The One Necessary Thing
“There is need of only one thing.” Jesus in today’s Gospel talks about the ‘unum necessarium’ (the one necessary thing). What did the Lord mean by that especially when He described Mary as one who found the ‘unum necessarium’? Two persons were described by the Lord Jesus today in the Gospel. Martha was anxious and upset about many things. It is the anxious, divided, unfocused quality of her life that Jesus is drawing our attention to. Mary was being praised by Jesus. Why? Because Mary has chosen the unum necessarium (the one necessary thing). She sat quietly at the feet of the Lord, not so much avoiding work as gathering herself, learning what she is essentially about. At that moment, Jesus came to encounter both of them personally, to teach, and be with them, and Mary responded to that through her listening to the Lord. What Martha did in preparing and serving is also fine but maybe that was not what our Lord wanted for her to do then. Jesus wants to meet her too and to listen to Him.
In today’s world, there are so many voices that call out to us, inviting us to this and that, to engage in this, to be involved in that. At times, with all these voices, it is not easy to recognize the unum necessarium (the one necessary thing). We are drowned by what the world is telling us to do and fail to listen to what the Lord Jesus is telling us about who we are: loved and saved. Like Mary who recognized the one necessary thing, let us also allow ourselves to be loved, saved, and moved by the Lord through our listening to Him every day. A spiritual writer said, “God speaks to those who take time to listen and He listens to those who take time to pray.”
“We are drowned by what the world is telling us to and fail to listen to what the Lord Jesus is telling us about who we are: LOVED and SAVED.”
Today we celebrate the memorial of Blessed Albert Marvelli. He was born in 1918 and in his younger years attended the Salesian Oratory in Italy. He was always available and became a catechist and leader, the Salesians’ right arm. He loved to play all kinds of sport and took St. Dominic Savio and Bl. Pier Giorgio Frassati as his models. At 17 years of age he wrote down his project of life in his diary which would later on renew his life. When he did his military service, he succeeded in bringing many of his friends to Mass. During the Second World War he became an apostle among the displaced persons and a real source of providence for the poor. Albert’s Marian and Eucharistic devotion were the supporting pillars of his life. He died when he was hit by an army truck on this day in 1946. He was, as Don Bosco wanted, a good Christian and upright citizen, committed to the Church and society with a Salesian heart. He was beatified in 2004 by St. Pope John Paul II. Blessed Albert Marvelli found the unum necessarium (the one necessary thing) in his life and this gave him the opportunity to follow Jesus closely and serve fellow youth passionately. Our Lord Jesus encounters us today in this Eucharist, let us allow Him to love us, to save us, and to move us so that we will have the strength and courage to serve our brothers and sisters. Amen.
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