November 25th

Judas

               Then Judas Iscariot, who was one of the twelve, went to the chief priests in order to betray him to them.  When they heard it, they were greatly pleased, and promised to give him money. So he began to look for an opportunity to betray him.

Mark 14:10-11

             This passage falls right on the heels of yesterday’s account.  Something that happened during Jesus’ anointing made Judas snap.  From that moment on, he was on the lookout for an opportunity to betray Jesus.  Maybe he could not stand the sight of all that money wasted.  Maybe he was the loudest critic of the woman and then received the harshest rebuke from Jesus.  Maybe he was tired of all this death talk and thought that it was time for Jesus to put up or shut up.  Maybe he decided that if Jesus was planning on dying, he needed an exit strategy.  Maybe he was just tired of Peter, James and John being the favorites.

            Whatever the reason, Judas decided that betrayal was his best choice and he went out to find a way to make it happen.  History has not been kind to Judas, but I think it is too easy to just characterize him as evil or stupid or greedy.  Judas did what he did because he believed it was in his best interest.  The defining attribute of most of humanity is self-interest.  I don’t know if Judas was simply enamored with the amount of coin that the religious leaders threw at him.  I don’t know if he thought Jesus would reveal his divinity if He just had a little push.  I don’t know what Judas’ reasons were, but I am sure that he had them.

            My son does not shut the front door in my face out of spite; he does it because he knows that if he does not shut the door bugs will get in or the cold will come in or he will get yelled at so he shuts it every time, even when there is someone right behind him.  Self Interest.

            My son did not throw his food on the ground when he was little just to see our heads explode.  He did it to both get attention and because the food we were giving him hurt his gut and made him sick.  Self interest.

            My son does not obsessively read and reread guide books because he cannot remember every word and detail.  He does it because he loves facts and trivia and seeing connections and he is deeply interested.  Self interest.

            Even when people choose something that does not directly benefit them, it is usually because it fits with their moral code and reinforces their ideas about God and how faith works.  Just because gratification was delayed does not mean that self-interest was not at the core of the choice process.

            When your child vexes you, look for what is motivating them.  Look beyond the “terrible twos” or “They are just being monsters.”  What are they after?  What do they feel that they need?  Is it something that they really require or is this something that they get to learn to do without because it is better for them to not have it?

A moment to reflect:

What piece of self-interest is motivating you at the moment?