7 March 2010: The treason of Judas

“As he spoke, Judas, one of the twelve, arrived; with him was a large crowd with swords and clubs ...” (Mt 26:47)

Judas, taught by Jesus for three years, confirmed in the faith by so many miracles, loaded with favors, has become the tool of those who plot the death of his Lord. For thirty pieces of silver he treacherously delivers him into their hands. Such is the depth of blindness into which avarice has slowly plunged Judas!

What revolting hypocrisy! Did Judas believe that he could deceive God, as he had deceived men? How passion blinds its victims!

Everybody detests the crime of Judas; but there are Christians nowadays who renew it by making a sacrilegious Communion [such as receiving the Holy Eucharist when in a state of mortal sin]. They in reality deliver up Jesus under the cloak of piety, to the demons in their hearts.

May God preserve us from such a crime! There are acts of hypocrisy less revolting but which we ought neverthess to fear and detest -- contenting ourselves with exterior virtue and piety, being more careful about duties before colleagues than when alone, alleging false pretexts to attain our ends, etc.

Which is the more wonderful -- the sweetness of Jesus, or hardness of heart of Judas? In addressing Judas, “My friend”, Jesus signified his readiness to pardon him. By asking Judas, “What did you come for?” (Mt 26:50) Jesus wished to help Judas examine himself, to recognize and abhor his crime. But Judas was firm.

Jesus tried again to convert him by showing he knew of his treachery, saying: “Judas, do you betray the Son of Man with a kiss?” (Lk 22:48) All was in vain. He remained obstinate.

The extraordinary gentleness of Jesus ought to redouble our love for him. The unusual hardness of the traitor should fill us with fear and extreme distrust of ourselves, no matter how virtuous we believe we are.

Ref: cf “Practical Meditations” by a Father of the Society of Jesus, 1964, pp96-8

Faithfulness in everyday things

Judas betrays Jesus with a show of friendship. He had allowed his love for the Lord to grow cold. What remained is the mere external appearance of discipleship. His life of loving surrender to God had become a farce. More than once he must have thought it would have been better not to have followed the Lord at all.

Now the miracles, the cures, the happy moments with the Master, his friendship with the other apostles are forgotten. He is now a man who has lost his way, out of touch, capable of committing the madness which for us will be difficult to understand. This act has been preceded by increasingly greater acts of disloyalty; the final result of a long, interior process.

In contrast, perseverance is doing the daily small things with faith; supported by the humility of beginning again when weakness makes us go astray. “A house is not destroyed by a momentary impulse. ... often because of an old defect in its construction. Sometimes prolonged neglect permits water to get in, drop by drop. With time one tiny crack becomes larger, causing considerable damage. In the end, the rain pours in. The result is ruin." (cf Cassian, “Conferences”, 6)

To persevere in our vocation is to respond to our Lord’s repeated calls despite the obstacles and difficulties; sometimes, acts of cowardice and even defeats. As we contemplate these scenes let us examine our faithfulness in the details of our vocation.

Is there any hint of a double life? Am I faithful to my duties? Do I make sure my relationship with the Lord is sincere? Do I avoid becoming attached to material things -- being drawn to the ‘thirty pieces of silver’?

The Christian betrays Jesus by mortal sin. All sin, even venial sin, is inextricably and mysteriously related to the passion of the Lord. Our life is an affirmation or negation of Christ. But even after the most serious offences He is always ready to take us back into his friendship. Judas rejected the hand the Lord held out to him; his life was now ruined.

Ref: cf Francis Fernandez, “In Conversation with God”, 2:241-3

The Value of Ordinary Daily Activity

Consciousness that human labor is participation in God’s work should, as the Second Vatican Council teaches, “permeate 'ordinary daily activities’ as well. When men and women work to gain a living for themselves and their families and carry out their activities in such a way as to do proper service to society as well, they may rightly maintain that they are extending the Creator’s work through their work. ... making themselves useful to their brethren and a personal contribution to accomplishing God’s providential plan in history.”

So it is necessary for this Christian spirituality of labor to become the common heritage of all. There is need for this spirituality to demonstrate, especially in our time, that maturity demanded by tensions and anxieties in minds and hearts.

The knowledge that man participates in the work of creation through his labor is the deepest motivation for starting out in various sectors. “The faithful", we read in the constitution “Lumen Gentium”, “should therefore recognize the intimate nature of all creation, its value, and how it is ordained to praise of God; and they must help each other to live holier lives and also undertake appropriate secular activities, so that the world may be imbued with the spirit of Christ and more effectively attain its goal in justice, in charity and in peace.

“Therefore, with their abilities in worldly disciplines and through their activities they make a valuable contribution to created goods inwardly elevated by the grace of Christ enjoying progress through human labor, technology and the culture of civilization, according to the Creator’s dispositions and in the light of his Word.”

Ref: cf Pope John Paul II, “Prayers and Devotions”, 1994, pp390-91

THE SEVEN SUNDAYS DEVOTION TO ST. JOSEPH -- Honors the seven joys and seven sorrows of St Joseph. (Ref: “Handbook of Prayers”, Fr Charles Belmonte and Fr James Socias (Eds), 1988, pp321-3)

“What must Joseph have been, how grace must have worked through him, that he should be able to fulfill this task of the human upbringing of the Son of God.

“For Jesus must have resembled Joseph: in his way of working, in the features of his character, in his way of speaking. Jesus’ realism, his eye for detail, the way he sat at table and broke bread, his preference for using everyday situations to give doctrine -- all this reflects his childhood and the influence of Joseph.

“It’s not possible to ignore this sublime mystery: Jesus who is man, who speaks with the accent of a particular district of Israel, who resembles a carpenter called Joseph, is the Son of God.”

Ref: St Josemaria Escrivà, “In Joseph’s Workshop” in “Christ is passing by”, 40

The sixth sorrow and joy of St Joseph -- His sorrow when he was afraid to return to his homeland; his joy on being told by the angel to go to Nazareth.

“There he settled in a town called Nazareth. In this way the words spoken through the prophets were to be fulfilled: He will be called a Nazarene.” (Mt 2:23)

“Joseph loved Jesus as a father loves his son and showed his love by giving him the best he had. Joseph, caring for the child as he had been commanded, made Jesus a craftsman, transmitting his own professional skill to him. Jesus worked in Joseph’s workshop and by Joseph’s side.”

Ref: St Josemaria Escrivà, “In Joseph’s Workshop”, 54

Our Lady of the Star at Villa Viciosa, in Portugal, so-called from a star which a shepherd saw shining where the church is built. — Triple Couronne, n. 17. (“Catholic Gems or Treasures of the Church” Historical Calendar; http://www.bethlehemobserver.com); (http://www/divinewill.org/feastofourlady.htm); (www.iskandar.com/ourlady/ourladyfeasts.html); (maryfest.htm / www.starharbor.com/santiago/m_feasts.html); (www.marylinks.org/Mary-Calendar.htm)