According to the Vatican gendarmes, around 12,000 people were in St. Peter’s Square for the pope’s weekly message.
The Gospel of Luke says Martha was busy with serving, while Mary was sitting at Jesus’ feet, listening to him speak.
Francis said: “Then Martha turns to the Master and asks him to tell Mary to help her. Martha’s complaint does not seem out of place; indeed, we would tend to agree with her. Yet Jesus answers her: ‘Martha, Martha, you are worried and distracted by many things, but few things are needed. Mary has chosen the better part, which will not be taken away from her.’”
He emphasized that “the word of Jesus is not abstract; it is a teaching that touches and shapes our life, changes it, frees it from the opaqueness of evil, satisfies and infuses it with a joy that does not pass.”
“Jesus’ word is the better part, that Mary had chosen. Therefore, she gives it first place: she stops and listens. The rest will come after,” he said.
Pope Francis said practical effort has value, but it should flow from listening to the word of Jesus, not precede it.
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