Martha and Mary

Gospel: John 11: 19-27

Consider the faith of two women whose feast days are just one week apart.  Today we celebrate Martha from the Gospels.  We find her today at the tomb of her brother Lazarus.  While others despair of any hope, Martha alone professes faith in the resurrection, and faith in Jesus with the same exact words Peter used earlier in the Gospel.  Martha, alone with the Lord at the tomb, experiences the resurrection of her brother, a sign that points to an even greater resurrection to come.

One week ago we celebrated Mary Magdalene.  We encountered her alone at the tomb of the Lord Jesus.  She alone had hope in the Lord, she alone would experience the Risen Lord and carry that Good News to a group of skeptical men.  Mary alone was at the cross and at the tomb, the only one to keep vigil with the Lord, the only one to await the hoped for resurrection.  

Is it not curious that we have multiple feasts for Peter, but only memorials for these women? Without the faith of these women and the testimony they provide to us we would not know the empty tomb and the Risen Lord who lives among us.  We would not have this hope of resurrection for ourselves and others.  Today we rejoice in the faith of two women, grateful for their hope and witness that nourishes our faith to this day.