Thursday, August 15, 2013

On Line Bible Study - For the Week August 12 - 18, 2013

Lesson 571

Scene Two: The Arrest.

Judas.  A tragic figure.  He is mentioned 22 times in the Christian Testament.  Father Raymond Brown makes an interesting observation.  In the Gospel tradition, remembering that Mark is chronologically the earliest of the four, note the frequency of reference to Judas:
1.      Mark mentions Judas 3 times.  (3:19, 14:10, 14:43.)
2.      Matthew mentions Judas 5 times.  (10:4, 26:14, 26:25, 26:47, 27:3.  He is also listed among the 12 in 13:55, but with no reference to his act of betrayal.)
3.      Luke/Acts mentions Judas 6 times.  (6:16, 22:3, 22:47, 22:48.  Acts 1:16-17, 1:25.)
4.      John mentions Judas 8 times.  (6:71, 12:14, 13:2, 13:26, 13:29, 14:22, 18:2, 18:3.)

Fr. Brown wonders if this doesn't suggest an interest in Judas that grew over the decades as the gospel story came together, represented by the increase over time of the mention of Judas.

Did Judas “betray” Jesus, or “hand him over”?  Is there a difference?  Recalling that Jerusalem and surrounding areas were busy during the time of the feast, and recalling that Jesus managed at other times to evade the crowd, Judas agrees to do two things (Brown).  He knows where Jesus will be, so he can lead the authorities to him.  And, in a crowd, he can quickly pick Jesus out, assuring a valid identification.

Swords.  Such irony.  The “Prince of Peace” is arrested in the midst of the threat of increased violence.  The crowd came with swords and clubs; the followers of Jesus were armed (?).  With tempers fueled by a curious mix of fear and self-righteousness, the situation was extremely volatile.  Would that the authority of Jesus – and his word to “Put away your sword” (Matthew and John), and his even stronger command – “No more of this!” (Luke) – would that his word might ring in the streets of Cairo and the halls of America’s congress.  It is hard to imagine Jesus being anything but thoroughly disgusted with the United States’ arsenal of weapons.  In Luke’s telling of the arrest, Jesus doesn’t just give a command; he reverses the effect of violence.  That is both the example to us and the way for us – We must say: No more! to the violence in this world; but we must also be diligent now to reverse the effects of the violence that erupts every day.

Abandonment.  What happened to the impulse to stand their ground and fight?  The disciples of Jesus, so ready at first to draw their sword, are now looking to put as much distance between themselves and Jesus as possible.  It’s not likely that Jesus wanted them to put away your sword and then run away as fast as they could.  So frightening has the present and future become, and so toxic is it to be in proximity to Jesus that it is preferable to be naked.  Being “naked” in the Bible is never a good thing.  Is this what it has come to?  Are we like the proverbial emperor, refusing to acknowledge just how naked our sin is to the world?  Jesus takes hold of us, and we run.  Indeed, he 'stands his ground' - armed with nothing but love.

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