“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.” Luke 10:41-42
On February 2, 2021, Pope Francis expanded the memorial of Martha on 29 July, to include Martha’s sister and brother, Mary and Lazarus, in the Liturgical Calendar. Thus, we celebrate these three siblings together, as the patron saints of siblings and close friends of Jesus Christ.
They lived in Bethany, which was only a short distance from Jerusalem. Martha was active, enterprising, careful and given to exterior things. She is remembered especially for the story in which she had been preparing a meal for Jesus, while her sister, Mary, sat at Jesus’ feet listening to Him, leaving all the work to Martha.
Martha complained to Jesus, urging Him to “Tell her to help.” Jesus’ gentle rebuke of her request is quoted above.
Mary is also known for the above story in which she sat at Jesus’ feet. This has traditionally been seen as a symbol of contemplative prayer.Jesus told Martha that it was Mary who had made the better choice – that spiritual matters have a much higher priority than household chores.
Though medieval tradition has at times associated Mary of Bethany with Mary of Magdala and with the sinful woman who anointed Jesus’ feet (Luke 7:36-50), most scholars agree today that these are three different Marys.
In fact, one of the reasons Pope Francis added Mary of Bethany to this memorial was that she was honored with a liturgical memorial, that did not confuse her with Mary of Magdala.
Mary’s brother Lazarus was seriously ill. Mary and her sister sent word to Jesus to let him know of Lazarus’s condition, hoping for a visit. By the time Jesus arrived, Mary’s brother had been dead for four days.
When Mary saw Jesus, she sorrowfully spoke of her disappointment, claiming that if he had been there, Lazarus could have been saved. Jesus went to the tomb and prayed fervently to God and then commanded the deceased man to rise.
Mary’s confidence in Jesus soared as she witnessed her brother return to the living – still wrapped in his burial cloths!
The account of Lazarus being raised from the dead by Jesus, led to his widespread veneration in Jerusalem, which was witnessed by the Spanish pilgrim Egeria in 390.
Tradition says Lazarus became a missionary to Gaul, the first Bishop of Marseilles, France and a martyr in the persecutions of Domitian.
The Order of Lazarists founded by St. Vincent de Paul took its name from the Church in Paris, dedicated to Saint Lazare.
These siblings teach us an incredibly powerful reminder of faith in times of hardship. Their story is all about trusting God even when things seem impossible – They demonstrate the power and strength that comes from believing in something bigger than ourselves.
-Sherida de Souza