Betrayal

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...

…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…”

…Then Judas, his betrayer, seeing that Jesus had been condemned, deeply regretted what he had done. He returned the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders, saying, “I have sinned in betraying innocent blood.” They said, “What is that to us? Look to it yourself.” Flinging the money into the temple, he departed and went off and hanged himself…

The above pieces from The Passion of the Lord according to Matthew on this Palm Sunday always is the focus of my attention – betrayal.   It clearly was the focus of Dante as depicted in his classic “Inferno.”  According to one description: “His Ninth Circle of Hell is a frozen lake and, like Dante's vision of Hell in general, the Ninth Circle itself is divided into rings of increasingly bad sections with the worst in the center. The people who are sent to the Ninth Circle are people who have betrayed the trust of someone or something close and special.”  

Dead center in this description of Hell we find the betrayers and Judas. Satan is portrayed as a giant demon, frozen mid-breast in ice at the center of Hell.  In his three mouths, he chews on Judas Iscariot, Marcus Junius Brutus, and Gaius Cassius – three traitors.   Such a fate for those who betray! 

Perhaps all of us who consider betraying a friend or family member – or anyone for that matter – including those who betray our country and its citizens, should think twice.   Whether politicians, public officials, or ever-day people, all should fear Satan’s teeth and bite.   The imagery is fearsome.

Today we think of and carry palm branches.   We welcome Jesus into the city where he soon will be crucified.   It’s a reminder to us that we must never betray innocent blood, especially the blood of those we have welcomed into our family or circle of friends.  If we betray, we’ll find ourselves in another circle with a not-so-friendly masticator.

Deacon David Pierce