Sermon; Maundy Thursday 2018

The Triduum begins tonight. These are the three days from tonight through the Easter Vigil. It is one, sequential, and holistic liturgical event. And to rightly understand Easter, to rightly appreciate Easter, we must travel and participate in the events of these three days and in the totality of this liturgy.

One of the things we need to remember about this night is that the one who betrayed Jesus was no outsider. Judas Iscariot was one of the twelve chosen disciples to be part of Jesus' inner circle. Judas traveled with Jesus and learned from him. He was in the boat when Jesus calmed the storm. He went out with another disciple to preach, teach, and heal. Jesus washed his feet, and he was with them all as they ate the Passover meal.

We need to remember that Judas Iscariot to Jesus was not Snidely Whiplash to Dudley Do-right. Far from being the obvious bad guy that we can identify from the beginning, Judas was one of us.

This betrayal stuff, though, isn't always crystal clear. I have a feeling that we've all been on both sides of that act. I'd also be willing to bet that we only recognize one side.

I can recall one specific time in my life when I felt betrayed. I was trying to come up with a creative solution to a difficult problem and thought I had buy-in from all parties. That is, until one side realized that the suggested solution meant doing something no one had ever tried before; until they realized that trying the new way meant giving up their old way. The turnabout and abandonment was immediate. Years of building relationships were gone in one instant.

But the question hangs over me: Who betrayed whom? Did they betray me, or did I betray them? The answer to that question probably depends on who you ask.

I am not suggesting that Jesus betrayed his disciples. For one thing, betrayal is a sinful act based in selfishness. So even though we proclaim Jesus was fully human, we also avow that he was without sin. If anything, Jesus was guilty of not living up to the expectations his disciples had for him. But that's not a Jesus problem, that's our problem; especially since he was busy living up to God's expectations, not ours.

And really, isn't that the essence of betrayal – someone decides that someone else isn't living up to, or meeting, their expectations? The newly forming United States was not meeting personal expectations, so Benedict Arnold switched sides and betrayed the U.S. The story of The Falcon and the Snowman tells of espionage that began with one character becoming disillusioned with the U.S. Spouses betray each other because expectations are not being met. Judas betrays Jesus for the same reasons. We don't start out bad, but circumstances can push us that direction.

Betrayal is an act that we have probably all experienced. Sometimes we have been betrayed. And if we are honest with ourselves, sometimes we have been the betrayer. Sometimes that is an obvious fit. Sometimes, though, we don't see it as betrayal but as a necessary act we were forced into; maybe even rationalizing that it is to stop something worse from happening, as Judas did.

Ultimately these actions stem from our own selfish desires. Tonight we come face to face with those actions and desires. Is the Church living up to our expectations? Is the Church meeting our needs? Does God live up to and meet our expectations and needs? Have we tried to live up to the expectations and needs of God and Church? Or do we think this is a one-way street that points only to us?

Tonight Judas leaves to go his own way. Tonight the disappointment at not having Jesus meet his expectations becomes too great and he decides to do something about it. Tonight is symbolic of us going our own way as well. Tonight is symbolic of our unmet expectations overwhelming us. Tonight we choose another path and remove Jesus from our lives, as represented by the stripping of the altar.

To co-opt a phrase from a song, tonight we shout out, “Who betrayed Jesus?” When after all, it was you and me.

In the liturgical cycle of the Triduum, this is the first act. And the actions of tonight will have terrible consequences.

Amen.