So Judas took the morsel and left at once. And it was night.
The Gospel narratives during the first three days of Holy Week set the scene for the unfolding of the great mission in cross and resurrection to unfold through Jesus the Christ.
Once again, the Church’s liturgy turns to the Gospel of John that incisively not only tells the story of these days but more importantly, opens up their meaning in the unfolding of salvation’s history.
We are invited today into the final meal that the Lord will share with his closest companions. Scholars tell us that this meal was most probably the great Passover celebration that stands at the heart of the Jewish liturgical year.
The enigmatic Judas is introduced into the Passion narrative this day. With divine foreknowledge, the Lord was aware already of the duplicity of his heart. The author of John’s gospel knows the power of symbol, no wonder then he ends this narrative with one of the shortest sentences in scripture: And it was night. Judas departs from the light of Jesus’s presence into the darkness to eventually betray the son of man with the powerful symbol of affection and love, a kiss. And it was night.
With the approaching three sacred days upon which pivot our entire liturgical year, the Sacred Triduum, we are invited into the light and grace of these days – no matter what darkness we might personally be wrestling with. For the faithful Christian, night will always give way to the bright promise of immortality.