Serve with “hands of Martha” and “heart of Mary”, Catholic Priests and Religious in Nigeria Told

“We must serve with the hands of Martha, but also with the heart of Mary,” the Nigerian Archbishop said.

The St. Luke Gospel passage, Archbishop Kaigama said, was the Lord’s invitation for the ministers in the Church to choose “the better part”, not to abandoning their work, but renewing it with spiritual focus. 

He said that Martha’s complaint and the response given by Jesus is an invitation for Priests and Religious “to listen before we act. To pray before we serve.”

“This is also a lesson for our political, traditional and all religious leaders,” he said, and explained, “To be effective servant leaders we must have a perfect blend of working and praying, not to interrupt for long periods our paid work for the common good in the name of religion or to become too consumed in our work that we become too busy to pray.” 

He faulted civil and government leaders in Nigeria who he said “spend hours upon hours at the place of work but achieve very little in terms of productive service for the good of the people.” 

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According to Archbishop Kaigama, the worries of life, the anxieties of work, and the “noise of the world” can cloud one’s vision and steal their peace. “We lose sight of our priorities. We get confused about what really matters,” he said.

“Like Mary, we need to pause,” he said, and added, “We need to sit at the feet of Jesus in quiet prayer… We cannot be too busy, busier than God wants us to be!”

Making reference to the book of Ecclesiastes that teaches, “There is a time for everything”. The Archbishop said, “There is a time to serve, and there is a time to sit and listen.”

“Jesus is not asking us to abandon service or to sit idly. He is asking us to serve from a place of spiritual depth, not anxiety, having been nourished by Word and Sacraments,” he said.

In his homily, Archbishop Kaigama hailed Nigerians for their hospitality amid challenges such as poverty, insecurity, inflation, and their leaders’ “greed” that he said had plunged the country into despair.

He urged the people of God in the West African country to practice hospitality beyond their homes through acts of love and service.

“Hospitality is not limited to opening our homes to people. It extends to offering our time, our talents, and even our struggles for the sake of others,” Archbishop Kaigama said, and added, “When we forgive someone who has hurt us, pray for those who are suffering, or work for justice, we are practicing a spiritual hospitality that reflects Christ’s self-giving love on the Cross.”

Referring to the teachings of St. Paul on hospitality, The Nigerian Catholic Archbishop, who started his Episcopal Ministry in April 1995 as Bishop of Nigeria’s Catholic Diocese of Jalingo, added, “true hospitality often involves sacrifice, but it is through this sacrifice that we draw others closer to Christ.”

The Catholic Archbishop urged Nigerians to remain willing to meet the needs of all, observing that West African communities are in danger of losing their tradition of hospitality due to continuous “violence witnessed, conflicts between individuals, tribes, and religious adherents.”

He urged Nigerians to emulate St. Paul, who he said practiced hospitality through sharing the word of God with all, including the Jews and Gentiles.

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Sabrine Amboka is a Kenyan journalist with a passion for Catholic church communication. She holds a bachelor’s degree in mass communication from St. Paul's University in Kenya.