation. “People of a certain age need to create pockets of safety for those who are following us, to help them find joy as they work out their mission.”
As Martha fretted about getting the meal on the table, she turned to Jesus and said, “Don’t you care? Tell my sister to help me.” Budde said, “We don’t talk to esteemed teachers with that kind of bossiness. Martha must have felt very close to Jesus. There is a safety and intimacy even if what comes out [of our mouths] is not from our best selves.”
Jesus received Martha’s words with compassion and redirected her thinking. He told her, “Only one thing is needed,” Budde said. “We are often reminded of what is important by those who know us well.”
Budde told the congregation that Martha is her middle name. She asked, “How do we not allow the distractions to make us miss the one thing we need? It is not the same thing everyday, and it is not the same thing for everyone.”
She continued, “Perhaps it is a word God has for you, something to give someone, perhaps a gentle word to you or to someone else. We don’t know what the world will require; we need to have greater clarity about what is required so God will have more to work with.”
Jesus does have a word for us, she told the congregation. “More rests on the discovery of the one true thing than you will ever know.”
Martha welcomed Jesus into her home so he could rest and to speak honestly. “This is another way to be brave — to open the door, set the table, create a refuge and welcome Christ. May God give us the grace to do just that. Chautauqua has been that kind of place for me, and I am grateful.”
Robert Wilson-Black, director of the Department of Religion, presided. Jane McCarty, coordinator of the Women in Ministry program, read the scripture. Sonya Subbayya Sutton, interim director of Sacred Music, performed “Whit (Summer),” by Hilary Tann as the prelude on the Massey Memorial Organ. The Motet Choir, under the direction of Sutton and accompanied by organ scholar Owen Reyda on the Massey Organ, sang “All Manner of Thing,” music by Sarah Macdonald and words from Julian of Norwich. Reyda played “Fugue II, Op.16,” by Clara Schumann, for the postlude on the Massey Organ. Support for this week’s chaplaincy and preaching is provided by Week One Presenting Sponsor Erie Insurance and the Gladys R. Brasted and Adair Brasted Gould Memorial Chaplaincy.
