Luke 10

Mary and Martha

• Still on the journey to Jerusalem
  • Gospel of John tells us that this is in Bethany
  • We see the pattern of preaching - entering the home of the first person who meets them in the village
  • Bethany means "House of the poor" - it was a poor village
• Sitting at Jesus' feet
  • This means "to be His disciple"
    • e.g. St Paul "sat at the feet of Gamaliel"
  • "Also" in addition to the disciples
• One thing is needed
  • He's not saying "you should be more like Mary" or "you're the bad sister"
  • Martha's hospitality is a good thing
  • It is good what you're doing, but you're missing one piece of the puzzle and your sister has it: discipleship
• Role of Women
  • In those days, women were not treated equally to men in society
  • In Greek and Roman society, they were not even considered to be equal to men - they were lesser beings than men. In some views, they were just humans who failed to become men in the womb. They weren't responsible for anything. They were just a tool to use to have sons.
  • In Jewish society, they had a low view of women, but they at least believed women to be made by God, and there were some provisions for them in the Law. Still, their father or husband was responsible for them.
  • In Christianity, we see that women are completely equal with men. And that means they are just as responsible for knowing and following the commandments and for being disciples of Christ - this is the point that St Luke tries to make by including this story in his gospel
  • It's a very important point in the eyes of the original audience of the Gospels
    • The elevation of the status of women in Christianity
    • The giving of an equal responsibility to women in Christianity