Chikirin Posted July 2, 2012 Share Posted July 2, 2012 Mary is sitting at Jesus's feet while Martha is working, and she says hey someone help me out here! and Jesus rebukes her. I used to think this story was nice, but now I think it sucks. I got more frustrated with Christians telling me to just trust God, or saying seek ye first the kingdom of God and all these things shall be added unto you whenever I asked for concrete real world advice on how to handle an issue. I see Christians waiting for God to magically send them a mate or a job instead of just getting up and doing something about it. For me I felt my life slipping by in such passivity and it made me depressed and anxious and needed antidepressants. Now all I need is commonsense and learn from my mistakes; theres no magic; I don't need any magic. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GardenerGal Posted July 2, 2012 Share Posted July 2, 2012 this reminds me of a bible study i was doing a few years back... all the women talked about what Martha's they were, and I said I related to Mary. I didn't realize at the time this was the unhumble thing to say in the Christianese speak; I just really related to her (probably being a more sensitive type or something). Now, I am don't need to pick a side. I just am who I am. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melancholy Posted July 5, 2012 Share Posted July 5, 2012 The Mary and Martha story always made me really angry. My father is a workaholic, and not a practicing Christian. Dad is the smartest person I know; he's a genius (literally, his work tested his IQ and it was 139!) I'm so proud of Dad. He worked his way up from an entry level position in his company to one of the most depended on managers. He travels the world for work and is high demand. My Dad wasn't around much when I was a kid and still isn't, but he is a great father. He payed for all of us kids to go to college and worked hard to make money so his family could have a comfortable life. He's always there if you need him. I look up to him so much! One time in church, there was a sermon on the Mary and Martha story, and I thought of my Daddy. Was Jesus saying that people like my Dad- who works his ass off for us- are wrong? That my Dad should actually be going to church and studying the Bible more than working? That was what the preacher said. I asked my Grandmother and she had no answers. My Dad has a gift and should be working; he worked hard to make us happy. He's too smart to be sitting around. I just couldn't accept that my Dad was somehow wrong when he is such a great man. That was actually the beginning of my doubt. Why was Jesus praising Mary for being lazy and not helping Martha? Martha was being nice and trying to feed everyone! I think she was in the right. I never understood it. No one ever gave me the answer. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Valk0010 Posted July 5, 2012 Share Posted July 5, 2012 this reminds me of a bible study i was doing a few years back... all the women talked about what Martha's they were, and I said I related to Mary. I didn't realize at the time this was the unhumble thing to say in the Christianese speak; I just really related to her (probably being a more sensitive type or something). Now, I am don't need to pick a side. I just am who I am. I found myself relating to doubting thomas, still do in fact, and said this once to a couple firm believers and they thought I was nuts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deva Posted July 5, 2012 Share Posted July 5, 2012 Makes you wonder about the work ethic in this country. Why do people, especially Christians, so highly elevate it when their scriptural support is just not there? Jesus wandered around the country preaching and presumably was supported by his followers (of course he also could miraculously create food). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Positivist Posted July 5, 2012 Share Posted July 5, 2012 this reminds me of a bible study i was doing a few years back... all the women talked about what Martha's they were, and I said I related to Mary. I didn't realize at the time this was the unhumble thing to say in the Christianese speak... I actually laughed out loud at this, GG! I can just picture this! Gawd, we really can't be ourselves and have our own thoughts in Christianity. We must conform mindlessly! The Mary/Martha thing always pissed me off, too. Christianity, with its black/white delineations, tells us (as women?) that we must: wait, dote upon, listen and receive. I have always struggled immensely with the notion that as a woman I am a mere vessel, recipient, and wait-er. I am a do-er! Is there no place in the world for hard-working women? Must we all be sitting at the feet of the "Lord", waiting for seeds to be planted in us? Nothing made me hate myself more than the essentialist notions of gender in fundagelical Christianity. I am who I am--I love to work, create, and strive to make the world a better place--and I will never be a Mary, waiting, drinking words of wisdom from a man, and receiving.... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GardenerGal Posted July 5, 2012 Share Posted July 5, 2012 this reminds me of a bible study i was doing a few years back... all the women talked about what Martha's they were, and I said I related to Mary. I didn't realize at the time this was the unhumble thing to say in the Christianese speak... I actually laughed out loud at this, GG! I can just picture this! Gawd, we really can't be ourselves and have our own thoughts in Christianity. We must conform mindlessly! The Mary/Martha thing always pissed me off, too. Christianity, with its black/white delineations, tells us (as women?) that we must: wait, dote upon, listen and receive. I have always struggled immensely with the notion that as a woman I am a mere vessel, recipient, and wait-er. I am a do-er! Is there no place in the world for hard-working women? Must we all be sitting at the feet of the "Lord", waiting for seeds to be planted in us? Nothing made me hate myself more than the essentialist notions of gender in fundagelical Christianity. I am who I am--I love to work, create, and strive to make the world a better place--and I will never be a Mary, waiting, drinking words of wisdom from a man, and receiving.... I know, you should have seen them look at me, like, "oh really, Mary huh?" What I meant was, I related to her sensitive spirit and observance of what's important. If I have to choose between going for a walk with my husband or putting my stupid laundry away right.this.second., I go for the walk. But things still get done. What surprised me most about our small groups was how soft spoken every one was. Not one loud, obnoxious girl in the group. I felt like by talking in a whisper (thinking of a very popular blogger/author right now), that it conveyed humility/meekness. It seemed so phony. Oh what I wouldn't have given for one second behind their closed doors... And the waiting... oh, I hate that... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SilverLining Posted July 5, 2012 Share Posted July 5, 2012 I don't know that story of Mary/Martha, but I do hate the gender roles in the Bible. There's no way I'm going to be like a Proverbs woman. That's just not me. And, I love being an ex-Christian because you don't have to wait around for things to happen. That wastes so much time. You can go out and actually do something. What surprised me most about our small groups was how soft spoken every one was. Not one loud, obnoxious girl in the group. I felt like by talking in a whisper (thinking of a very popular blogger/author right now), that it conveyed humility/meekness. It seemed so phony. Oh what I wouldn't have given for one second behind their closed doors... Yeah, the small group at my church camp was oddly quiet. Even the girls who were normally loud and obnoxious became meek and humble. And have any of you noticed how certain Christian (woman in particular) talk? They sound so... perfect. But, its too perfect. Its not natural, like they're faking it :/. Especially after they been practicing for long time. And did any of your small group leaders ever cry when they talked about God? Mine did a lot. It was uncomfortable. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Positivist Posted July 6, 2012 Share Posted July 6, 2012 What surprised me most about our small groups was how soft spoken every one was. Not one loud, obnoxious girl in the group. I felt like by talking in a whisper (thinking of a very popular blogger/author right now), that it conveyed humility/meekness. It seemed so phony. Oh what I wouldn't have given for one second behind their closed doors... Yeah, the small group at my church camp was oddly quiet. Even the girls who were normally loud and obnoxious became meek and humble. And have any of you noticed how certain Christian (woman in particular) talk? I had the same experience. I hated women's church or 'ministry' groups, because I just can't get into the passive role. I am a very passionate person and yet the groups I was in wanted me to become more passive, "waiting", "receiving", or feminine. I think the worst groups were those that were obsessed with marriage and kids and how to be a better wife/prospect. Gag. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blackpudd1n Posted July 6, 2012 Share Posted July 6, 2012 The Mary/Martha story always really irked me. So jesus could wash his disciples' feet in a show of humility, but couldn't say to everyone, "okay, how about we take this discussion into the kitchen and give Martha a hand here? Okay Martha, let us know what we can do to help, you're looking a little worn out. I really appreciate the hospitality, Martha." It pisses me off when christians say that Jesus was a champion for women. You only need to look at that story and see what a misogynist he was. How dare Martha want a little help, how dare she want to pull away one of the star-struck fans sitting at his feet. What an abomination! The insolence of the woman! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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