Betrayal does not have the final word (Wednesday, Holy Week, 2021)

-

Today is the third day of the Holy Week and we continue to reflect on the passion of Jesus as the drama unfolds. If we must learn anything in this week, let us first understand that Jesus suffered and died for us. Now, He did not suffer and die from sickness, accident or poverty. He suffered rejection, emotional anguish, physical assault and agonizing death on the cross. But everything began with a betrayal. The saddest thing about betrayal is that it never comes from enemies or strangers. It comes from trusted friends and loved ones. One of the worst traumatic experiences anyone could have is the experience of being betrayed, rejected and treated very badly by a very close companion or relative.


In Matthew 26:14-25, it is narrated that Jesus was betrayed by Judas – a trusted friend and companion. To have been given the responsibility of being in charge of the money is indicative of the fact that Judas was so much trusted. But he betrayed his master. How did Jesus react to the betrayal? The third song of the Suffering Servant (cf. Isaiah 50:4-9), which obviously refers to Jesus, tells us that “the Suffering Servant was not rebellious neither did He turn backward. He offered His back to those who struck Him, did not hide His face from shame and spitting. He trusted in God His help and knew He will never be confounded”. Jesus did not do anything reprehensible in reaction to the betrayal from a trusted friend. He continued to toe the path of trust, righteousness and nonviolence.


All of the above are to remind us that sometimes we may also find ourselves in the dark moments of betrayal. We may see ourselves being exchanged for money, cheap popularity or selfish gains. Jesus’ situation should remind us that betrayals don’t have the final word and there are no lasting gains from evil. God will always have the final word. He can turn ugly situations of betrayals and rejections for good. Jesus was betrayed by a trusted companion, denied by a close friend, rejected, suffered and died at the hands of His own people, but God vindicated Him by raising Him from the dead. As we fight injustice and evil, let us continue to trust in God: He has the final word.


Prayer:

Lord Jesus, in you I have placed my trust. I know I will never be confounded, Amen!


Have an impactful Holy Week!



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Gifts versus the Giver (Monday, Week 20, Year II)

-
Image
A gift, by the virtue of what it is, is given. In other words, there must be a giver. Gift can come or be in the form of a good friendship or relationship, material thing, good job, personal talent, and so on. Every cherished gift is the delight of our eyes, the pride of our power and the desire of our souls. The gifts that we possess should then remind us of the giver. It smacks of arrogance and ingratitude when gifts are used without acknowledging or making reference to the giver. For the Jews, the Temple or Sanctuary was the delight of their eyes, the pride of their power and the desire of their souls. It was a precious gift which they jealously guarded. However, they adorned the Sanctuary but did not truly adore the One for whom the Sanctuary exists. They were too attached to the “gift” (sanctuary) but were completely detached from the Giver of the gift – from Yahweh. Ezekiel prophesied to them that this sanctuary which was their delight will be profaned and taken away from them. M
Read more

Persecution and Triumph, the Two Realities of Christian life (Saturday, Week 33, Year 2, The Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary)

-
Image
The book of Revelation is full of symbols and imageries that need to be carefully interpreted for us to understand the message they communicate. In today’s first reading (cf. Rev. 11:4-12), John was told about two olive trees and two lamp stands serving as witnesses to the Holy One. Who or what do these two sets of witnesses (olive trees and lamp stand) stand for? When we read further in order to understand what happened to these two witnesses, it may be a bit clear to us that the “two witnesses” may be pointing to Moses and Elijah, judging from what they did on earth and what they stand for. Moses stands for the Law; and Elijah stands for the Prophet. Anyone who bears witness as Moses bore witness to the Law of God must be persecuted by the beast as the first reading (from the Book of Revelation) recounted. Anyone who bears witness to the messages of truth as Elijah and other prophets did must be persecuted just as the prophets were persecuted. Persecution is a fate that awaits every
Read more

Enkindle the Embers of Unity, Quench the Fire of Disunity (Wednesday, Week 22, Year A)

-
Image
For some time now, we have heard Paul talk about the spiritual and the unspiritual: what it means to live and operate on the level of the Spirit (the spiritual) and on the level of the flesh (the unspiritual). Paul was very emphatic about this topic possibly because he was addressing a group of people who were too intellectual and academic in their approach to the things of God and all of that. Remember that the Corinthians were Greek; and the ancient Greeks were known to be too particular and more interested in intellectualism, sophistry, philosophy and human wisdom. And we must not forget that Paul has been very suspicious of over-reliance on worldly/human wisdom in understanding and appreciating the things of the Spirit. To rely more on human/worldly wisdom is a sign that one may be operating on the level of the flesh; and to operate on the level of the flesh breeds a whole lot of vices such as division or sectionalism, hedonism, and so on. In today’s section of that letter to the C
Read more