Holy Tuesday
Many things happen in today’s Gospelpassage. First, Jesus foretells a betrayal. “Amen, amen, I say to you, one of you will betray me.” It is natural for everyone to be surprised and to ask each other: Who is this? Which one of us? And surely everyone will swear: "It must not be me ..." Jesus replied: It is the one to whom I hand the morsel (bread) after I have dipped it.” So, he dipped the morsel, took it, and handed it to Judas, son of Simon the Iscariot. Jesus reveals the traitor, but still, no one is paying attention ... Because when Judas leaves ... everyone thinks he went shopping for the Holydays. Because Judas was in charge of the money bag, some thought that Jesus said to him, " Buy what we need for the feast, or to give something to the poor." And after eating a piece of / bread / he left immediately. And it was night. Surprisingly ... I do not know if the disciples were so excited about listening ... or were they blindfolded. (Like those in Emmaus after the resurrection) but a moment earlier Jesus speaks of a betrayal ... then he emphasizes the fact that the traitor is the one to whom he gives the soaked bread ... And he gave it to Judas ...
And they did not react, they did not associate the facts. Maybe it had to happen. After the departure of Judas, Jesus gives his "priestly speech". One more word is important: "it was night.” Night is a symbolic time of action of Evil. We also have moments in our lives that we could call "night" ... or "darkness".
This is a contrast; in the Upper Room it is bright, there is a Community of disciples, there is Jesus but it is enough to open the door, go outside and one goes out into the reality of the night. The same is with us. Outside the Community, outside the Church, we find ourselves in the reality of darkness. Where Christ is not with us there is night.
If we reject Jesus, if we decide to leave the "Upper Room" we are in the same position as Judas ... it is dark ... the middle of the night. We do not see the way, we are walking in the dark, as a consequence, we often come to places that we would not like to go. We find ourselves in situations in which we did not want to be. Judas also - after the fact - realized that Jesus' betrayal did not get him what he wanted.
But let us go back to the Upper Room, in the situation when Judas left the Community. Jesus says: “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.” We know the context ...
Moments before, Jesus announced "one of you will betray me ..." the consequences of this betrayal are known to all of us and Jesus says: this is how the Son of Man will be glorified ... through betrayal, through suffering and death but most of all through the resurrection. It is a difficult language looking humanly Apparently there is no logic whatsoever. How can betrayal and death mean to be glorified? After all, betrayal and death are signs of disgrace. But what is illogical for humans is logical for God.
“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.”Jesus implies. that this supper is farewell. You cannot come with me. He tells the disciples. But Peter - on behalf of everyone – asks: Well, where are you going? Looking at the entire Gospel, it is difficult to understand this question so completely because Jesus mentioned his passion, death, and resurrection several times and Peter even admonished him not to say that. And now he asks again?
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. Peter confesses: I will give my life for you ... Was it sincere? Probably yes ... a spontaneous confession of a simple man who loves his teacher.
That is why the prophecy of Jesus must have hurt him: deny me three times. These words of Jesus fall towards us because how many times have, we said that we love Him and how many times have we denied Him anyway?
This is our nature ... but Peter should be closer to us ... Peter, who cried after the betrayal and then three times confessed his love to the Teacher.
And Judas? Each of us knows his fate ... may we be able to come back like Peter and not resort to simple solutions, like Judas ... which consequently bring us misfortunes
Until Tomorrow
fr. george