{"id":157653,"date":"2022-06-30T21:44:00","date_gmt":"2022-06-30T19:44:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/focolaremalta.org\/?p=157653"},"modified":"2022-07-01T07:10:53","modified_gmt":"2022-07-01T05:10:53","slug":"kelma-tal-hajja-ta-lulju-3","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/focolaremalta.org\/en\/kelma-tal-hajja-ta-lulju-3\/","title":{"rendered":"July Word of Life"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/p>\n

“There is need of only one thing” (Lk. 10:42).<\/h4>\n

Jesus is making his way to Jerusalem where his mission will be fulfilled.\u00a0 On the journey, he stops in a village at the home of Martha and Mary. The evangelist, Luke, describes the reception that the two sisters give to Jesus: Martha fulfils the traditional role of housekeeper and, \u2018was distracted by her many tasks\u2019 [i]<\/a> as she provides hospitality, while Mary, \u2018sat at Jesus\u2019 feet and listened to what he was saying\u2019 (v. 39). Mary\u2019s attentiveness is countered by Martha\u2019s agitation and, in fact, to her complaints about being left alone to serve, Jesus replies, \u2018Martha, Martha, you are worried and distracted by many things;\u00a0\u00a0there is need of only one thing. Mary has chosen the better part, which will not be taken away from her.\u2019 \u00a0(vv. 41-42). This passage is situated between the parable of the Good Samaritan which is arguably one the greatest descriptions of love of neighbour, and the passage\u00a0 recounting how Jesus taught the disciples to pray which is certainly the greatest explanation of the relationship with God the Father: thus, it is almost like a pivotal point on the scales balancing love for our neighbour and love for God.<\/p>\n

“There is need of only one thing.”<\/strong><\/p>\n

The protagonists of this Gospel passage are two women. The dialogue that takes place between Jesus and Martha describes the friendship that allows the latter to complain to the Master. But what is the service that Jesus would like? For him it is important that Martha should not worry, that she should set aside the traditional tasks assigned to women and that she too should listen to his word like Mary who is taking on a new role as a disciple. The message of this text has often been reduced to contrasting\u00a0 active and contemplative life, almost as if they were two alternative religious approaches. However, both Martha and Mary love Jesus and want to serve him. In the Gospel, in fact, it is not said that prayer and listening to the Word are more important than charity, but rather that we need to find a way to link these two loves in an indissoluble way. The two loves \u2013 love of God and love of neighbour \u2013\u00a0 are not opposed to each other but are complementary because Love is one.<\/p>\n

“There is need of only one thing.”<\/strong><\/p>\n

How do we understand what is the one thing that is needed? The beginning of the sentence can help us do this: \u2018Martha, Martha \u2026\u2019. (v. 41). In the repetition of the name which can almost be seen as a rebuke, there is really a personal \u2018vocational call\u2019. It seems, therefore, that Jesus is calling Martha to a new way of relating to him, to weaving a bond with him not as a servant but as a friend who is entering into a profound relationship with him. Chiara Lubich writes: \u2018Jesus used these circumstances to explain what is most necessary in human life. \u2026 To listen to the Word of Jesus. And for Luke, who writes this passage, listening to the Word also means living it. \u2026 This is what you have to do too: welcome the Word and let it bring about a transformation in you. But that is not enough;\u00a0 you should remain faithful to it and hold it in your heart so that it shapes your life, just as the earth holds\u00a0 seed in its bosom so that they may sprout and bear fruit. Therefore, bear the fruits of new life, the effects of the Word.\u2019 [ii]<\/strong><\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

“There is need of only one thing.”<\/strong><\/p>\n

Who knows how many opportunities we have to welcome the Master into the intimacy of our home, just like Martha and Mary, and to sit listening at his feet like true disciples. Often our worries, illnesses, commitments and even joys and satisfactions plunge us into a \u00a0whirlwind of things to do, leaving us no time to stop and recognise the Lord and listen to him.\u00a0This Word is a precious opportunity to practise choosing the better part, that is, listening to his Word and acquiring that inner freedom that enables us to act accordingly in our daily lives.\u00a0 It can help us to carry out actions that are the fruit of a loving relationship that gives meaning to service and listening.<\/p>\n

Letizia Magri<\/em><\/p>\n

[i]<\/a> Lk 10:40. The verb perisp\u00e0omai<\/em> has a double meaning: it can mean either \u2018to be fully occupied\/to be greatly overburdened\u2019 or \u2018to be distracted\u2019.<\/p>\n

[ii]<\/a> Chiara Lubich Word of Life July 1980<\/p>\n

\n

Listen to the Word of Life<\/p>\n

https:\/\/soundcloud.com\/user-63571203\/july-2022-word-of-life?utm_source=clipboard&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=social_sharing<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

“There is need of only one thing” (Lk. 10:42).<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":157661,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"template-full.php","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[10],"class_list":["post-157653","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-kelma-tal-hajja","tag-word-of-life"],"yoast_head":"\nJuly Word of Life - Focolare Movement<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/focolaremalta.org\/kelma-tal-hajja-ta-lulju-3\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"[:mt]Kelma tal-\u0126ajja ta\u2019 Lulju[:en]July Word of Life[:] - Focolare Movement\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"[:mt]\u201cImma \u0127a\u0121a wa\u0127da hi me\u0127tie\u0121a\u201d (Lq 10, 42).[:en]"There is need of only one thing" (Lk. 10:42).[:]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/focolaremalta.org\/kelma-tal-hajja-ta-lulju-3\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Focolare Movement\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/focolaremalta\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2022-06-30T19:44:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2022-07-01T05:10:53+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/focolaremalta.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/06\/Biblestudy.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"550\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"366\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Website Editor\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Website Editor\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":[\"Article\",\"BlogPosting\"],\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/focolaremalta.org\\\/kelma-tal-hajja-ta-lulju-3\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/focolaremalta.org\\\/kelma-tal-hajja-ta-lulju-3\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Website Editor\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/focolaremalta.org\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/242808adc6f36906557ad819553e0a3f\"},\"headline\":\"July Word of Life\",\"datePublished\":\"2022-06-30T19:44:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2022-07-01T05:10:53+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/focolaremalta.org\\\/kelma-tal-hajja-ta-lulju-3\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":1590,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/focolaremalta.org\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/focolaremalta.org\\\/kelma-tal-hajja-ta-lulju-3\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/focolaremalta.org\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2022\\\/06\\\/Biblestudy.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Word of life\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Word of Life\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/focolaremalta.org\\\/kelma-tal-hajja-ta-lulju-3\\\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/focolaremalta.org\\\/kelma-tal-hajja-ta-lulju-3\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/focolaremalta.org\\\/kelma-tal-hajja-ta-lulju-3\\\/\",\"name\":\"[:mt]Kelma tal-\u0126ajja ta\u2019 Lulju[:en]July Word of Life[:] - Focolare Movement\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/focolaremalta.org\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/focolaremalta.org\\\/kelma-tal-hajja-ta-lulju-3\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/focolaremalta.org\\\/kelma-tal-hajja-ta-lulju-3\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/focolaremalta.org\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2022\\\/06\\\/Biblestudy.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2022-06-30T19:44:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2022-07-01T05:10:53+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/focolaremalta.org\\\/kelma-tal-hajja-ta-lulju-3\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/focolaremalta.org\\\/kelma-tal-hajja-ta-lulju-3\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/focolaremalta.org\\\/kelma-tal-hajja-ta-lulju-3\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/focolaremalta.org\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2022\\\/06\\\/Biblestudy.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/focolaremalta.org\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2022\\\/06\\\/Biblestudy.jpg\",\"width\":550,\"height\":366},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/focolaremalta.org\\\/kelma-tal-hajja-ta-lulju-3\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/focolaremalta.org\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Kelma tal-\u0126ajja ta\u2019 Lulju\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/focolaremalta.org\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/focolaremalta.org\\\/\",\"name\":\"Moviment tal-Fokolari\",\"description\":\"\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/focolaremalta.org\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/focolaremalta.org\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/focolaremalta.org\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Focolare Movement Malta\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/focolaremalta.org\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/focolaremalta.org\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/focolaremalta.org\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2022\\\/11\\\/cropped-FocolareMalta_logo_c.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/focolaremalta.org\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2022\\\/11\\\/cropped-FocolareMalta_logo_c.png\",\"width\":266,\"height\":200,\"caption\":\"Focolare Movement Malta\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/focolaremalta.org\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.facebook.com\\\/focolaremalta\\\/\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/focolaremalta.org\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/242808adc6f36906557ad819553e0a3f\",\"name\":\"Website Editor\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/de6beef1e3091882b63ee0f05f6f74a118b39990b540cb07ab6fea85bcfa0d39?s=96&d=blank&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/de6beef1e3091882b63ee0f05f6f74a118b39990b540cb07ab6fea85bcfa0d39?s=96&d=blank&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/de6beef1e3091882b63ee0f05f6f74a118b39990b540cb07ab6fea85bcfa0d39?s=96&d=blank&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Website Editor\"}}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"[:mt]Kelma tal-\u0126ajja ta\u2019 Lulju[:en]July Word of Life[:] - Focolare Movement","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/focolaremalta.org\/kelma-tal-hajja-ta-lulju-3\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"[:mt]Kelma tal-\u0126ajja ta\u2019 Lulju[:en]July Word of Life[:] - Focolare Movement","og_description":"[:mt]\u201cImma \u0127a\u0121a wa\u0127da hi me\u0127tie\u0121a\u201d (Lq 10, 42).[:en]\"There is need of only one thing\" (Lk. 10:42).[:]","og_url":"https:\/\/focolaremalta.org\/kelma-tal-hajja-ta-lulju-3\/","og_site_name":"Focolare Movement","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/focolaremalta\/","article_published_time":"2022-06-30T19:44:00+00:00","article_modified_time":"2022-07-01T05:10:53+00:00","og_image":[{"width":550,"height":366,"url":"https:\/\/focolaremalta.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/06\/Biblestudy.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Website Editor","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Website Editor","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":["Article","BlogPosting"],"@id":"https:\/\/focolaremalta.org\/kelma-tal-hajja-ta-lulju-3\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/focolaremalta.org\/kelma-tal-hajja-ta-lulju-3\/"},"author":{"name":"Website Editor","@id":"https:\/\/focolaremalta.org\/#\/schema\/person\/242808adc6f36906557ad819553e0a3f"},"headline":"July Word of Life","datePublished":"2022-06-30T19:44:00+00:00","dateModified":"2022-07-01T05:10:53+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/focolaremalta.org\/kelma-tal-hajja-ta-lulju-3\/"},"wordCount":1590,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/focolaremalta.org\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/focolaremalta.org\/kelma-tal-hajja-ta-lulju-3\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/focolaremalta.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/06\/Biblestudy.jpg","keywords":["Word of life"],"articleSection":["Word of Life"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/focolaremalta.org\/kelma-tal-hajja-ta-lulju-3\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/focolaremalta.org\/kelma-tal-hajja-ta-lulju-3\/","url":"https:\/\/focolaremalta.org\/kelma-tal-hajja-ta-lulju-3\/","name":"[:mt]Kelma tal-\u0126ajja ta\u2019 Lulju[:en]July Word of Life[:] - Focolare Movement","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/focolaremalta.org\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/focolaremalta.org\/kelma-tal-hajja-ta-lulju-3\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/focolaremalta.org\/kelma-tal-hajja-ta-lulju-3\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/focolaremalta.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/06\/Biblestudy.jpg","datePublished":"2022-06-30T19:44:00+00:00","dateModified":"2022-07-01T05:10:53+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/focolaremalta.org\/kelma-tal-hajja-ta-lulju-3\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/focolaremalta.org\/kelma-tal-hajja-ta-lulju-3\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/focolaremalta.org\/kelma-tal-hajja-ta-lulju-3\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/focolaremalta.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/06\/Biblestudy.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/focolaremalta.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/06\/Biblestudy.jpg","width":550,"height":366},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/focolaremalta.org\/kelma-tal-hajja-ta-lulju-3\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/focolaremalta.org\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Kelma tal-\u0126ajja ta\u2019 Lulju"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/focolaremalta.org\/#website","url":"https:\/\/focolaremalta.org\/","name":"Moviment tal-Fokolari","description":"","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/focolaremalta.org\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/focolaremalta.org\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/focolaremalta.org\/#organization","name":"Focolare Movement Malta","url":"https:\/\/focolaremalta.org\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/focolaremalta.org\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/focolaremalta.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/cropped-FocolareMalta_logo_c.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/focolaremalta.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/cropped-FocolareMalta_logo_c.png","width":266,"height":200,"caption":"Focolare Movement Malta"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/focolaremalta.org\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/focolaremalta\/"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/focolaremalta.org\/#\/schema\/person\/242808adc6f36906557ad819553e0a3f","name":"Website Editor","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/de6beef1e3091882b63ee0f05f6f74a118b39990b540cb07ab6fea85bcfa0d39?s=96&d=blank&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/de6beef1e3091882b63ee0f05f6f74a118b39990b540cb07ab6fea85bcfa0d39?s=96&d=blank&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/de6beef1e3091882b63ee0f05f6f74a118b39990b540cb07ab6fea85bcfa0d39?s=96&d=blank&r=g","caption":"Website Editor"}}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/focolaremalta.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/157653","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/focolaremalta.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/focolaremalta.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focolaremalta.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focolaremalta.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=157653"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/focolaremalta.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/157653\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":157664,"href":"https:\/\/focolaremalta.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/157653\/revisions\/157664"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focolaremalta.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/157661"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/focolaremalta.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=157653"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focolaremalta.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=157653"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focolaremalta.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=157653"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}