Wednesday, June 09, 2010

Temple Police

Barbara Brown Taylor writes an interesting article in which she points out:
One of the many things [the Good Friday crucifixion of Jesus] story tells us is that Jesus was not brought down by atheism and anarchy. He was brought down by law and order allied with religion, which is always a deadly mix. Beware of those who claim to know the mind of God and who are prepared to use force, if necessary, to make others conform. Beware of those who cannot tell God’s will from their own. Temple police are always a bad sign.
Then, after pointing out that Judas had been Jesus' friend, she tells this story:
I remember being at a retreat once where the leader asked us to think of someone who represented Christ in our lives. When it came time to share our answers, one woman stood up and said, "I had to think hard about that one. I kept thinking, ‘Who is it who told me the truth about myself so clearly that I wanted to kill him for it?"’
I find these two thoughts worth pondering.

1 comment:

Sheri said...

A preacher recently pointed out that Judas had seen Jesus disappear through the midst of a crowd when he needed to escape. Judas saw Jesus calm the storm when it threatened to sink the boat he was sleeping on. I think maybe when Judas betrayed Jesus, he expected to get his money and watch Jesus escape once again. I'm thinking maybe he never expected Jesus to be killed as a result of his betrayal.