We are now in the middle of Holy Week
as we continue our journey toward Easter.
The Gospel story today may be a bit disconcerting to hear. Lent is a time when we focus upon repentance
and conversion, when we become more aware of the sins we have in our lives. Lent is a time that helps us focus on those
human weaknesses that we need to address in our lives. Today's Gospel is a
foreshadowing of the human weakness that allow Peter and Judas to fall into
sin, to miss the mark, to betray Jesus.
Judas and Peter find themselves in
challenging situations. I wonder, how do
we respond to God when we are challenged, when we find ourselves in difficult
situations? Many of us may try to avoid
such a troubling situation altogether, which may be a natural human
response. Judas and Peter were two men
who were very close to Jesus, yet they turn away and do him wrong. To be sure,
Judas and Peter were in life threatening circumstances just by associating with
Jesus. They were concerned about how the
authorities would respond to Jesus and his disciples. They may have felt pressure from the religious
authorities in Jerusalem. They may have
had little time to reflect and pray about their reaction and the choice of
actions they could take.
Yet, the events we hear today are an
integral part of Jesus' passion narrative.
We understand these events in the light of Jesus' death and
resurrection, in the light of the salvation which Jesus brings us. We understand these events through the
presence of the Holy Spirit whom Jesus sent among us. These are the events that give us hope as we
struggle through our own human weaknesses in life, as we struggle with all that
keeps us from God and that weigh us down on our journey.
Let us pray for a greater understanding
of the events that lead to Jesus' journey to the cross, for a greater
understanding of those human weaknesses that we struggle to overcome as we walk
with Jesus.
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