April 16, 2014
Some believers cut Judas a little slack. They say he had a plan. He did not intend for Jesus to be crucified. Judas tried to set things up so that Jesus would finally resist his opposition and bring about a political and military solution to foreign occupiers. So they say. You may scoff, but are we not all Judas at one time or another. He had a plan and tried to manipulate things to bring it about. Trouble is he never consulted Jesus or got a second opinion. Do we not at one time or another connive, manipulate and control things to get some result, our result? We do not consult, get a second opinion or ask advice of those who are part of our plan. The result is often a mess, our mess. When you finally realize that there is a bit of a Judas in you, don’t kill yourself or beat yourself up over it. Enjoy God’s unconditional forgiveness. An ego crush can be a good thing.
[Editor’s note: Holy Thursday, April 17 this year, is when we commemorate the Last Supper, after which Judas betrayed Jesus.]