Betrayal
Have you ever been betrayed?
It is an interesting word, betrayal. It implies closeness, confidence, loyalty, friendship. Can one betray his country without having loved it? Can I betray someone's confidence if they didn't trust me in the first place?
It may be that without trust and love, there can be no betrayal, but I wonder.
He answered, "The one who has dipped his hand into the bowl with me will betray me. The Son of Man goes as it is written of him, but woe to that one by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been better for that one not to have been born." Judas, who betrayed him, said, "Surely not I, Rabbi?" He replied, "You have said so." Matthew 26:23-25
In today's reading, Jesus and Judas have a conversation that is rich with meaning. Judas is accused of betraying Jesus, before the plan is carried out.
In the repartee, Judas betrays himself, and in that case, we are using another meaning of the word, "to unintentionally reveal or be evidence of something."
By asking, Judas reveals his hand and Jesus calls him on it.
There has been a great deal of speculation on what may have been taking place between Judas and Jesus. By acknowledging that Jesus knew what Judas was about to do, some say he had sanctioned it, that it was not a betrayal but a means of carrying out Jesus' wishes.
Others say that Judas had no idea the arrest would lead to Jesus' death. He was merely trying to bring the matter to a head.
Whatever the case, if I would be accused of being a Judas, I would know that to mean I had betrayed someone.
In order for someone to feel betrayed, that person has to incur a loss. Something I believed I had is now missing, and that has come about because you did something to take it away.
That is hurtful. My ego is hurt or my heart is broken. Sometimes it is hard to tell the difference. I can feel betrayed if I thought I had the upper hand and you proved me wrong.
The two meanings of this odd word, one intentional and one unintentional, give us a strange set of possibilities when it comes to understanding what constitutes betrayal.
I can accidentally betray my thoughts and wishes, revealing a truth I wanted to keep secret - betrayal of self.
Or I can lead you to believe one thing about our relationship and them do something to hurt you - betrayal of friendship.
Or I can release information to the public that should be kept secret - betrayal of confidence.
But I may feel betrayed when none of these things happens. It may just be that my pride and self-worth have been bruised.
In any case, we may all agree that it is a bad thing. But one person's feeling of betrayal may be another's feeling of liberation from tyranny or abuse.
When it comes to Jesus and Judas, I find it hard to believe the teacher was overtly abusive of his followers. It doesn't fit the character and image we have of Jesus, although it may fit the image the Romans had of him.
To them, he was seditious, betraying the Emperor with his talk of his own kingdom.
So, what is betrayal? Can we be guilty of it if we never intended to harm another or undermine their authority?
Betrayal is one of those things we never claim for ourselves. It is what someone else accuses us of, and that accusation comes from a place of pain.
He replied, "You have said so."
More to come...
Image Copyright: ene / 123RF Stock Photo