By Fr. Glenn Jones:

Busy, busy, busy. It seems that we are so busy in our day-to-day. Jobs, kids … family and friends obligations. Yet frequently our time is filled with events and obligations that we make ourselves and yet are not particularly important in the scope of our lives.

Sometimes it seems almost as if we can scarcely stand NOT to be occupied with something, as if we’ll miss out on something in our lives’ limited—and thus precious—time. We have an endless variety of things to occupy our attention—not only jobs, but optional and entertaining things like concerts, movies, internet, sports, books (written and audible), etc. Some variety is to fill particular niches—one who loves sports may care little for concerts, for example—but nonetheless, opportunities for occupation abound. We become so used to being busy we even find it difficult to let the mind take a break … to come apart and rest awhile, as Jesus says.

And you parents have all kinds of things your kids are in nowadays—musical instruments, dance, sports—all of which oblige to attend. Often to pastors’ dismay, there seems to be no longer allowance whatever for the spirit … for the eternal rather than obsession with the temporal. We not infrequently hear of people driving through blizzards to attend sports contests many miles distant, and yet a mere dusting of snow may provide excuse from attending Sunday services just blocks away. What is it, then, that is worshiped? Often is heard: “But my child will no longer be allowed to participate if he misses the Sunday morning tournament (or concert, or dance practice, etc.)” Organizers of such things would do well to reflect on their conscience if that is the case, because you pit parents against their children, and even cause those children to resent spiritual formation when it absents them from “fun” yet lesser pursuits.

Our Mass Gospel of this weekend (July 20) gives us a good reflection on the balance between action and contemplation … between occupations and resting awhile for the refreshment of the spirit.

That Gospel (Luke 10:38-42) recounts that familiar story of Martha and Mary, sisters who welcome Jesus into their home. Martha busies herself with the tasks of hospitality, while Mary sits at Jesus’ feet, listening to His words and absorbing His teaching. When Martha complains, Jesus gently corrects her, saying, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and worried about many things. There is need of only one thing. Mary has chosen the better part, and it will not be taken from her.”

Now, Martha’s work is necessary—she’s preparing a meal, serving her guests, fulfilling the duty of hospitality. Yet Jesus praises Mary’s choice to listen. “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and worried about many things.”…Jesus affectionately corrects her. He’s implicitly saying: “I know your heart, but your worry over earthly concerns is separating you from what is truly important.”

So, are we to abandon responsibilities to sit in prayer and meditation 24/7?

St. Augustine reflects on this Gospel in his sermons, noting that Martha and Mary represent two aspects of the Christian life … or any life at all: the active and the contemplative. Martha’s service is good, but Mary’s contemplation is better because it is directed toward the eternal.

Augustine writes, “Martha was busy about much serving, but Mary was intent on the Lord’s teaching… Martha’s business will pass away, but Mary’s listening abides forever.” Augustine reminds us that our earthly tasks, while important, are temporary, whereas communion with God and spiritual good is our eternal calling.

Our first reading at Mass that same day (Genesis 18:1-10) complements this theme. Abraham, like Martha, is busy with hospitality, rushing to serve three mysterious visitors—often seen in Christianity as prefiguring the Holy Trinity. Abraham’s actions are praiseworthy, and his generosity leads to the promise of a son, a blessing beyond his hopes, due to him and his wife being elderly. Yet, Abraham’s service is rooted in attentiveness to God’s presence. He doesn’t only serve; he sees the divine in his guests, and his hospitality is a form of contemplation and worship in action. As Jesus would say much later: “Amen, I say to you, whatever you did for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me.” (Matthew 25:40)

So, what does this mean for us? The readings don’t put action and contemplation in conflict, but call us to integrate them into a mutually supporting whole according to one’s vocation and state in life. St. Gregory the Great taught that the active life and the contemplative life are not opposed but complementary, writing, “The active life is to give bread to the hungry, to teach the ignorant the word of wisdom … The contemplative life is to hold fast to the love of God and neighbor with a whole heart.” Gregory suggests that, for we Christians, our service must flow from our encounter with God, and our prayer must inspire us to serve. Each finds renewed strength in the other. As we read in Ecclesiastes: “For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven …” (Ecclesiastes 3:1)

Yet in our busy lives, we often lean toward Martha’s frenzy; we juggle work, family, and countless responsibilities and obligations. And so it becomes easy to feel overwhelmed, like Martha, and even resentful when others seem to be “doing less”. But all purveyors of wisdom—Jesus most of all—invite us to pause, to choose “the better part” by basing our actions in prayer and contemplation, which fortifies us for continued, and perhaps greater, acts of charity and goodness.

Even a few brief moments of quiet contemplation at the beginning and end of your day—Christians, for example, dedicating that day and its works to God—can transform your service into an act of love and charity. Perhaps a chapter of the Gospels, or even some time marveling at the grandeur and beauty of nature (you Los Alamosians have ample opportunity for that! Graduation Point was a favorite of mine, or even a drive along the loop through White Rock).

The bishops at Vatican II presciently stated: “…Man painfully searches for a better world, without working with equal zeal for the betterment of his own spirit.” (Gaudium et Spes, 4)

It’s time to fix that.

Editor’s note: Rev. Glenn Jones is the Vicar General of the Archdiocese of Santa Fe and former pastor of Immaculate Heart of Mary Catholic Church in Los Alamos.