When we read the events leading up to Jesus arrest it is clear that "the chief priests and the scribes... were seeking a way to destroy him, for they feared him." We tend to compartmentalize our thinking; seeking "good guys" and "bad guys." Clearly the religious leaders were the bad guys, wanting to eliminate Jesus.
They represented tradition, hundreds of years of tradition. Jesus was challenging some of that tradition. He wanted to clean house even as he drove the money changers out of the Temple.
None of us like to have tradition challenged. Tradition tells us who we are, where we fit, and how to behave. From time to time tradition has to be challenged: women's rights, civil rights, children's rights and so on. And there are always those who want to eliminate the challenger. They are not bad, they are scared. They lose their roadmap and don't know how to be.
This happens to all of us. And as we go through these painful changes, we need to hold onto "Father, forgive them," and "Lo, I am with you always" even as we step into the future. |