I am working with someone on some ideas emerging from the three Mary and Martha stories that will recognise the fact that, however skewed the balance, there's a bit of each of them in each of us, and that each of them got it more 'right' on one occasion and both did on a third.

As we were chatting, we recognised that we know nothing about these sisters, but that traditionally Martha is viewed as the older, often substantially so, as plain (even ugly) careworn and missing the point whereas Mary is usually young, beautiful and deeply spiritual.  We dared to postulate another idea - that these sisters were twins, and I'd like to say monozygotic (identical) twins, and play with idea that they are, if you like, two sides of one coin.

I know/have known a few sets of monozygotic twins and there does seem to be evidence that one is more extrovert, one more introvert, one more practical one more ponderous and yet, genetically, they are the same.

Martha and Mary probably weren't twins, I'm fairly sure this would have been noted had it been so, but so long as we recognise it is merely a device for our explorations, then I think it's OK.

Not saying anymore, too many readers who may see the fruit of these ideas in due course, but an interesting way to approach the stories which, for those who think there's only one such story, may be found in Luke 10, John 11 and John 12.