As we enter Holy Week, our hearts turn toward Jesus’ final days—a time marked by rejection, suffering, and impending death. Most people Jesus encountered during this journey responded with suspicion, fear, or outright hostility. Yet, in the Gospel reading today, just six days before Passover, we are given a moment of unexpected grace. Jesus is welcomed into the home of dear friends, and one of them—Mary of Bethany—offers him a gesture of love so striking that it demands our attention.
Act of Devotion
Without a word, Mary takes an expensive jar of perfume, pours it over Jesus’ feet, and wipes them with her hair. It is a tender, intimate act of devotion. In the very next chapter, Jesus will do something similar—he will wash the feet of his disciples. But here, it is Mary who ministers to him. Her act is spontaneous, lavish, and deeply moving. It is the kind of moment we might expect to be celebrated widely in our tradition—but curiously, it is not.
Mary of Bethany (not to be confused with Mary Magdalene) may not have fully understood the cosmic significance of who Jesus was—the Light to the nations, the one sent to open blind eyes and free the oppressed, as foretold in Isaiah 42. But she knew enough. She knew him as a man of profound compassion and truth, as one who healed bodies and restored lives. She loved him deeply—and that love moved her to act.
Her anointing was more than an expression of personal affection. Jesus receives it as a sign pointing to what lies ahead: his burial. “She bought it for the day of my burial,” he says. In the surrounding verses, we see the growing shadow of the Passion—Caiaphas’ ominous prophecy that one man must die for the people, Jesus’ own words about the grain of wheat dying to bear fruit, and his declaration that he will be lifted up to draw all people to himself. In this context, Mary’s gesture becomes not just beautiful, but prophetic.
Remembering Mary, Rethinking Ministry
It is striking that Mary’s act—so meaningful and theologically rich—has been largely forgotten in the Church’s liturgical life. Even more so when we consider Jesus’ words in Matthew’s Gospel: “Wherever this gospel is proclaimed in the whole world, what she has done will be told in memory of her.” And yet, how rarely it is.
Church tradition has often been quick to dismiss such moments, especially when they involve women. Official teaching maintains that neither Mary of Bethany’s anointing nor Mary Magdalene’s proclamation of the Resurrection forms a foundation for women’s ordination. But this risks overlooking the radical redefinition of ministry that Jesus models and invites us into—not ministry as rank or privilege, but as bold love, sacrificial service, and fearless witness.
True Discipleship
Mary of Bethany shows us what true discipleship can look like. Her actions were not about being seen or gaining status. They were about honoring Christ in the moment of need—about offering something costly, vulnerable, and wholehearted. Perhaps in reclaiming her story, we might also reclaim a richer, deeper understanding of what it means to follow Jesus.
Thank you for this reflection, Fr Paschal! I have loved this passage for a long time and I’m so glad you highlight its beauty here. Yes, it is surprising we do not bring more attention to this passage, considering it is in 2 or 3 different Gospel accounts. I have wondered, when Jesus says that “What she has done will be told in memory of her…,” could that mean she has anointed him, so that he now truly is the Anointed One, the Christ? Thank you again for this reflection, her act of extravagant love is well worth taking to prayer.
You’re welcome. I do appreciate so much your spiritual insight to this passage. Thank you for taking your time to read. 🙏🙏🙏