[00:00:00] Hello, my name is Sally Moriarty-Flask. Welcome to: From His Word to Our Hearts, my weekly Bible Study podcast. Together we will explore the readings to be proclaimed at the Catholic Mass on Sunday, July 20, 2025, the 16th Sunday in Ordinary Time. This week's episode is entitled: Welcoming God, and in these readings, we will learn anew how important it is to welcome God into every aspect of our lives.
As we journey through the readings this week, consider the following:
In the hubris of our society today, we isolate God from so much of our everyday lives… our friendships, our workplaces, our politics, our social media presence. Thinking like that makes us see the world wrongly. God created us for union with him… in all things. We have to stop shutting God out and invite his love and mercy to guide us in everything we do!
So, let's begin:
[00:01:18] In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Heavenly Father, we praise you and we thank you for the extravagant love and mercy which you freely shower upon us even before we can think to ask for it. Help us accept every good gift you give us and be forever transformed into the kind, open, loving people you created us to be. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.
In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Now that we've opened our hearts in prayer, let's listen to what God is telling us in the Scriptures.
[00:01:57] Our Gospel this week is from Luke 10: 38b-42.
“[Jesus] entered a village; and a woman named Martha received him into her house. And she had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord's feet and listened to his teaching. But Martha was distracted with much serving; and she went to him and said, ‘Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me.’ But the Lord answered her, ‘Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things; one thing is needful. Mary has chosen the good portion, which shall not be taken away from her.’”
[00:02:41] Remember, we are in the Travel Narrative section of Luke's Gospel, recounting Jesus’ final journey to Jerusalem. This week's passage is found only in Luke's Gospel, and it follows immediately after last week's passage where Jesus engaged in a debate with a scholar of the law about who should be considered a neighbor. From that passage, which included the parable of the Good Samaritan (also found only in Luke), we now know that everyone is our neighbor. This week, the overarching theme of all the readings is hospitality, particularly appropriate since we were reminded last week that we must be willing to welcome everyone as our neighbor. That always calls to my mind a quote from the Letter to the Hebrews: “Do not neglect hospitality, for through it some have unknowingly entertained angels” (and that's Hebrews 13). So, with that in mind, let's break open this week's Gospel…
[00:03:51] “[Jesus] entered a village;”
While the village is not named here, we know that the people Jesus was visiting lived in Bethany, which is very near to Jerusalem.
“and a woman named Martha received him into her house.”
Yes, this is the Martha from the story of the raising of Lazarus in John's Gospel. Martha, Mary, and Lazarus were good friends of Jesus, and their home was a frequent and welcome stop for him on his travels.
“[S]he had a sister called Mary who sat at the Lord's feet and listened to his teaching.”
That would have been considered scandalous at the time… Mary has adopted the position of a disciple, a role that was normally reserved only for men, but she has claimed a place at Jesus’ feet as her own. That small act opens the door for all people, not just women, but all people in the future to be welcomed as full and active disciples of Jesus in the Church.
[00:05:10] “But Martha was distracted with much serving;”
Martha is always criticized for this, which seems a bit unfair. St. Augustine (4th cent theologian, bishop, philosopher, and Doctor of the Church) wrote about this particular situation: “Martha was intent upon how she might feed the Lord; Mary was intent upon how she might be fed by the Lord.” Meaning that both tasks were necessary and important.
[00:05:54] “and [Martha] went to [Jesus] and said, ‘Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me.’
That is where the situation becomes a bit more complex. And let me point out that Martha's scolding Jesus shows the familiarity that existed between the two of them. That is the same level of familiarity, of intimacy, that we should all try to achieve with Jesus - it's what he wants from us. But in order for that to happen, we have to be open to him rather than continually shutting him out.
[00:06:43] “But the Lord answered her, ‘Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things;’”
Which was true… hospitality was paramount in biblical times. It was so important that it could be seen as a heavy burden at times. Anyone that has ever hosted a dinner party in their home knows that the responsibility of serving others involves lots of different tasks and often creates a lot of anxiety. So, Martha's feelings were perfectly understandable. Jesus then says to Martha…
“one thing is needful.”
[00:07:27] Jesus’ words are often interpreted to mean that serving others is not important, that the only thing that is important is sitting at his feet as a disciple. That is not the case… and we have only to look to John's account of the Last Supper to truly understand that. In John's gospel, Jesus washes the feet of each and every one of the disciples and then tells them that he has given them a model to follow… a model of humble service to others. What we should take away from Jesus’ words to Martha, however, is that time with Jesus should always be our starting point… for anything and everything. And what is time with Jesus in our world today? Well, it's prayer. Prayer should always be our starting point. I read a book many years ago called “Preparing for Liturgy” by Austin Fleming, and in that book Mr. Fleming included several reflections for volunteers who placed themselves at the service of the liturgy in the Church. But every reflection - without fail - contained the words: “come to your work from your personal prayer…” That is an invaluable reminder for us! No matter what our goal or our destination may be, in the Church or outside of it, every path should begin with prayer. Jesus continues…
[00:09:14] “Mary has chosen the good portion, which shall not be taken away from her.”
Meaning that Mary is exactly where she needs to be at that moment… at the feet of Jesus where she is listening, learning, and praying. All of us need to be regularly at the feet of Jesus (metaphorically, of course)… but all of us need to be there throughout our lives. That is a discipline that is called contemplation. Contemplation has been described as “first learning how to be and [then] surrendering our very being to God's grace.”
[00:10:05] That quote is from an article entitled “Contemplation in Action” by Marina Berzins McCoy from the website ignationspirituality.com, a longtime favorite resource of mine. Unfortunately, Jesus’ words here in this Gospel, much too often, have been understood to mean that only contemplation is important and that action is unnecessary or somehow inferior. That thought process creates a false conflict between the two.
In that same article, Professor McCoy goes on to say: “Contemplation moves into action when we learn how to love. When [we] take the time to see and to listen, then [we are] better prepared to act with a love that is genuinely responsive.” That is a great way to look at the relationship that should exist between contemplation and action. They are two sides of the same coin rather than being two separate coins.
[00:11:26] In this passage, Martha clearly represents action and Mary obviously represents contemplation. But those two things are not different pathways… they are both the necessary acts of every disciple. We see that - again and again - in the life of Jesus himself, who spent significant amounts of time in prayer and significant amounts of time teaching, preaching, and healing. Contemplation is not inherently better than action; neither is action inherently better than contemplation - both are necessary.
Bernard of Clairvaux (12th cent theologian, mystic, reformer and Doctor of the Church), wrote that there is always tension between contemplation and action, but that love is expressed in action, and action is where we experience God… think of Matthew 25.
That doesn't mean we don't encounter God in prayer… we do encounter God in prayer AND in contemplation… but that leads us to love - and then love leads us into action. And remember, what did Jesus say in Matthew 25? Whatever you did for the least of my brothers, you did for me.
[00:13:00] Meister Eckart (14th cent theologian, priest and mystic) wrote we should not be overly attached to either work or prayer. And by work or prayer, Meister Eckert means action or contemplation. But he goes on… Martha had already been where Mary is - both contemplation and action are necessary… both prayer and work are necessary - and action comes from prayer.
Let me leave you with some additional words from “Preparing for Liturgy.” These words Mr. Fleming wrote as part of a reflection for the worshiping assembly for the congregation, so they apply to all of us.
“Yours is the work of telling and handing on the story of God's mercy. For the world you are evidence that the word of judgment is tempered with compassion. Come to your ministry from your personal prayer. It is the home from which you journey to the house of God's people. Come prepared to be surprised by God's word and presence in the assembly of your neighbors.”
What better reminder could there be that we should always be open to God and allow his love and mercy to guide us in everything we do? It isn't always easy, but it is always possible.
[00:14:39] That takes us to our First Reading, which is from Genesis 18: 1-10a.
“[T]he LORD appeared to [Abraham] by the [Terebinths] of Mamre, as he sat at the door of his tent in the heat of the day. He lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, three men stood in front of him. When he saw them, he ran from the tent door to meet them, and bowed himself to the earth, and said, ‘My lord, if I have found favor in your sight, do not pass by your servant. Let a little water be brought, and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree, while I fetch a morsel of bread, that you may refresh yourselves, and after that you may pass on—since you have come to your servant.’ So they said, ‘Do as you have said.’ And Abraham hastened into the tent to Sarah, and said, ‘Make ready quickly three measures of fine meal, knead it, and make cakes.’ And Abraham ran to the herd, and took the calf, tender and good, and gave it to the servant, who hastened to prepare it. Then he took curds, and milk, and the calf which he had prepared, and set it before them; and he stood by them under the tree while they ate. They said to him, ‘Where is Sarah your wife?’ And he said, ‘She is in the tent.’ The LORD said, ‘I will surely return to you in the spring, and Sarah your wife shall have a son.’”
[00:16:09] It's pretty evident why this passage from Genesis was paired with the passage from Luke. The theme so prevalent in both is hospitality… welcoming God into our homes, into our hearts, and into our lives. Throughout the book of Genesis, we are told that God actively engages in the lives of his people, that he is close to them, that he cares about them. It also recounts that God spoke to Abraham quite often, so let's see what we can learn from this conversation…
“[T]he LORD appeared to [Abraham] by the [Terebinths] of Mamre, as he sat at the door of his tent in the heat of the day.”
[00:16:55] You can't see this unless you happen to be following along in your own Bible, but in the text, the word LORD is in all caps, meaning that the author is referring to God. So basically, what he says there is God appeared to Abraham. Okay, we have that now, we understand that. But you may be asking, what are terebinths? And where is mamre? Good questions. The word terebinth also means oak, but do not picture the type of oak trees we have here in the United States. Terebinths are very different. They have pinnate leaves, red flowers, and produce small black fruits. Terebinth trees are native to the region around the Mediterranean Sea and are sometimes called turpentine trees because they have a strong resinous smell. Now, the exact location of Mamre is unknown, but it was most likely somewhere between Jerusalem and Hebron, which would be found in the Palestinian territory of the West Bank today. So, while that information helps us set the scene to some extent, we are given another very important detail… this took place in the heat of the day. Meaning that the sun would have been high overhead and that shade and refreshment would have been quite necessary.
“[Abraham] lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, three men stood in front of him.”
This passage is from the beginning of Genesis 18, but the context of the entire chapter, when you read through it, suggests that the three men represent God and two of his angels. That is how Jewish tradition would see it.
[00:18:54] Christian tradition, however, sees this as a depiction of the Holy Trinity: Father, Son, and Spirit. One of the most famous icons ever created is a 15th century icon by Russian painter Andrei Rublev entitled: “The Trinity,” also known as “The Hospitality of Abraham.” The icon depicts this very passage with the Terebinths of Mamre as its backdrop. I will include a photo of that icon on my Instagram feed this week so you can take a look at it.
“When [Abraham] saw them, he ran from the tent door to meet them, and bowed himself to the earth,”
Remember, I said earlier that hospitality was paramount… that is why Abraham is so quick to react to the presence of the strangers that have appeared before his tent and why he greets them with such respect. The way Abraham addresses these strangers, however, is curious. He says…
“My lord,”
[00:20:05] Now the Hebrew word that is used there is Adonai, which is used exclusively to address God. Are we then to understand that Abraham simply ignores the other two men? Or does Abraham's familiarity with God play some sort of a part in this scene? He has previously spoken to God on five different occasions earlier in the Book of Genesis, so that may actually be playing into this situation.
Or perhaps Christian tradition has it right and this is an appearance of the Trinity. Either way, Abraham addressed his guests using a term that was reserved only for God.
“My lord, if I have found favor in your sight, do not pass by your servant. Let a little water be brought, and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree, while I fetch a morsel of bread, that you may refresh yourselves, and after that you may pass on—since you have come to your servant.”
There's a lot going on in that sentence, so let's break it down just a bit. Abraham invites the men to stop and visit and promptly offers them water so their feet can be washed - in a hot, dusty climate, this would have been considered a necessary obligation of hospitality. Rest under a tree - one of those Mediterranean oaks - would have provided shade from the sun and a bit of relief from the heat. A morsel of bread - and we hear very quickly that Abraham provides much more than a morsel - but bread would have provided physical nourishment for Abraham's guests. All of that would have afforded refreshment for hot, dusty, thirsty travelers.
[00:22:09] “So they said, ‘Do as you have said.’”
The strangers accept Abraham's hospitality and instruct him to bring all that he has offered them.
“And Abraham hastened into the tent to Sarah,”
Sarah, of course, being Abraham's wife.
“and said, ‘Make ready quickly three measures of fine meal, knead it, and make cakes.’ And Abraham ran to the herd, and took a calf, tender and good, and gave it to the servant, who hastened to prepare it. Then he took curds, and milk, and the calf which he had prepared, and set it before them; and he stood by them under the tree while they ate.”
[00:22:50] Notice the fare which Abraham actually places before his guests is much more lavish than what he initially promised. But still, with everything we do know, there's a lot we don't understand. So, let's put that in perspective.
When we hear three measures of meal or flour, we assume that's generous because it would indicate that one measure is allotted for each visitor… and it is generous. But here in the United States, that would represent 30 pounds of flour! That's not just generous, it is extravagant!
[00:23:34] Curds and milk… when we hear that, we may think cottage cheese, but we're not talking about cottage cheese here. Curds would have been a type of soft, salty cheese, likely made from goat's milk; and the milk Abraham served would most likely have been from either camels or sheep, because those milks were sweet and refreshing, especially in an arid climate.
Finally, he prepares a calf from his herds and what type of meat comes from a calf? Veal! Veal is tender, light, and buttery. Again, the feast that Abraham presents to his three guests is quite elaborate. Not only that, but we also read that Abraham stood by under the tree while they ate - meaning that he stood ready to wait on them as a servant and provide anything else they might request.
[00:24:40] “They said to him, ‘Where is Sarah your wife?’”
That question would have been highly inappropriate and quite a severe breach of etiquette for any regular visitor, because men and women didn't dine together in the first place… and it was inappropriate for a strange man (or strange men) to ask after someone else's wife… but this visitor is not just any visitor - this is God, and he has a good reason to pose his question. By the way, he already knows where she is, but he asks anyway.
“And [Abraham] said, ‘She is in the tent.’”
[00:25:25] Sarah is exactly where she should have been, away from the male guests and safe in the tent. As I said before, God already knew where she was, but he asked anyway.
“The LORD said, ‘I will surely return to you in the spring, and Sarah your wife shall have a son.’”
Those words confirm the promise God made to Abraham in the previous chapter, Genesis 17. That was when God changed his name from Abram to Abraham, changed Sarah's name from Sarai to Sarah, and promised that she would give birth to a son within a year's time whom they would name Isaac.
This passage reminds us that God can come to us at any time and in any form, but we have to be ready to welcome him… into our hearts, our homes, our workplaces, our communities… everywhere we are, God is! And we have to stop pretending that he isn't.
[00:26:43] That brings us to our Responsorial Psalm, which is Psalm 15, and the refrain is:
“He who does justice will live in the presence of the Lord.”
And here are the verses:
“He who walks blamelessly, and does what is right, and speaks truth from his heart; [and] who does not slander with his tongue.”
“[Who] does no evil to his friend, nor takes up a reproach against his neighbor; in whose eyes a reprobate is despised, but who honors those who fear the LORD; who swears to his own hurt and does not change.”
“[W]ho does not put out his money at interest, and does not take a bribe against the innocent. He who does these things shall never be moved.”
[00:27:35] This Psalm is a Liturgical Hymn, and it begins with questions posed to God. We don't hear them because this passage begins with verse two, but the questions in verse 1 are: “Who shall sojourn in your tent? And who shall dwell on your holy mountain?” The remainder of the Psalm, which we do hear, contains God's response to those two questions.
This was most likely used as a ritual accompaniment for those entering the sanctuary of the Temple, the Holy of Holies… because those chosen to enter the Holy of Holies were then in the presence of God. However, the answers that the Psalmist attributes to God are not what we might expect because they do not come from Israel's Holiness Code, which is found in Leviticus 17 - 26. That Code is what most Israelites would have expected God to say: this is how you should behave.
[00:28:56] Instead, what we hear is that personal moral integrity is what is required of anyone in order to be admitted into God's presence. This Psalm teaches us that how we live within the community (what we do, how we act, how we treat others) is how God evaluates US… it is how he determines whether or not we are worthy to be in his presence. It is, in a way, a measure of whether or not our worship OF him is acceptable TO him.
[00:29:49] God expects us to be blameless, to speak truly, to do no evil, to honor others - it's easy to see how those things should apply to us. But when we get to the last couple of things… to accept no bribes, and not to charge interest on a loan, most of us would think that those things don't really have anything to do with us… but maybe we're wrong.
Oh, I'm not saying that we're actually bankers who loan money and charge interest - but do we give our time to others ONLY if we know we're going to get something in return? Or do we only have people over for dinner at our house who have already hosted us at their house?
We may think we're not in a position to accept bribes - but do we volunteer for things only when we know we'll receive recognition or praise for our efforts?
[00:31:07] In this Psalm, God sets a high bar for us and for what he considers to be acceptable behavior. But one thing we can be assured of is that he will always be there to help us live as he wants us to live… if we invite him into every part of our lives.
[00:31:40] That takes us to our Second Reading, which is from Colossians 1: 24-28.
“[Brothers and sisters:] Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I complete what is lacking in Christ's afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the church, of which I became a minister according to the divine office which was given to me for you, to make the word of God fully known, the mystery hidden for ages and generations but now made manifest to his saints. To them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. Him we proclaim, warning every man and teaching every man in all wisdom, that we may present every man mature in Christ.”
[00:32:54] This is the second of four passages we will hear from Colossians this summer. Remember, Colossians is an Occasional Letter, and it was written to counteract the impact of a philosophy that was gaining in popularity but damaging the good news of Jesus that Paul taught when he founded the Church in Colossae. It is also a Captivity Letter since it was written when Paul was a prisoner… probably in Rome, but possibly in Ephesus. So, let's go back through what Paul has to say…
“[Brothers and sisters:] Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake,”
For Paul, suffering in this life is nothing compared with the joys to be experienced in the kingdom of heaven. And Paul does not resent any sufferings he endures because he knows they may be of some benefit to the Colossian community, for whom he has a deep emotional connection.
[00:34:15] “and in my flesh I complete what is lacking in Christ's afflictions”
We should never take those words to mean that Jesus' suffering on the Cross, his Passion and Death, were lacking in any way or insufficient to redeem all mankind… they were not! In fact, saying or believing that would be heretical.
What Paul means is that every human being suffers - that is a reality of the human condition. Every single one of us suffers! And in whatever small way we DO suffer, we can and should unite our sufferings to those of Jesus and thus benefit ourselves and others.
Not redeem – benefit! In the midst of our sufferings, our patience or our endurance may be an example for someone else that may benefit them; experience we've gained in suffering may help smooth the way for someone else that goes through a similar situation; prayer that we offer to God while we're suffering may help other people, or the benefit of that is generated by our sufferings may be something that we'll never even know… but there will be some benefit.
[00:36:07] And that was what Paul was trying to explain… that individual suffering does have meaning for the larger community. But Paul goes on to say that this suffering is…
“for the sake of his body, that is, the church,”
For the sake of the Body of Christ, the Mystical Body of Christ.
“of which I became a minister according to the divine office which was given to me for you,”
Meaning that Paul encountered Jesus on the Road to Damascus and was forever changed -that he was given the mission to become the Apostle to the Gentiles.
[00:37:03] “to make the word of God fully known, the mystery hidden for ages and generations but now made manifest to his saints.”
I know I said this recently, but Frank Sheed (20th cent attorney, author, and theologian), wrote that a mystery doesn't mean “a truth we cannot know anything about, but a truth we cannot know everything about.” What Paul most likely means by “mystery” is God's plan for salvation… for the salvation of the human race - which had been long concealed in the Scriptures and is now revealed through the good news of Jesus Christ. And when Paul uses the word “saints” - we have to be careful. He's not talking about saints as we would define them today - people that have been declared saints by the Church. Paul really means “holy ones” - those who are faithful followers of Jesus.
[00:38:16] “To them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of his mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.”
Again, by “mystery” Paul means God's plan for salvation which is the message that Paul himself preached to the Gentiles… the message of hope, redemption, and salvation in the kingdom of heaven. But through him, God made known to the Gentiles the greatness, the depth, the riches, the glory of that mystery… and the Colossians receive it as Christ. They receive Christ in themselves in Baptism… and that is the hope of their glory - glory in the kingdom of heaven.
“Him we proclaim, warning every man and teaching every man in all wisdom,”
[00:39:33] Remember, Paul's starting point is Jesus - he says: “him we proclaim” meaning simply that Paul proclaimed the good news of Jesus: his life, his Passion, his Death, and his Resurrection. And when Paul uses the phrase “every man” - he's not talking specifically about a full-grown adult male. He means every person in the community who has accepted the good news that Paul proclaimed. Then Paul uses the word warning… “warning every man” - and by that he means the Colossians should avoid not just the false teachings and deceptive philosophies that are being circulated in their community, but all evil influences and sinful practices.
And all those teachings, Paul says - all his teachings – will, in turn, lead to wisdom. Meaning that the Colossians will learn to live moral and ethical lives through knowledge of and faith in Jesus.
[00:40:57] “that we may present every man mature in Christ.”
When Paul says “every man mature” - he means one who has grown in the knowledge, the understanding, and the love of Jesus which is then reflected in how they think, act, and live. That is Paul's hope for every member of the Colossian community. And remember, that also includes Baptism! Baptism is what washes away sin, allows Jesus to enter fully into our hearts, in our minds, it allows the Holy Spirit to fill us with God's grace, and it prepares us and assists us to live as God wants us to live.
[00:42:01] And isn't that what we're all striving for? Maturity in Christ? Knowing God, the Father, Jesus, his Incarnate Son, and the Holy Spirit, who is always there to guide us.
And we can only succeed if we are truly willing to invite God into every aspect of our lives… not just into our hearts, but into our families and our communities… not just into our inner self (our own personal thoughts and feelings), but into our workplaces, our friendships, and our social media presence… not just into our prayer, but into our politics and our society.
It won't be quick, and it will not be easy. We must open every part of our lives to God, but it will help us become the people God created us to be!
[00:43:22] If you would like to reach out to me with questions or comments, send me an email at
[email protected]
Thank you for spending this time with me and until next we meet, may God shower his blessings upon you like a soft and gentle rain and may he hold you, safe and secure, in the palm of his hand.
From His Word to Our Hearts is produced by SFS Audio Solutions.
The content of the show is assembled by me, Sally Moriarty-Flask.
Our music was composed by Jimmy Flask and is used with the permission of the composer. All rights reserved.
Information regarding references used in preparing the exegesis for this podcast is available upon request.
Thank you for listening and God bless.
