April 7, 2025
Jesus said to them, “Why are you bothering this woman? She has done a beautiful thing to me. ~ Matthew 26:10b NIV
Painting by Julia Stankova of Bulgaria, on Google Image
In this season of unrest in our nation and our world, sometimes a word or phrase catches our attention, rings true deep within our gut, and lingers in our consciousness. Below is one such phrase that has caused my sanctified imagination to dream. A colleague asked, “Have you done a beautiful thing for Jesus?” Below is the Biblical background.
It was a troubled time for Jesus, for all of Jerusalem, and for the nation one week before the Passover that would be his last. Amid those troubles, we find a lovely, complicated story in Matthew’s and John’s Gospels.
About 6 days before the Passover, Mary, of Mary, Martha, and Lazareth fame, anointed Jesus’ feet with pure nard during a meal given in Jesus’ honor for raising Lazareth from the dead. After pouring out the oil on Jesus’ feet and massaging it in with her hands, Mary wiped his feet with her hair. The whole house was filled with the fragrance. The whole house was also filled with the sound of silence as all conversation stopped, wine goblets stopped in mid-air, and everyone at the table froze. Mary’s extravagant gift shocked everyone. Jesus’ disciple Judas, the one who would betray him, was the first to find his voice. He scolded her, “Why wasn’t this perfume sold, and the money given to the poor? It was worth a year’s wages!”
I imagine Mary’s face flushing with embarrassment about her impulsive and socially forbidden behavior, not only touching a man who was not a member of her family but also using her hair to wipe his feet. Such intimacy, such extravagant waste was shocking, forbidden, and unspeakably wrong, perhaps to all the guests. Imagine her surprise when Jesus said, “Leave her alone. It was intended for the day of my burial.”
In a time of great stress and fear, Mary did a beautiful thing for Jesus. As was true in Jesus’ day, there are forces that are trying to rewrite history, control the arts and literature’s narratives, and separate “us” from “them.” Mary’s gift of generosity, empathy, and personal connection was shocking in her time. Jesus labels her action beautiful.
I’m challenged by my colleague’s comment to look for and recognize beauty in action; and to do things of beauty for others, both great and small, regardless of the cost, social and/or financial. I hope you feel the call to action as well. ~ Anne
Wayfinding 