Martha
Archimandrite Nikifor’s Biblical Encyclopedia
(Luke 10:38-42; John 11-12)—sister of Mary and Lazarus of Bethany. She welcomed Jesus into her home and was occupied with serving while Mary sat at his feet. Jesus did not despise service, but corrected anxious distraction and affirmed the one necessary thing of attending to his word. When Lazarus died, Martha went out to meet Jesus and confessed, “I believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God, the one coming into the world” (John 11:27). She later served at the supper in Bethany (John 12:2). The source assigns her a February 6 commemoration; liturgical calendars differ by tradition.