The Judas controversy
My friend Hugh (”Do you know how hard it is to be on Weight Watchers during Passover?”) just pointed out something I’d never thought of before.
With all this Gospel of Judas controversy swirling around out there, here’s a piece to consider: Maybe during the Last Supper, when Jesus says, “One of you will betray me,” and that person turns out to be Judas–maybe instead of it being a prophecy, it was a command. “One of you–and I pick Judas.” Which is what this new text is saying, too. Is the Gospel of Judas real? I have no idea. But it’s certainly interesting to think about.
There’s also this issue the kids and I talked about in Sunday school last week: Did Jesus have to die? Was there ever any way he was going to live to a ripe old age and die in his sleep? He came here for one reason, and everyone played their part, including Judas, the Sanhedrin, the Romans, the crowds, and Pontius Pilate. So why do we condemn any of them?
That led to some lively discussion among the fourth-graders. I love to hear how these kids analyze the Big Stuff: God, heaven, faith, free will. You’d be surprised how much wisdom can come out of the mind of a 9-year-old. Maybe we tend to drain some of the sense out of ourselves the older we get. Maybe that’s what Jesus meant when he said, “Unless you become as little children, you shall never enter the kingdom of heaven.
That’s it. Good Friday sermon over.
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