27 March, 2024 | Wednesday of Holy Week

 Reading : Is 50:4-9a

Gospel Mt 26:14-25

One of the Twelve, who was called Judas Iscariot,

went to the chief priests and said,

“What are you willing to give me

if I hand him over to you?”

They paid him thirty pieces of silver,

and from that time on he looked for an opportunity to hand him over.

On the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread,

the disciples approached Jesus and said,

“Where do you want us to prepare

for you to eat the Passover?”

He said,

“Go into the city to a certain man and tell him,

‘The teacher says, "My appointed time draws near;

in your house I shall celebrate the Passover with my disciples.”‘“

The disciples then did as Jesus had ordered,

and prepared the Passover.

When it was evening,

he reclined at table with the Twelve.

And while they were eating, he said,

“Amen, I say to you, one of you will betray me.”

Deeply distressed at this,

they began to say to him one after another,

“Surely it is not I, Lord?”

He said in reply,

“He who has dipped his hand into the dish with me

is the one who will betray me.

The Son of Man indeed goes, as it is written of him,

but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed.

It would be better for that man if he had never been born.”

Then Judas, his betrayer, said in reply,

“Surely it is not I, Rabbi?”

He answered, “You have said so.”

Reflections:

‘Thirty pieces of silver' has been a negative phrase ever since. It's a way of saying a person was cheated or betrayed.  Aware of my own fragility, I ask Jesus for the strength that I need to give witness to his spirit in difficult moments. In this Holy Week, let us be reminded of the power of God’s mercy and forgiveness. Even in the face of our own betrayals, we can turn to our Lord and find redemption. May we be inspired by the love that Jesus had for his disciples, even in the face of betrayal, and may we strive to follow in his footsteps by loving others, even in their imperfections.

Activity :

Recall the time you deliberately betrayed someone and the consequences of the action. Ask for pardon from the Lord, and decide how you can make up with the person. 

Reflections by Agnelo Nazareth