Word to the Wise
Tuesday, March 27, 2018 - Holy Week - Tues
[Isa 49:1-6 and John 13:21-33, 36-38]TUESDAY, MARCH 27, 2018 TUESDAY IN HOLY WEEK [Isaiah 49:1-6 and John 13:21-33, 36-38] Peter said to him, “Master, why can I not follow you now? I will lay down my life for you.” Jesus answered, “Will you lay down your life for me? Amen, amen, I say to you, the cock will not crow before you deny me three times.” [John] One of the smaller dramas that is part of the larger drama of Holy Week is the contrast and similarity between Peter and Judas. Yesterday, we heard Judas complain about the expensive anointment being used to anoint Jesus’ feet! In today’s gospel scripture, after Jesus’ had washed the feet of the apostles (including Judas), Jesus literally sends Judas off on his terrible errand. Alongside the cynical Judas is Peter who impulsively refused to have his feet washed (and gets a rebuke) and now impulsively wants to follow Jesus to where Jesus is going. Jesus warns Peter that betrayal will find him (Peter) as well, and indeed it does in the courtyard of the high priest. Some redemption for Peter also lies ahead in chapter 21 for Peter. The name of Judas has become a byword for “traitor.” But even the best of us can become a traitor to Jesus whom we profess to follow. Perhaps it will not happen in some large way like Judas, but in small eroding ways. Can we wash the feet of others as Jesus has commanded? Is the washing of the feet on Holy Thursday simply a re-enactment to be confined to one ceremony in the entire year? Is it easier for us to forgive Peter (since we may feel more like him) than to forgive Judas? Questions like this are easier to raise in the context of Holy Week, but they are relevant all the time. The Holy Week reminder is simply more dramatic. AMEN