“One (?) of You Will Betray Me” by Colleen O’Sullivan
I gave my back to those who beat me, my cheeks to those who plucked my beard; My face I did not shield from buffets and spitting. The Lord God is my help; therefore, I am not disgraced; I have set my face like flint, knowing that I shall not be put to shame. (Isaiah 50:6-7)
One of the Twelve, who was called Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests and said, "What are you willing to give me if I hand him over to you?" They paid him thirty pieces of silver, and from that time on he looked for an opportunity to hand him over. (Matthew 26:14-16)
Piety
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| Nikolai Ge (1831-1894), Conscience, Judas, Public Domain, Wikimedia Commons |
Even my trusted friend, who ate my bread, has raised his heel against me. (Psalm 41:10)
Study
Last week a couple of friends and I watched the movie “Wonder” (2017). It’s the story of a little boy, Auggie, born with a genetic condition which causes facial deformities. Up to this point in his life, he’s been homeschooled, but he’s about to begin fifth grade at a private school. As you can imagine, he is worried about whether he will be accepted. His fears are not groundless; he is stared at, made fun of, and generally ostracized by the other kids. Every day he eats alone in the school cafeteria. That happens in real life all too often and is heartbreaking to watch. Finally, one of the other boys breaks away from his peers and begins eating lunch with Auggie and, as a result, they become best friends. Auggie is over the moon that he has a friend. On Halloween, however, costumed and masked, Auggie overhears his best friend telling one of the chief bullies that he has only been pretending to be friends with Auggie. I can only imagine how much that hurt. This kid puts his heart on the line and it gets shredded.
I imagine that was Jesus’ experience as well. He prayed long and hard before selecting the twelve members of his innermost circle of friends and disciples. He trusted all of them at the start. We’ll never know for sure what tipped him off about Judas. After eating, drinking, and journeying together for some three years, here was a so-called friend going out of his way to hand Jesus over to his enemies. It wasn’t spur of the moment fear that caused him to deny his Lord. It was a deliberate plan, sealed with a kiss, to destroy Jesus once and for all. For 30 pieces of silver.
It’s tempting to point a very judgmental finger at Judas. But then I remember how, at the Last Supper, everyone gasped when Jesus said that one of them would betray him. To a person, they wondered if Jesus was talking about them. Had we been there, we would have had the same sort of guilty reaction. Maybe not for 30 pieces of silver, but for all sorts of other reasons, we are guilty of betraying our Lord. Jesus put not just his heart but his very life on the line for you and me. He took our sins upon himself so that we could be forgiven and washed clean. He died so that you and I could live.
What is our response? We who are Jesus’ trusted friends, who eat his bread at every Mass, turn out not to be so trustworthy after all. Jesus puts his heart on the line for you and me, and we shred it with our sins.
Action
Spend some quiet time considering what might have gone through your mind if you had heard Jesus say, “One of you will betray me.” Ask for forgiveness where it is needed.
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