In the continuing series concerning the overlooked and underrated, the Rev Richard Baxter considers Mary of Bethany, as outlined in John 12:1-8.

DO you know that shrinking feeling which comes when someone who knows you gets your name wrong? It can make us feel very small and insignificant.

There are three versions of the story of Jesus being anointed with perfume shortly before his arrest in the gospels. Matthew and Mark put Jesus at a house in Bethany. The owner of the house, Simon, is named, but the woman at the centre of the story does not seem to warrant a name in those gospels. John, however, locates the story in the house of Lazarus, where Martha is serving a meal, and attributes the action to Mary, sister of Lazarus and Martha.

The essential elements of the story are that Jesus is at a table sharing a meal when Mary comes in with half a litre of expensive perfume, pours it on Jesus’ feet and wipes them with her hair, in an extravagant gesture of love.

Is Mary underrated? Well, there is a clear impression (in John’s version of the story) that this house belongs to Lazarus. Martha is the effective head of the household, running it day by day. Mary is the other one, the unnoticed one, the underrated one. Martha takes charge as hostess of the various meals Jesus shares there, and she took charge of the situation when Jesus raised Lazarus.

Later generations of Christians have often been confused about the various Marys – Mary the mother of Jesus, Mary Magadalene and “the other Mary” as Matthew’s resurrection story says, presumably referring to Mary of Bethany. Everything seems to conspire to push this lady into the background.

So often shut out of the key decisions, Mary was nevertheless a quiet, faithful follower of Jesus. She listened carefully when he spoke, and thought about his teaching, even when that led to criticism from her dominant sister. On this occasion, when she pours her precious perfume on his feet, as her one opportunity to express her love in her own way, she is immediately criticised. “That perfume was worth money and could have been sold to fund the needs of the poor,” Judas says, completely missing the point that it was Mary’s perfume to do with as she wanted, and she chose to use it to honour Jesus.

It seems clear that Mary is among the underrated people, by her sister, by her brother, by Judas and the other disciples. She is not underrated by Jesus, however. He tells them to leave her alone, because he understands the significance of her gesture, the cost of her action and the motivation for her deed.

Her way of expressing her love for Jesus may be different, but he appreciates it and values it just the same.

People who forget or mistake our names may make us feel small, deliberately or accidentally, but God knows us individually and does not forget.

He is not going to forget her name, and he’s not going to forget her action (even if the gospel writers later get in a bit of a tangle over it).

The same is true for us. People who forget or mistake our names may make us feel small, deliberately or accidentally, but God knows us individually and does not forget. In the words of Isaiah, the Lord says: “See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands.”

The Rev Richard Baxter is transition minister at Glasgow: Wellington.