Today’s Gospel is quiet.
Very different from the crowds of Palm Sunday.
Jesus is in Bethany. In a home. At table.
And what happens there reveals everything.
Mary takes a pound of expensive ointment. Very costly.
And she pours it over the feet of Jesus. Then she wipes His feet with her hair.
And we are told: “The house was filled with the fragrance.”
It is a simple act. But it is not small. It is an act of love.
Costly. Public. Unmistakable.
Judas immediately objects.
“Why was this ointment not sold for three hundred denarii and given to the poor?”
It sounds reasonable. Practical. Even moral.
But the Gospel tells us the truth:
“He said this, not because he cared about the poor, but because he was a thief.”
This is the contrast. Mary gives everything. Judas calculates.
Mary loves. Judas measures.
And this is not just about them. It is about two ways of approaching Christ.
Mary sees who Christ is. Not fully. But enough. Enough to give.
Enough to honour Him. Enough to pour out what is precious.
Judas also sees Christ. But he does not recognise Him.
He stands near Christ — but his heart is elsewhere.
That is always the danger.
We can be close to Christ outwardly. And far from Him inwardly.
Isaiah helps us understand why Mary is right.
“Behold my servant… I have put my Spirit upon him.”
This is not just a man. This is the servant of the Lord.
The one who will bring justice.
The one who will open blind eyes.
The one who will bring light.
Mary senses this. And so she does not hold back. She gives what is costly.
And there is something else.
Jesus says: “She has kept it for the day of my burial.”
Mary is the only one in the room who acts as though His death is real.
Others will argue. Others will betray. Others will run. Mary prepares Him.
This is what love does.
It does not wait for perfect understanding. It responds. It gives.
And notice the detail: “The house was filled with the fragrance.”
Love leaves a trace. Real devotion changes the atmosphere. It is noticed.
Not by noise. But by presence.
Now place yourself in that room. Where are you?
With Mary? Giving without counting?
Honouring Christ not only in words, but in what you are willing to give up?
Or with Judas?
Close to Christ — but always calculating.
Always holding something back. Always measuring what it costs.
Because here is the truth.
Love that calculates is not yet love.
Christ is about to give everything.
Not a portion. Not what is convenient. Everything. His life.
And before that happens,
Mary shows us the only fitting response: to give. To pour out.
To hold nothing back.
Holy Week brings us to this point. Not just to observe. But to respond.
What do we bring to Christ?
What do we hold back?
What do we keep for ourselves?
Because the measure of love is not words.
It is what we are willing to give.
Mary’s act seems excessive.
But love always does.
And the truth is this:
Nothing we give to Christ is ever wasted.
It becomes fragrance.
It fills the house.
It remains.
So today, do not stand at a distance.
Do not calculate.
Do not reduce love to what is manageable.
Give.
Even if it costs.
Even if it is unseen.
Even if others do not understand.
Because Christ is not looking
for careful observers.
He is looking
for those who love Him.
St. Mary's, St. John Bosco and St. Edward's 