Please read the passage before the commentary.
Mary anointed the feet of the Lord with oil and dried them with her hair. Anointings have many facets. The text interprets Mary’s act as an anointing for burial. It could also have been a royal anointing since Christ reigns as king from the cross. Jesus turned the anointing on its head at the last supper, when he anointed or washed the feet of his disciples.
We are anointed with the waters of baptism and then with the oil of Chrism, the Christ oil. We are anointed with oil in the Sacrament of the Sick to share in the oil of Christ’s suffering and death that led to his resurrection.
We speak of talented people as charismatic people, set apart from others. Charismatic comes from the same word as Christ. Christ is the first charismatic person by virtue of the etymological connection between Christ and charismatic.
Martha had the gift of serving. Mary had the gift of extravagantly hosting events, Lazarus had the special talent of having been raised from the dead. By virtue of our birth and baptism, we have been gifted by the Lord with talent for the good of the world, the Church and the glory of God. Our talents work together with others to produce a unity of energy and purpose. Mary’s was not the talent of cooking; Martha’s was not that of the charming hosts. Lazarus had stories to tell. Each had a different gift which created a unity in the festive meal.
It is so with us. Each has a different anointing with gifts. The anointings have many facets, but they all work for the common good of all. How will God’s anointing fall upon each of us this week before Easter? How will our use of talents help us all to celebrate these days in unity?
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