Reflection:  
Filipinos are known to be a hospitable people.  This quality of warmth, friendliness and open-arm welcome to visitors, especially in our homes, seems ingrained in our psyche and culture.  It is a trait we can be proud of because, as the Gospel tells us, hospitality is an expression of love, kindness and concern for others, and honors God’s command to love our neighbor as ourselves, the subject of our Readings this Sunday.

Hospitality can be expressed in many ways.  Abraham, in the First Reading, welcomed strangers into his home with much anticipation, asking his wife Sarah, to prepare some food for them, while he, himself, waited on the guests, attending to their needs.  His intentions were pure, devoid of selfish motives.  He expected nothing in return, did not expect his guests to feel obligated, but was joyful at being able to offer some comfort to his guests, a respite after a long and tiring journey.

In the Gospel, we witness the difference in attitudes between two sisters, Martha and Mary, whose home Jesus was visiting on this occasion. Both women were happy to welcome Jesus into their home.  Martha busied herself in the kitchen preparing the meal, while Mary sat at the feet of Jesus, absorbed in conversation with Him. Typical of women caught up in the rush of meal preparation, Martha was stressed and anxious, resentful that instead of helping her with the chores, her sister was sitting unmindful, chatting comfortably with the Lord, while she did all the work.  Small wonder Martha murmured against her!  But rather than send Mary off to help her sister, Jesus’ response to Martha was – “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and upset about many things; one thing only is required.  Mary has chosen the better portion and she shall not be deprived of it,”   (Lk 10:42).

What is that one thing Jesus considered more important in the way we relate to one another, the way we serve and welcome Him into our homes and our community?  He answers the question by saying that Mary had chosen “the better part”. Why? Surely Martha, busy in the kitchen preparing the meal was also serving, was she not? But sitting at His foot, totally absorbed in Him as Mary was, gives us a picture of a true disciple.  It speaks of reverence, of giving prime importance to Jesus’ presence and what He had got to say.

Everything Jesus has to say to us is found in Scripture. But what we absorb from it depends on the inner disposition of our hearts and minds.  There is a Martha in everyone of us, but we often do not see it.  When we are caught up with our many pressing concerns and activities within and outside of our homes, our families, and even our communities, our hearts and minds lose focus.  We forget that our priority is the Lord, and we end up stressed, anxious, bitter, sometimes resentful and judgmental of the people around us. We grumble and complain, and fail to see and hear Jesus in our midst.

Here’s what the 2nd Reading tells us,“… the mystery of Christ in you, the hope of glory,” (Col 1: 27).  Yes, we have come to understand our faith, that Christ is alive and lives in each one of us.  But the moment our anxieties and worries overwhelm us, we only see the challenges and problems that beset us.  We become deaf, blind, mute to the Lord, because our mouths are quick to complain, and we stop being hospitable to one another.  The busyness and concerns of this world choke out the Word from our hearts.   Where is the Abraham in us?  Where is the Mary in us?  Abraham was quick to offer the strangers a drink and his home for them to rest and to be refreshed from the heat of the sun.  It did not matter that it may have inconvenienced him, or Sarah.  Instead both husband and wife were pleased to have been able to offer hospitality to these weary strangers, a matter of sacrificial love on both their parts.

And what of Mary? Was she less hospitable to Jesus by not busying herself serving Him?  On the contrary, she was more hospitable in a deeper sense.  Though both Martha and Mary loved Jesus and enjoyed having Him visit their home, Mary was the one who gave Jesus her fullest attention.  Perhaps she knew or sensed, that it was what Jesus needed or desired of her at that time, (though indeed, Jesus does not need us, it is we who need Him).  Ordinarily, we rush to do things we think is right, without discerning God’s will for us.  Jesus, in the Gospel today, is reminding us to seek God first, by taking the time to hear His Word in the stillness of our hearts as we welcome Him as a VIP in our lives.  Whoever we are, whatever we do, it is His will that should prevail, if we are to find peace of heart and mind.

Let us be encouraged therefore, to find rest and refreshment in His presence through the Bible and the Eucharist, by sitting at His feet in the adoration chapel, through the sacrament of confession, and by seeing Him in the people we meet each day.  Let us humbly sit at His feet and choose the better part even if it requires some sacrifices on our part.  For sacrificial love is what glorifies God and builds the church.

Prayer: 
Lord Jesus, You welcomed me into Your heart without conditions.  Even in my sinfulness, You lavished much love and understanding upon me.  Help me to do likewise and to see You in others.  Grant me the grace to be more prayerful, to still my heart and mind, and distance myself from the distractions of this world, that I may sit at Your feet each day.  Allow me to be grateful for the life You have given me, for the beautiful people you have sent me to love, and to be thankful for everything and be conscious of Your presence at all times.  Help me to be truly and genuinely hospitable, that I may love others as you have loved me.  Amen.

Reflection Questions:
1.    How is my prayer life progressing?
2.    In my everyday circumstance, at work, at home, and in Community, do I take time to “sit at Jesus’ feet” before
starting my day?  Share an experience when you did, as opposed to an occasion when you did not pray
but rushed off to work.Was there a difference in your day?
3.    Do I see Jesus in my brother or sister, causing me to be more welcoming and loving toward them? If not, why not?

This Week’s Daily Mass Reading Guide:
July 21, 2013 (Sun)    Gn 18:1-10/Ps 15:2-5/Col 14-28?lk 10:38-42
July 22, 2013 (Mon)    Sg 3:1-4 or 2Cor 5:14-17/Ps 63:2-4,8,9/Jn 20:1,2,11-18
July 23, 2013 (Tues)   Ex 15:21-15:1/Ex 15:8-10,12,17/Mt 12:46-50
July 24, 2013 (Wed)   Ex 16:1-5,9-15/Ps 78:18,19,23,28/Mt 13:1-9
July 25, 2013 (Thur)   2Cor 4:7-15/Ps 126:1-6/Mt 20:20-28
July 26, 2013 (Fri)       Sir 44:1,10-15/Ps 132:11,13,14,17,18/Mt 13:16,17
July 27, 2013 (Sat)     Ex 34:3-8/Ps 50:1,2,5,6,14,15/Mt 13:24-30

“Ignorance of the Bible is ignorance of Christ.  Read your Bible daily!”

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