Saint Martha

“ Martha was concerned about Our Lord's bodily comfort, but Mary, laying aside every other thought, nourished her soul with the sacred instructions of her Divine Master. A soul, recollected interiorly before God, is sometimes so sweetly attentive to the goodness of her Beloved as not even to be aware of its attentiveness, so simply and gently is it exercised. Such souls are like those who navigate rivers the waters of which flow on so calmly that they neither see nor feel any motion. ”

“ Every three years, the people of our village give in the little chapel ‘The Miracle of Saint Martin.’”
There was a long silence. Martin sat, his face buried in his hands. The pastor spoke again.
“Martin! Free yourself of this horror; let Hope in. Life is knocking at your door with gifts of fulfillment!” ”

“ One night, a night like this in the woods where holiness dwelt, something stirred within him—a voice clear, beautiful, said wonderful things which gave his soul wings.”
“Yes! that happens sometimes, a voice from within,” said Martin.
“He left the band, made his way to the church and begged to be taken in. He was rarely gifted; the monks saw in him the white fervor of the saint. The Lord had changed the murderous rage of the robber into the divine madness of the fanatic. He went to Einsiedeln and there, it was said, heard the voice of God, who commanded him to become a monk. ”

“ Contemplative souls often desire, in times of heavenly consolation, never to be interrupted in the glorious employment of love and praise: but the functions of Martha, the frailty and necessities of the human frame, and the temptations of the devil, force them, though reluctant, from their beloved object. Nay, God oftentimes withdraws himself, as the saint observed on this occasion, to make them sensible of their own weakness, and that this life is a state of trial. ”

“ Instead of being the habitation of peace and tranquillity their solitude is a cause of sadness and disquiet.
Those who lead like Martha a life of great activity may still enjoy the tranquillity of Mary, if they are careful to refer all their works to God: this one aim being the eye which touches the heart of the Divine Spouse. In order not to lose the security of our habitation, we must seek it, not so much in a cell, as in God Himself. Thrice happy are they who dwell in this House, which not only belongs to God, but is God Himself, for He will be their abiding rest throughout ages of ages. ”

“ O, our refuge and our advocate, turn one look of mercy towards us; interest yourself in our behalf; be moved to compassion for our evils, and obtain their cure. Deliver us from our miseries, and we shall never cease to sing the hymn of praise to your mercy, of which we have experienced the salutary effects. Amen.
Ejaculation.—Pray for me, O Mother of Grace, O Mother of Mercy!
Practice.—Whilst you fulfil the duties of your state in imitation of Martha, endeavour to have your mind and heart turned to Jesus as Mary had. ”

“ To Martha he was the King that should reign in splendor at Jerusalem, and raise their nation to an untold height of glory; to Mary he was the answer to the eternal question,—the Way, the Truth, the Life, for which she had been always longing.
Among many who urge and press hospitality, Martha's invitation prevails. A proud home is that, when Jesus follows her,—her prize, her captive. The woman in our day who has captured in her net of hospitalities the orator, the poet, the warrior,—the star of all eyes, the central point of all curiosity, desire, and regard,—can best appreciate Martha's joy. ”

“ Then Jesus told her that Lazarus would rise again; and Martha showed her faith in answering that she knew he would rise at the last day. And again Jesus questioned her with these wonderful resurrection words, "Whosoever liveth and believeth in Me shall never die. Believest thou this?"
And Martha gave one of the most wonderful answers that we read in the Bible: "Yea, Lord: I believe that Thou art the Christ, the Son of God, which should come into the world." ”

“ And when we think of the darker and varied aspects, the inner complications of the lives of those who were crowding round the altar-rails of St. Germain, what a wonderful, manifold history, what a spiritual landscape of infinite shades of the most delicate pencillings, do we not see! Side by side kneel souls whose life-paths run in opposite channels: here is Martha, the busy household angel, whose faith is inwoven in her every daily movement, her every thought, though it be of toil and anxiety ”

“ We promise to give time, to give money, to work for the Cause. This is all in the way of Martha. But these thoughts and prayers are made in a temple where the light is the light of candles placed before shrines of the Unseen. A vision accompanies the Christian man. Though his passion is towards the things of this world he is encompassed and enveloped by the atmosphere of another world. The remembrance remains his that Cæsar is not God, nor Cæsar’s officers the angels of God, nor this world the real world, that the poor we have always with us, that our true citizenship is of another realm. ”

“ Martha covered her face with her hands, and hid it on the couch, fearful lest she might see agony in one so beloved. Yet she fixed on that pallid countenance another long, tender gaze, as the expiring voice said—
"I go, where is no shade of complexion—no trace of sorrow. I go to meet my parents, who died in faith; my Edward, whose trust was in his Redeemer. I shall see thy daughter, and she will be my sister, where all is love. Father! Mother! that God, whom you have learned to worship, whose spirit dwells in your hearts, guide you thither also." ”

“ Even among a mystical people the great majority remain behind in “the world” and have the normal life, serve man as well as God, marry, have children, work as well as pray, and live through six everydays to one of incense and song. The Church has its two aspects, that of Martha and of Mary, and it is with the way of Martha that we are generally more familiar, though many may look lingeringly towards the wilderness, feeling that perhaps after all the better part is to be found out there. ”

“ It is wonderful how sharply and truly, in a narrative so brief, the characters of Martha and Mary are individualized. Martha, in her Judæan dress and surroundings, is, after all, exactly such a good woman as is often seen in our modern life,—a woman primarily endowed with the faculties necessary for getting on in the world, yet sincerely religious. She is energetic, businesslike, matter-of-fact, strictly orthodox, and always ready for every emergency. She lives in the present life strongly and intensely, and her religion exhibits itself through regular forms and agencies. ”

“ Every one is young, every one is active. No woman over forty can enter the sisterhood, no one also who is weak physically or likely to be unable to perform the arduous labours for and among the poor which the sisters impose upon themselves.
The convent combines in its ideal the imitation of both Martha and Mary. Each sister dedicates herself to “God and her neighbour.” She would sit at Jesus’ feet like Mary, and be occupied with many things like Martha. But certainly the idea of Martha and service stands first in their minds. Their religion is the religion of good deeds. ”

“ Let us get the humanness as well as the divinity out of it. Look at those people, what are they doing? Sitting at the table. A lovely place for us men to sit. But Martha served. Do not miss that. She is doing what she did before,—getting supper ready. She is bustling about in her earnestness, but she has lost her grumbling. She gets through the entertainment with smiles from first to last. She is no less busy, but she is at rest in her mind. She is cumbered, but is not angry with Mary, and is not reflecting on Jesus Christ. She had learned something in the day of sorrow and darkness. ”

“ One day the Lord Jesus was going about healing the sick, and teaching people about His Heavenly Father, and in His journey He came to the village of Bethany, where Martha and Mary and Lazarus lived.
Martha was a very industrious, energetic woman, and when she saw Jesus and His disciples coming, I dare say she ran out to meet them, and invited them into her house to have something to eat. ”

“ Again, Martha's nature attaches a vast importance to many things which, in the view of Mary, are so fleeting and perishable, and have so little to do with the deeper immortal wants of the soul, that it is difficult for her even to remember and keep them in sight. The requirements of etiquette, the changes and details of fashion, the thousand particulars which pertain to keeping up a certain footing in society and a certain position in the world—all these Martha has at her fingers' ends. They are the breath of her nostrils, while Mary is always forgetting, overlooking, and transgressing them. ”

“ In token of sincere affection for our sister, I deposit in her grave this emblem of Light and Purity.
Deposits her tribute and then, addressing Martha, says:
Sister Martha, what is the voice and tribute from the Green point of our Star?
Martha. Green is an emblem of nature's life and beauty. The evergreen is a symbol of Immortal Life and teaches us that in the economy of God, there is no death; forms change, but the spirit survives. Martha, beside the grave of her beloved brother, avowed her trustful faith and hope of immortal life. ”

“ No, no, God forbid thou shouldst go to a nunnery."
"The Lord bless you, good Señor," returned Martha with humility; "but you over-rate my poor deserts."
"By my sword! that modesty becomes thee mightily. But we must lose no time. Attend vespers this afternoon, there thou shalt find my conscientious valet, who will give thee proper directions and assistance to effect thy escape, and ample means to pass the remainder of thy precious life in some distant city of Spain, free from the blessed idea of conventual retirement."
"That will I do, most generous Don Lope, and be thankful withal." ”

“ This he retained probably from early associations, though he was now the disciple of a better faith.
"The Great Spirit, who dwelleth where the Sun hideth himself, and where the tempest is born, guide thee with strength. He who maketh the earth fruitful, and the sky bright, and the heart of man glad, smile on thee, and give thee rest."
Martha remained to render some attentions to the sufferer. ”

“ Martha’s ordeal is as great a one as Mary’s, her consecration as vital. We cannot go out carelessly and minister to the poor, for if we do, we perform no miracles. And without miracles the poor are not satisfied. ”

“ It is a significant coincidence that St. John, speaking (xii. 2) of another supper at Bethany, in the house of Simon, states that Martha "served," using the same word that Jesus addressed to her in the narrative of St. Luke. Evidently Martha was a "server." This was her forte, so much so that her services were in requisition outside her own house. Hers was a culinary [309] skill, and she delighted with her sleight of hand to effect all sorts of transformations, as, conjuring with her fire, she called forth the pleasures and harmonies of taste. ”

“ Think of them, Martha, all over the world, rich and poor, Christian and heathen. How many mothers’ hearts are breaking to-day. You are not alone, Martha. A great company are waiting and weeping with you. ”

“ They resemble Martha who fares hither and thither and is concerned with matters of external or mundane significance, rather than Mary who has selected once and for all the best part. Their piety is not deficient, it is true, in intensity and soul; but we do not find here the song of Love which is at once the beginning and end of it, and which is perforce not merely an exaltation, a prayer, or thanks for a gift received, but is as much its unique life as that of the nightingale. ”

“ Aaron demanded. "The Mother-god of this world is mit Kinndt, fat with the bounty of springtime. So tender is the swollen belly of the earth that the people here, simple folk with no more subtle God, strip the iron from the hoofs of their horses not to bruise her. They bare their feet in her honor, treat her with the tenderness I treat my beloved Martha. And to this Goddess, swollen earth, I took the plow! Martha, we are fortunate indeed that our neighbors are gentle people, or I would be hanged now, or stoned to death like the wicked in the old days. ”

“ With so great love and fervor did Martha wait on our Redeemer, that, as we cannot doubt, she thought that if the whole world were occupied in attending so great a guest, all would be too little. She wished that all men would employ their hands, feet, and hearts, all their faculties and senses, with their whole strength, in serving with her their gracious Creator, made for us our brother. Therefore, sweetly complaining to him, she desired him to bid her sister Mary to rise up and help her. ”

“ In all the scene which follows we are impressed with the dignity and worth of Martha's character. We see in the scene of sorrow that Martha has been the strong, practical woman, on whom all rely in the hour of sickness, and whose energy is equal to any emergency. We see her unsubdued by emotion, ready to go forth to receive Jesus, and prompt to meet the issues of the moment. We see, too, that the appreciation of the worth of her character, which had led him to admonish her against the materialistic tendencies of such a nature, was justified by the fruits of that rebuke. ”