HOLY WEDNESDAY READINGS AND REFLECTION
JUDAS BETRAYS JESUS.
READING I
Is 50:4–9a
The Lord God has given me a well-trained tongue, that I might know how to speak to the weary a word that will rouse them. Morning after morning he opens my ear that I may hear; and I have not rebelled, have not turned back. I gave my back to those who beat me, my cheeks to those who plucked my beard; my face I did not shield from buffets and spitting.
The Lord God is my help, therefore I am not disgraced; I have set my face like flint, knowing that I shall not be put to shame. He is near who upholds my right; if anyone wishes to oppose me, let us appear together. Who disputes my right? Let him confront me. See, the Lord God is my help; who will prove me wrong?
RESPONSORIAL PSALM
R. Lord, in your great love, answer me.
For your sake I bear insult,
and shame covers my face.
I have become an outcast to my brothers,
a stranger to my mother’s sons,
because zeal for your house consumes me,
and the insults of those who blaspheme you fall upon me.
R. Lord, in your great love, answer me.
Insult has broken my heart, and I am weak,
I looked for sympathy, but there was none;
for consolers, not one could I find.
Rather they put gall in my food,
and in my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink.
R. Lord, in your great love, answer me.
I will praise the name of God in song,
and I will glorify him with thanksgiving:
“See, you lowly ones, and be glad;
you who seek God, may your hearts revive!
For the Lord hears the poor,
and his own who are in bonds he spurns not.”
R. Lord, in your great love, answer me.
VERSE BEFORE THE GOSPEL
Ave, Rex noster, Patri oboédiens: ductus es ad crucifigéndum, ut agnus mansuétus ad occisiónem.
Hail to our King, obedient to his Father, he went to his crucifixion like a gentle lamb.
GOSPEL FOR HOLY WEDNESDAY
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.”
Holy Wednesday Gospel reflection: JUDAS BETRAYS JESUS.
Below you have Bishop Javier Echevarria’s reflection on today’s Gospel.
On Wednesday of Holy Week we recall the sad story of one who was an Apostle of Christ—Judas. St. Matthew relates it in his Gospel: “One of the twelve called Judas Iscariot went to the chief priests and said to them: ‘How much are you willing to give me for delivering him to you?’ They assigned to him thirty pieces of silver. And from then on he sought out an opportunity to betray him.”
Why does the Church recall this event? So that we might realize that all of us are capable of behaving like Judas. And so that we might ask Our Lord to keep such treasonous rejections and defeats out of our lives, not only because of the negative consequences they would bring to us personally—which would be serious enough—but because we could occasion the loss of others, who need the help of our good example, our encouragement, our friendship.
There are places in Latin America where images of the Crucifix show a deep wound in Our Lord’s left cheek. They say that it represents the kiss of Judas. So great is the pain our sins inflict on Jesus! Tell him that we all want to be faithful, that we do not want to sell him, as Judas did, for thirty coins, for a pittance—which is what our sins amount to: pride, envy, impurity, hatred, resentment. When a temptation threatens to throw us to the ground, let us consider that it isn’t worthwhile to exchange the happiness of the children of God, whom we are, for a sinful pleasure that ends right away and leaves behind the bitter disgust of defeat and infidelity.
We have to feel the weight of the Church and of all mankind. Isn’t it something stupendous to know that any of us can have an influence on the whole world? Right where we are, carrying out our tasks, caring for our families, serving our friends, we can help so many people be happy. As St. Josemaría Escrivá put it, by fulfilling our Christian duties, we have to be “like a stone that falls into the lake: Through your word and example you produce a first ripple, and that one, another, and another, and still another,” until it reaches the distant shore.
Let us ask Our Lord to keep us from any more betrayals, to show us how to reject, with his grace, the temptations presented by the devil, who seeks to deceive us. We have to say No with determination to everything that could take us away from God. In this way, the disgraceful story of Judas will not be repeated in our lives.
If we should feel weak, let us run to the holy Sacrament of Penance! Like the father in the parable of the prodigal son, Our Lord is waiting for us there, ready to embrace us and extend to us his friendship. He is constantly going out to meet us, even when we’ve had a fall, even a hard fall. It’s always a good time to go back to God! We must not react with discouragement or pessimism. We must not think: What can I, a heap of miseries, do now? Much greater is God’s mercy! What am I going to do if I fall again and again on account of my weakness? God’s power to raise us from our falls is so great!
Great were the sins of Judas and of Peter. Those two betrayals of the Master—one surrendering him into the hands of his persecutors; the other denying Him three times—but how different was each one’s reaction! Our Lord had torrents of mercy waiting for both of them. Peter repented, weeping for his sin, begging for pardon, and Christ confirmed him in faith and love. In time, he would give his life for Our Lord. Judas, however, failed to trust Christ’s mercy. The gates to God’s pardon were open to him until the last moment, but he would not enter them by doing penance.
In his first encyclical, John Paul II spoke of Christ’s “right to meet each one of us in that key moment of the soul’s life, the moment of conversion and forgiveness” (Redemptor Hominis, 20). We must not deprive Jesus of that right! We must not deny God the Father the joy of welcoming us back! We must not sadden the Holy Spirit, who wants to restore supernatural life to souls!
Let us ask Mary, Hope of Christians, not to let our errors and sins dishearten us, even when they are repeated. Let us ask her to obtain from her Son the grace of conversion, the effective desire to go to Confession, humble and contrite, to receive the Sacrament of divine mercy and start over, and over again, as often as necessary.
TEXT SOURCE: https://opusdei.org/en/article/wednesday-of-holy-week-judas-betrays-jesus/
THUMBNAIL PHOTO CREDIT: https://youtu.be/fFit_njv7kI
VIDEO REFLECTION
TOPIC: WHAT CONSTANT LIES DO YOU KEEP THAT MAKE YOU BETRAY JESUS?
In today’s gospel, Judas betrays Jesus and sells Him for 30 pieces of silver. Matthew’s gospel is the only one who mentions the actual amount. Was Jesus worth the 30 pieces? Various interpretations point to the equivalent amount today from anywhere between $90 to $300 (Wikipedia).It doesn’t seem too enticing to exchange three years of friendship and mentoring that Jesus gave to Judas and the other apostles for an amount that could be spent quickly. So why did Judas betray Jesus? Like Judas, we can become so steeped in our sins that we begin to believe the things we do are not sinful.
SEVILLE HOLY WEEK 2018
JESUS DE LA REDENCION EN EL BESO DE JUDAS.
CLIP FROM LONGER ORIGINAL VIDEO BY ABCDESEVILLA (JAVIER GOMES/JAVIER MARIN) in http://sevilla.abc.es/pasionensevilla/videos-semana-santa/2018/lunes-santo-ss18/misterio-la-redencion-semana-santa-sevilla-2018.html
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