Word to the Wise
Wednesday, March 27, 2024 - Holy Week - Wed
[Isa 50:4-9a and Matt 26:14-25]"He who has dipped his hand into the dish with me is the one who will betray me. The Son of Man indeed goes, as it is written of him, but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed. It would be better for that man if he had never been born." Then Judas, his betrayer, said in reply, "Surely it is not I, Rabbi?" He answered, "You have said so." [Matthew]
The gospel scripture yesterday from the Gospel According to John(Tuesday) featured Peter's protest that he would never fail in his faith in Jesus. Jesus told him that he (Peter) would deny him (Jesus) three times before the cock crowed that evening. Today's gospel passage. Today's gospel scripture from the Gospel According to Matthew features Judas' betrayal. He cynically says to Jesus, "Surely it is not I, Lord?" Jesus' own reply: "You have said so" is really: "You said it, Judas!"
Long essays have been written about Judas' possible motivation for betraying Jesus. The money isn't the issue. That is superficial. The real reason lies deep in his own mind and heart. The ministry of Jesus in the gospels according to Matthew, Mark and Luke lasts a year [in John, three years]. Perhaps Judas finally lost faith in the cause and was buying influence for the future by turning Jesus over to the Jewish authorities. In the end, those authorities saw him for what he was, a betrayer, and turned their backs on him. His very name has come to mean a betrayer. Is Peter's denial simply one of degree?
However we may contrast Peter and Judas, what comes through in both cases is the human mind and heart and its labyrinth of emotions, fears and rationalizations. We can look down on Judas, but what do we say about Peter? In the end Peter repents and remains the "rock" on which the Church was built, but can we claim innocence? Put in the same circumstances as Peter, would we have replied the same way? Would we have run like scared rabbits from the Garden of Gethsemane like the other disciples?
Jesus died to offer us a path of mercy through our fickle human hearts and minds. Perhaps we can echo, with a different mind and heart, the prophetic words of the apostle Thomas, when he heard Jesus was going to go to Lazarus' tomb, "Let us also go to die with him." It's the only way to true resurrection. AMEN