Christ in the House of Martha and Mary

In spite of its unambiguous title, this painting could easily be mistaken for a still life. Three tables laid with various kinds of food occupy much of the picture space. The scene in the background, however, clearly tells a story. It illustrates a biblical episode from the Gospel of Luke, which describes Christ’s visit to the home of the sisters Martha and Mary in the course of one of his journeys. While Martha laboured in the kitchen to please and indulge her guest, Mary sat at Christ’s feet to listen to him speak. Martha rebuked her sister, but Christ corrected her, saying that Mary had in fact made the better choice. To understand Pieter Aertsen’s painting we need to examine the foreground and background in relation to one another. The still life in the foreground represents material comforts, while the background scene extols the spiritual life. Considered together, they express a moral ideal. The observer’s eye, seeking the narrative biblical scene, is drawn to the alluring still life in the foreground. But to discover the true meaning we must follow Mary’s example and not succumb to the temptations of the material world.