Day 839 - In Memory of an Unnamed Woman

A Palm Sunday reflection on the deed of an unnamed woman

Gospel Reading Mark 14: 3-9

Though Palm Sunday sermons usually review one of the gospels’ description of Jesus entering Jerusalem, I decided to fast forward three days into Holy Week at Bethany two days before Passover began to consider Mark 14: 3-9. This event occurs at a meal eaten just before Jesus reenters Jerusalem for the last time. 

I said earlier that the gospel of Mark is the gospel of mercy to the abused.  Mark reflects that sense in surprising ways that promote the outcast, the outsider and the abused to a place of prominence.

This passage is about a woman anointing Jesus with expensive oil. It presages and proclaims the purpose of Jesus of Nazareth immediately before his final arrest in Jerusalem. Its irony establishes a mood and setting for the insider/outsider characters and role reversals in a uniquely built scene of suspended time in the march towards the cross and resurrection. It anticipates the Passion and resurrection, and reveals to the reader the nature and challenge of piety and discipleship and gives hope to the abused, the outsiders, that often suffer at the hands of official society.

The passage only identifies two persons, Jesus and Simon the leper. Everyone else (thus far) is anonymous, so Mark is inviting us into the action.

I offer my own translation and amplification of the Greek New Testament (Nestle-Alan 27^th edition, 1993):

 ^14:3While he was in Bethany dining in the house of Simon the leper, a woman carrying an alabaster jar of expensive, genuine ointment of nard entered and completely shattered the alabaster jar using the nard to anoint him. ^14:4But some of those present became indignant almost to the point of riot and railed harshly among themselves, “Why has this waste occurred? ^14:5This ointment could have been sold for more than 300 denarii and been given to the poor.” They kept on sternly rebuking her. ^14:6But Jesus said, “Leave her alone! Why do you trouble her? She has done an honorable thing to me as the Father has done for you. ^14:7“For you will always have the poor among you and whenever you desire you can do good by them yourself, but me, you will not always have.  ^14:8“She did what she could; she has already anointed my body ahead of time for my proper burial. ^14:9 Truly I say to you, wherever the Good News is proclaimed to the whole world, also what she has done will be told in memory of her.”

In its Greek language form Mark has given us an intensely dramatic scene among the disciples, Jesus and this woman. A woman is an outsider unexpected in such a gathering of men two days before his crucifixion. While it is shocking that a woman is present,  it is even more so that she had the audacity to touch Jesus in the presence of these other men.

Yet the several social faux pas of this carefully constructed, sharp, multi-level irony leaves us bleeding from the wound to our righteousness. 

First it is a message on piety brought by an outsider. Second, from the early days of Samuel, the anointing served a celebratory, royal purpose to identify the future King. Third, it also has a funereal purpose.

Her anointing Jesus is an act of piety that signifies his kingship(Lordship) but in a dramatically ironic and subtle way reveals the impending death of Jesus by preparing his body for the grave.

We must focus not only on her actions and the behavior of the disciples but those of  our anonymous viewers. The story prompts a number of questions. Why are the disciples so riotously upset?  Are they angry the woman wasted a costly material?  Are they angry it was wasted on Jesus? Do they really have such compassion for  the poor? Why do we abuse this passage today to justify the presence of the poor and our reluctance to help them directly? Or are all these “privileged” insiders simply reacting in confusion over what impends in two days because their eyes see and ears hear but mind does not understand what Jesus has told them?

Is the defense of this woman by Jesus reminiscent of his defense of children in Mark 10:14?  Is Mark telling us piety is found in this fundamental child-like action she has done oblivious to the propriety of the insiders?

These are all interesting questions I leave with you as we turn to the central message about who teaches us piety. Jesus says this woman has done an honorable thing.

The Jewish listeners would key onto the words “honorable thing” as signifying a ritual action. Any Greek listeners would understand the word “honorable thing” signifies the ethical preeminence of honor in Hellenist thought.

We modern Christians ought to latch on to “honorable thing” as the good work of honoring Christ’s commands to love God (“has done an honorable thing to me”) and neighbor (“you can do good by them any time”). In other words, it pointed us to true righteousness or piety.

This is an uncomfortable thing Jesus says. “You are critical of this woman who seeks to do well by me who only be with you a short time because it is a lost opportunity to help the poor; yet you have opportunity and time continuously to do right by the poor and will not.”

The strong sarcasm in his statement is obvious. He says in spite of our high concern that the waste of this ointment symbolizes lost money that could be used for the poor, you will have continuous opportunity to do right by the poor because you will not take care of the them with your own wealth and they will remain with you. Jesus has reversed  "who are the poor"  - now those who do not take care of the poor any time they can are the spiritually impoverished, i.e., the poor.

So, you can see that this woman has turned an intimate quiet pre-Passover dinner among the disciples and Jesus into a riotous upset over ethics and piety. The marginalized woman, the outsider, has become the model of piety, not the disciples.  Jesus says, “Wherever the Good News is proclaimed to the whole world, also what she has done will be told in memory of her.”

In this story, the woman enters this supper as a marginalized, unwelcome person and leaves as the epitome of piety. Her faith in Jesus without regard for her social and materials cost causes quite the social disruption by challenging the sense of righteousness of the “insiders.” She finds herself in a moment that will never be repeated and discerns the right thing to do, use this burial oil for Jesus.  Jesus interprets her act as a three paradigms for righteous living: (1) honoring God; (2)telling of her story as part of the gospel that reminds us of two obligations, to honor the Lord and (3) to share one’s spiritual and material wealth indiscriminately at every opportunity. 

The Christian life of piety is lived promiscuously. Obviously I do not mean by being sexually promiscuous, but by doing right by the Lord and the poor with all our resources indiscriminately that strengthens us all.  At this dinner Jesus points every eye toward the extravagant gift of the empty tomb of Jesus of Nazareth and upsets the meaning of extravagance for us all.

It is a shame for us all that we don’t carry as much of that piety with us as we should. We talk big but often act small. And for most people, piety being modeled as righteous action sustained by faith through the acts of the socially marginalized is unexpected, if not undesired. Who want to be taught piety by an outcast (the poor, a woman, an African-American or Hispanic, or someone with a different sexual orientation? Certainly not a Roman who measures honor by degree of power.

But here we are, as Jesus told us, every time we repeat this story we are learning the true meaning of piety from an outsider.  In our text, we learn it from a woman extravagantly “wasting” an entire jar of extremely valuable spice on Jesus to the chagrin of all the guests at this dinner (except Jesus and perhaps Simon).  We surely recall the story of the poor widow’s donation of her only two coins in the temple (Mark 12:41-44).

 Jesus praises this marginalized woman for her promiscuous extravagance in faithful service. This indiscriminate extravagance is what Jesus praises and calls us to do, indiscriminately share the extravagance of our wealth. 

We may ask what is our wealth? Our primary wealth is not only our money or possessions, it is our piety; that is, our empowerment to honor the Lord and to act towards others indiscriminately according to our faith as God has acted faithfully towards us.

When we actively engage the least of God’s people, the abused, the poor and the outsiders and share our piety and wealth with them, they are teaching us a lesson in piety and causing a reversal – promiscuous sharing of our wealth both material and spiritual enriches everyone.

We learn much from this story about what promiscuous sharing of our piety entails and why it is so important that we do it.  We can expect questions and rebuke for righteous behavior, not just a mild “no, no” but likely a strongly voiced outrage of “How dare you!” from the spiritually blind.

We may ask: why are people so offended by the piety of helping an outsider, a marginalized person? Is it because it is easier to challenge another’s use of wealth than our own?  Is it because down deep we don’t like a Christian spiritual value system that transcends and challenges a cultural value systems built on material wealth? Is it because it turns promiscuity from a word used to describe unhealthy sexual behavior into one accurately describing the pious and indiscriminate use of our good gifts. (All good gifts come from God, you know.)

A Christian grows wealthy in spiritual riches through extravagantly giving them up to others. It sustains oneself and one’s fellow.  It magnifies and assuages our own spiritual poverty. At this dinner Jesus and this woman point every eye toward the extravagant gift of the empty tomb of Jesus of Nazareth and upsets the meaning of extravagance for us all.

Amen.