Иисус Христос в доме Марфы и Марии

At a distance of approximately two miles and a half from Jerusalem, on the way to Jericho, lay the village of Bethany. In this village lived Lazarus, whom the Lord called His friend. Lazarus had two sisters, Martha and Mary, both devoted disciples of the Lord. One time the Lord came to this house - Martha received Him and began to worry about refreshments, and Mary sat at the feet of Jesus Christ and listened to His precious words with all her heart. Both expressed love and devotion to the Lord, just in different ways. The Savior did not condemn Martha: she herself brought condemnation upon herself. Seeing that her sister was not taking part in her troubles, she approached Jesus and said: “Lord! or do you not need that my sister left me alone to serve? Tell her to help me!” Jesus answered her: “Martha, Martha! You care and fuss about many things, but you only need one thing. Mary chose the good part, which will not be taken away from her.” The good part of Mary is to listen to the Gospel about the Kingdom of God, to devote more time to God than to ordinary everyday affairs, even if they are good in intention and motivation. This benefit is not temporary, but eternal, which is why it will never be taken away from her. It is impossible not to see edification here in the fact that we take every possible care to preserve peace and friendship, especially in our family life. How often it seems to us that we alone are working, while others are resting and inactive. And how often, because of a few words of reproach, spoken apparently with some right, the peace and harmony that is so dear to them collapses in families. Lazar's family remained closely united, which the sisters proved before the face of the Lord in the days after the death of their dearly beloved brother. Jesus Christ in the house of Martha and Mary. From a painting by Prof. Henryk Ippolitovich Semiradsky (1843 - 1902). St. Petersburg, Museum of Emperor Alexander III. Now the State Russian Museum. You might be interested in: