Category: Uncategorized

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Gospel: Matthew 26: 14-25

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.

On the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread,
the disciples approached Jesus and said,
“Where do you want us to prepare
for you to eat the Passover?”
He said,
“Go into the city to a certain man and tell him,
‘The teacher says, “My appointed time draws near;
in your house I shall celebrate the Passover with my disciples.””‘
The disciples then did as Jesus had ordered,
and prepared the Passover.

When it was evening,
he reclined at table with the Twelve.
And while they were eating, he said,
“Amen, I say to you, one of you will betray me.”
Deeply distressed at this,
they began to say to him one after another,
“Surely it is not I, Lord?”
He said in reply,
“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.”

The Gospel of the Lord.

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I’m fascinated by Christ.

Though he knows all things – he knows that Judas wants to betray him – he doesn’t give up on him. Before Judas abandons the Lord, and the community that he’s been a part of for the last three years, Jesus sends him warning signs.

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The night begins with Jesus on his knees with a towel wrapped around his waist. He leans down and washes his disciples’ feet, bathing them in love, including Judas’ feet. 

Then Jesus subtly warns Judas against carrying out this horrible deed, saying things like, “Not all of you are clean.” And, “One of you will betray me,” as if the Lord is trying to prick his conscience without singling him out in front of the others.

Then he feeds Judas – a sign of hospitality – handing him a morsel of bread, which Catholics also believe was Jesus’ very own Body. 

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Jesus washes Judas’ feet; he warns him; and he feeds him with his very Self. He invites Judas to change his plans, but Jesus will not take away his freedom. 

I can only imagine the heartbreak our Good Shepherd felt as he watched Judas flee into the night.

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How often does the Lord try to lead us away from temptation and sin, into a life of trust, instead?

He pricks our conscience, gives us his Word, feeds us with his very own Body, places holy desires in our heart, and sends us friends along the way.

Do we always listen to his voice?

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“I am the Good Shepherd,” Jesus says. “I know my sheep and they know me. They listen to my voice and follow me.”

What might that look like for us today?

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Image credits: (1) Jesus Campaign, CBN.com (2) Ford Madox Brown, 1856 Public Domain (3) Our Daily Bread

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Gospel: John 13: 21-38

Reclining at table with his disciples, Jesus was deeply troubled and testified,
“Amen, amen, I say to you, one of you will betray me.”
The disciples looked at one another, at a loss as to whom he meant.
One of his disciples, the one whom Jesus loved,
was reclining at Jesus’ side.
So Simon Peter nodded to him to find out whom he meant.
He leaned back against Jesus’ chest and said to him,
“Master, who is it?”
Jesus answered,
“It is the one to whom I hand the morsel after I have dipped it.”
So he dipped the morsel and took it and handed it to Judas,
son of Simon the Iscariot.
After Judas took the morsel, Satan entered him.
So Jesus said to him, “What you are going to do, do quickly.”
Now none of those reclining at table realized why he said this to him.
Some thought that since Judas kept the money bag, Jesus had told him,
“Buy what we need for the feast,”
or to give something to the poor.
So Judas took the morsel and left at once. And it was night.

When he had left, Jesus said,
“Now is the Son of Man glorified, and God is glorified in him.
If God is glorified in him, God will also glorify him in himself,
and he will glorify him at once.
My children, I will be with you only a little while longer.
You will look for me, and as I told the Jews,
‘Where I go you cannot come,’ so now I say it to you.”

Simon Peter said to him, “Master, where are you going?”
Jesus answered him,
“Where I am going, you cannot follow me now,
though you will follow later.”
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.”

The Gospel of the Lord.

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During Jesus’ final night on earth, he gathers his friends together for a meal, known as the Last Supper.

I often pray before an icon of that moment, reminding myself that I am – and maybe we all are – capable of being like any one of the disciples gathered around Jesus that night. 

It’s a dynamic group. 

There is John, the ever-faithful disciple who leans tenderly on the heart of Christ. Perhaps that describes some of us, or at least periods in our life – consistently devout; our hearts are dedicated entirely to God.

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Then there’s Peter. Peter sways in his devotion like a branch in the wind. One moment he’s ready to die for the Lord, but the next he denies ever knowing him. 

Peter wants to be faithful. But sometimes fear and temptation get the best of him.

Maybe, at times, we’re Peter. We want to be faithful to the Lord. But fear or temptation can get in the way.

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Then there’s Judas, who betrays Jesus, handing him over for 30 lousy pieces of silver. 

We can only speculate as to why Judas did this. Was he disappointed in Jesus? Greedy? Or angry that his own dreams of glory were smashed? 

We don’t know. But we do know that such feelings – greed, anger, and disappointment – can surface in any human heart, certainly when things don’t go our way, or when we pray for something and the answer is, “No.”

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There they are: three men sitting at the same table with Jesus.

One was faithful. Another stumbled. The third gave up. 

Yet, the Lord “loved them to the end,” and died for them all, just as he died for us.

How might we show our gratitude for Jesus, or demonstrate our faith in him, today?

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Image credits: (1) Mystical Supper, Ancient Faith Store (2) The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, Last Supper (3) The Sacrament of the Last Supper, Salvador Dali

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Gospel: John 12: 1-11

Six days before Passover Jesus came to Bethany,
where Lazarus was, whom Jesus had raised from the dead.
They gave a dinner for him there, and Martha served,
while Lazarus was one of those reclining at table with him. 
Mary took a liter of costly perfumed oil
made from genuine aromatic nard
and anointed the feet of Jesus and dried them with her hair;
the house was filled with the fragrance of the oil. 
Then Judas the Iscariot, one of his disciples,
and the one who would betray him, said,
“Why was this oil not sold for three hundred days’ wages
and given to the poor?”
He said this not because he cared about the poor
but because he was a thief and held the money bag
and used to steal the contributions.
So Jesus said, “Leave her alone.
Let her keep this for the day of my burial.
You always have the poor with you, but you do not always have me.”

The large crowd of the Jews found out that he was there and came,
not only because of him, but also to see Lazarus,
whom he had raised from the dead.
And the chief priests plotted to kill Lazarus too,
because many of the Jews were turning away
and believing in Jesus because of him.

The Gospel of the Lord.

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We’ve entered Monday of Holy Week. Jesus is days away from his death.

So, Mary, Martha, and Lazarus extended a timely dinner invitation, thanking him for all he’s done in their lives, most notably for raising Lazarus from the dead!

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Each person shows their gratitude differently.

Lazarus opens his home. Martha prepares and serves the meal. Mary spends all she has on a costly bottle of perfume, pouring it over Jesus’ feet, wiping them with her hair.

Three different gestures with the same message: thank you for who you are; thank you for being my friend; thank you for what you’ve done for us.

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Holy Week teaches us many things about the Christian life. But the first lesson on Monday morning is this: Be grateful.

In particular, as we journey with Jesus to Calvary and, eventually, the empty tomb, be grateful for what the resurrection promises: 

Eternal life.

As the Psalmist says, “Give thanks to the LORD for he is good, for his love endures forever.”

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Take a moment today and say, “thank you” to Jesus who has, “loved us and given himself for us.”

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Image credits: (1) Quotes about God, Pinterest (2) Jesus (3) Words of Joy