MARY. 
O Master! when thou comest, it is always
A Sabbath in the house.  I cannot work;
I must sit at thy feet; must see thee, hear thee! 
I have a feeble, wayward, doubting heart,
Incapable of endurance or great thoughts,
Striving for something that it cannot reach,
Baffled and disappointed, wounded, hungry;
And only when I hear thee am I happy,
And only when I see thee am at peace! 
Stronger than I, and wiser, and far better
In every manner, is my sister Martha. 
Thou seest how well she orders everything
To make thee welcome; how she comes and goes,
Careful and cumbered ever with much serving,
While I but welcome thee with foolish words! 
Whene’er thou speakest to me, I am happy;
When thou art silent, I am satisfied. 
Thy presence is enough.  I ask no more. 
Only to be with thee, only to see thee,
Sufficeth me.  My heart is then at rest. 
I wonder I am worthy of so much.

MARTHA. 
Lord, dost thou care not that my sister Mary
Hath left me thus to wait on thee alone? 
I pray thee, bid her help me.

CHRISTUS. 
                       Martha, Martha,
Careful and troubled about many things
Art thou, and yet one thing alone is needful! 
Thy sister Mary hath chosen that good part,
Which never shall be taken away from her!

X

BORN BLIND

A JEW. 
Who is this beggar blinking in the sun? 
Is it not he who used to sit and beg
By the Gate Beautiful?

ANOTHER. 
                       It is the same.

A THIRD. 
It is not he, but like him, for that beggar
Was blind from birth.  It cannot be the same.

THE BEGGAR. 
Yea, I am he.

A JEW. 
   How have thine eyes been opened?

THE BEGGAR. 
A man that is called Jesus made a clay
And put it on mine eyes, and said to me: 
Go to Siloam’s Pool and wash thyself. 
I went and washed, and I received my sight.

A JEW. 
Where is he?

THE BEGGAR. 
            I know not.

PHARISEES. 
                 What is this crowd
Gathered about a beggar?  What has happened?

A JEW. 
Here is a man who hath been blind from birth,
And now he sees.  He says a man called Jesus
Hath healed him.

PHARISEES. 
           As God liveth, the Nazarene! 
How was this done?

THE BEGGAR. 
                 Rabboni, he put clay
Upon mine eyes; I washed, and now I see.

PHARISEES. 
When did he this?

THE BEGGAR. 
               Rabboni, yesterday.

PHARISEES. 
The Sabbath day.  This man is not of God,
Because he keepeth not the Sabbath day!

A JEW. 
How can a man that is a sinner do
Such miracles?

PHARISEES. 
            What dost thou say of him
That hath restored thy sight?