Posted by The WORD in other words (2022) by Fr Lino Nicasio SVD – Saint Jude Shrine Parish, Manila
Tuesday in Holy Week
Photo: Wikimedia Commons
People might ask: Jesus was deeply troubled? (cf. John 13, 21) Did he not say earlier, “Do not let your hearts be troubled?” (John 14:1) Why is he then troubled? We seem to forget one very important thing about Jesus the Son of God made man: “For this reason he had to be made like them fully human in every way” (Heb. 2:17). Jesus as the Divine Word made flesh experienced the whole gamut of human emotions including “being troubled.”
But what caused this trouble? Jesus himself gives the answer: “Amen, amen, I say to you, one of you will betray me.” And who is this famous one? No other than Judas Iscariot the traitor, someone whom Jesus loved, called and entrusted with the apostolic purse.
Betrayal really hurts and cuts deep. Just ask the spouse who discovers the infidelity of the other one; or the betrayal of a close and trusted friend, or a business partner. Despite this, Jesus did not expose Judas loudly but said quietly to the damned traitor: “What you are going to do, do quickly.” (John 13, 27)
We are quick to condemn Judas the traitor, the “son of perdition,” and perhaps rightly so, but what about us? How many times have we betrayed Jesus by our sins, thereby causing him deep trouble each time? How about the many times we betrayed or failed others in one way or another causing them deep trouble as well?
What we can do now is to apply to ourselves what Jesus said to Judas the traitor: “What you are going to do, do quickly.” (John 13, 27) BUT with a twist: go right away and ask God’s mercy and forgiveness, quickly go to confession and waste no time amending our lives and righting the wrong we have done to God and the persons we hurt. When we do this, God is glorified, for God is a God of love and compassion, “whose mercy endures forever.” (Psalm 136:1)
One comment