By Julie M. Smith
Admin’s note: fMh is delighted to congratulate Julie M. Smith on the second edition of her work Search, Ponder and Pray: A Guide to the Gospels. As an owner of her first edition, I can attest that Julie’s approach to scripture study radically transformed my own study habits and improved my gospel teaching in meaningful ways. Thanks for the guest post, Julie! –Idahospud
James Talmage said that “the world’s greatest champion of woman and womanhood is Jesus the Christ.” Unfortunately, that reality has been obscured by the fact that (almost) only men have set the agenda for the interpretation of scripture for the past twenty centuries. So one of my major goals in my book Search, Ponder, and Pray: A Guide to the Gospels was to focus on women’s stories and perspectives to the fullest extent possible. For example, here’s how I treat Luke 10:38-42, the story of Mary and Martha:
It is difficult to determine if the better interpretation is that Mary is alone at Jesus’ feet or if others are with her (verse 39). Which do you think is more likely to be correct? Does it affect your perception of the passage if Mary is alone or is part of a group?
Why doesn’t Martha ask Mary directly to help her (verse 40)?
Is Martha complaining about Jesus or about Mary (verse 40)?
Is verse 41 a statement of fact about Martha or a chastisement?
Is Martha worried and troubled over the meal or over what Mary is doing?
Why does Jesus say Martha’s name twice in verse 41?
The ancient texts disagree on the correct wording of verse 42; some read “only one thing” but others have “a few things.” How would your choice here affect your understanding of this verse? Is Martha’s choice worthless or is it less worthwhile? What is needful?
Some scholars interpret the phrase “one thing is needful” (verse 42) to mean that one dish (that is, a simple meal) would have been adequate and reduced Martha’s trouble. Do you agree with this interpretation? Why or why not?
How can you use Jesus’ response to Martha (verses 41–42) as a model when you feel the need to offer correction?
If you identify a gender pair between Martha and the priest and Levite from the Parable of the Good Samaritan, what do you learn? In what ways is Mary like the Samaritan? Or is Martha more like the lawyer looking to justify himself?
What would have happened if Martha had sat at Jesus’ feet—and what would they have had for dinner?
Reread verses 38–42, substituting male names for “Mary” and “Martha.” How does this exercise affect your interpretation of the story? Is this a story “for” women? Why or why not?
Many scholars note that Mary and Martha are interpreted as types more than as real people. They can typify numerous things:
(1) faith versus works
(2) charity versus prayer
(3) the labors of this world versus the world to come
(4) life of the flesh versus life of the Spirit
(5) the active life versus the contemplative life
(6) charitable works versus gospel scholarship
(7) Judaism versus Christianity
Do you think any of these are accurate? What could you learn by assigning Mary and Martha to these roles? Are there dangers inherent in making people into symbols? Is it fair to read this story as promoting one type over the other?
Barbara Reid wrote:
To complicate matters, most women identify with Martha. Like her, they desperately try to juggle all the household demands, usually in addition to working outside the home, while at the same time managing to be a charming hostess, wife, mother, companion. From such a stance, there is no good news from a Jesus who not only seems indifferent to the burden of the unrealistic demands, but even reproaches one who pours out her life in service.
Not many Church members would be sympathetic to Reid’s final sentence of her statement. How would you respond to her argument? Do you identify with Mary or with Martha? Is it easier to be a Mary or a Martha in the Church today?
Is this a story about table service (i.e., a meal) or about service (ministering) in the Church? How does your answer affect your interpretation of this passage?
Elisabeth Schussler Fiorenza wrote:
[some women] secretly identify with Martha who openly complains, and they resent Jesus who seems ungrateful and unfair in taking Mary’s side. Yet because Jesus is not supposed to be faulted, women repress their resentment of Jesus’ action. Instead they vent their resentment against other women who, like Mary, have abandoned traditional feminine roles.
Do you agree with this assessment—in whole or in part? Why or why not?
Do you think it is fair to compare Martha and Mary to 8:14–15?
Compare this story about Mary and Martha with John 11:1–44 and 12:1–11. In what ways do Mary and Martha act differently? Do you think they have changed as a result of their experience with Jesus in verses 38–42? Why do you think Luke doesn’t mention Lazarus?
So I’m sure you noticed that the format of my work is a little unorthodox. Instead of a flowing narrative, I instead provide a little bit of background information and then ask questions. I did this because, while I wanted to present my readers with some of the findings biblical scholars, I didn’t want to do it in a way that gave the impression that the thinking had been done. Rather, I wanted to engage the reader by requiring her to do the heavy lifting of interpretation herself. This format is also helpful for teachers who want to ask thought-provoking questions of their classes. So I hope that this resource will empower female readers of scripture—and their allies—to think deeply and for themselves. When they do, I think they’ll find that, hidden under the dusty layers of androcentric interpretation, is the world’s greatest champion of women, Jesus Christ.
Julie M. Smith graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with a BA in English and from the Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley, CA, with an MA in Biblical Studies. She is on the executive board of the Mormon Theology Seminar and the steering committee of the BYU New Testament Commentary series, for which she is writing the volume on the Gospel of Mark. She also writes for Times & Seasons, where she is the book review editor. She lives near Austin, Texas, where she homeschools her children.