Commentary on the Gospel of
I still keep in my mind this really touching scene from a great musical by Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber. Jesus and the Twelve at the Last Supper – the last hours when everything was going as they were used to, then Jesus said something that really moved them - ‘One of you will betray me tonight’. The musical dialogue between Jesus and Judas is really dramatic; poor Judas, he really lost his mind. But when we read St John’s account, we may see Jesus washing the apostles’ feet. Almost all of them are invited to the unity with Jesus, and to the Father as well, almost, because Jesus knows the one who is about to leave this unique community, to betray.
The perspective of betrayal must have been distressing, and what kind of feelings overwhelmed them? But it took place according to scripture, and Jesus told the Twelve this secret so as to make them ready, and us with them, to believe that He is.
To have faith in Jesus in spite of betrayal, in spite of our own sins is what we are called to. In this scene we may see our own lives. As Christians we are included into the community of the Church, it is a community with paschal shape; although many years passed away from these days, Jesus still gathers our community for Supper and breaks bread for us, yet in our time the perspective is slightly different. We have a share in Christ’s victory, we do know that all our trials and tribulations are temporary. When we read the Gospel, Christ rises each time and it is not the matter of a constant story written on paper, it is the matter of God’s Word which is unchangeable.
The unchangeable word has become flesh, a man who is not just a man, and the Twelve eventually saw the sacrifice of the cross and the glory of the first day of a week. Jesus conquered their sins and lack of faith because the love He had offered them was, and always is, greater than everything. All of us are to share this experience with the Twelve.
