Gospel: Mark 14:1—15:47
The Passover and the
Feast of Unleavened Bread were to take place in two days’ time. So the chief
priests and the scribes were seeking a way to arrest him by treachery and put
him to death. They said, “Not during the festival, for fear that there may be a
riot among the people.”
When he was in
Bethany reclining at table in the house of Simon the leper a woman came with an
alabaster jar of perfumed oil costly genuine spikenard. She broke the alabaster
jar and poured it on his head. There were some who were indignant. “Why has
there been this waste of perfumed oil? It could have been sold for more than
three hundred days’ wages and the money given to the poor.” They were
infuriated with her. Jesus said, “Let her alone. Why do you make trouble for
her? She has done a good thing for me. The poor you will always have with you, and whenever you wish you can do good to them,
but you will not always have me. She has
done what she could. She has anticipated anointing my body for burial. Amen, I
say to you, wherever the gospel is proclaimed to the whole world, what she has
done will be told in memory of her.”
Then Judas Iscariot,
one of the Twelve, went off to the chief priests to hand him over to them. When
they heard him they were pleased and promised to pay him money. Then he looked
for an opportunity to hand him over.
On the first day of
the Feast of Unleavened Bread, when they
sacrificed the Passover lamb, his
disciples said to him, “Where do you want us to go and prepare for you to eat
the Passover?” He sent two of his disciples and said to them, Go into the city and a man will meet you, carrying
a jar of water. Follow him. Wherever he enters, say to the master of the house,
‘The Teacher says, “Where is my guest room where I may eat the Passover with my
disciples?” Then he will show you a large upper room furnished and ready. Make
the preparations for us there.” The disciples then went off, entered the city, and found it just as he had told them; and they prepared the Passover.
When it was evening,
he came with the Twelve. And as they reclined at table and were eating, Jesus
said, “Amen, I say to you, one of you will betray me, one who is eating with
me.” They began to be distressed and to say to him, one by one, “Surely it is
not I?” He said to them, “One of the Twelve, the one who dips with me into the
dish. For the Son of Man indeed goes, as it is written of him, but woe to that
man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed. It would be better for that man if he
had never been born.”
While they were
eating, he took bread, said the blessing, broke it, and gave it to them, and
said, “Take it; this is my body.” Then he took a cup, gave thanks, and gave it
to them, and they all drank from it. He said to them, “This is my blood of the
covenant, which will be shed for many.
Amen, I say to you, I
shall not drink again the fruit of the vine until the day when I drink it new
in the kingdom of God.” Then, after singing a hymn, they went out to the Mount
of Olives.
Then Jesus said to
them, “All of you will have your faith shaken, for it is written: I will strike
the shepherd, and the sheep will be dispersed. But after I have been raised up,
I shall go before you to Galilee.”Peter said to him, “Even though all should
have their faith shaken, mine will not be.” Then Jesus said to him, “Amen, I
say to you, this very night before the cock crows twice you will deny me three
times.” But he vehemently replied, “Even though I should have to die with you,
I will not deny
you.” And they all spoke similarly. Then they came to a place named Gethsemane,
and he said to his disciples, “Sit here
while I pray.” He took with him Peter, James, and John, and began to be
troubled and distressed. Then he said to them, “My soul is sorrowful even to
death. Remain here and keep watch.” He advanced a little and fell to the ground
and prayed that if it were possible the hour might pass by him; he said, “Abba,
Father, all things are possible to you. Take this cup away from me, but not
what I will but what you will. When he returned he found them asleep. He said
to Peter, “Simon, are you asleep? Could you not keep watch for one hour? Watch
and pray that you may not undergo the test. The spirit is willing but the flesh
is weak.” Withdrawing again, he prayed, saying the same thing. Then he returned
once more and found them asleep, for they could not keep their eyes open and did
not know what to answer him. He returned a third time and said to them, “Are
you still sleeping and taking your rest? It is enough. The hour has come. Behold,
the Son of Man is to be handed over to sinners. Get up, let us go. See, my
betrayer is at hand.”
Then, while he was
still speaking, Judas, one of the Twelve, arrived, accompanied by a crowd with
swords and clubs who had come from the chief priests, the scribes, and the
elders. His betrayer had arranged a signal with them, saying, “The man I shall
kiss is the one; arrest him and lead him away securely.” He came and
immediately went over to him and said, “Rabbi.” And he kissed him. At this they
laid hands on him and arrested him. One of the bystanders drew his sword, struck
the high priest’s servant, and cut off his ear. Jesus said to them in reply, “Have
you come out as against a robber, with swords and clubs, to seize me? Day after
day I was with you teaching in the temple area, yet you did not arrest me; but
that the Scriptures may be fulfilled.” And they all left him and fled. Now a
young man followed him wearing nothing but a linen cloth about his body. They
seized him, but he left the cloth behind and ran off naked.
They led Jesus away
to the high priest, and all the chief priests and the elders and the scribes
came together. Peter followed him at a distance into the high priest’s
courtyard and was seated with the guards, warming himself at the fire.The chief
priests and the entire Sanhedrin kept trying to obtain testimony against Jesus in
order to put him to death, but they found none. Many gave false witness against
him, but their testimony did not agree. Some took the stand and testified
falsely against him, alleging, “We heard him say, ‘I will destroy this temple
made with hands and within three days I will build another not made with
hands.’” Even so their testimony did not agree.
The high priest rose
before the assembly and questioned Jesus, saying, “Have you no answer? What are
these men testifying against you?” But he was silent and answered nothing. Again
the high priest asked him and said to him, “Are you the Christ, the son of the
Blessed One?” Then Jesus answered, “I am; and ‘you will see the Son of Man seated
at the right hand of the Power and coming with the clouds of heaven.’ At that
the high priest tore his garments and said, “What further need have we of
witnesses? You have heard the blasphemy. What do you think?” They all condemned
him as deserving to die. Some began to spit on him. They blindfolded him and
struck him and said to him, “Prophesy!” And the guards greeted him with blows.
While Peter was
below in the courtyard, one of the high priest’s maids came along. Seeing Peter
warming himself, she looked intently at him and said, “You too were with the
Nazarene, Jesus.” But he denied it saying, “I neither know nor understand what
you are talking about.” So he went out into the outer court. Then the cock
crowed. The maid saw him and began again to say to the bystanders, “This man is
one of them.” Once again he denied it. A little later the bystanders said to
Peter once more, “Surely you are one of them; for you too are a Galilean.” He
began to curse and to swear, “I do not know this man about whom you are
talking.” And immediately a cock crowed a second time. Then Peter remembered
the word that Jesus had said to him, “Before the cock crows twice you will deny
me three times.” He broke down and wept.
As soon as morning
came, the chief priests with the elders and the scribes, that is, the whole
Sanhedrin held a council. They bound Jesus, led him away, and handed him over
to Pilate. ilate questioned him, “Are you the king of the Jews?” He said to him
in reply, “You say so.” The chief priests accused him of many things. Again Pilate
questioned him, “Have you no answer? See how many things they accuse you of.” Jesus
gave him no further answer, so that Pilate was amazed.
Now on the occasion
of the feast he used to release to them one prisoner whom they requested. A man
called Barabbas was then in prison along with the rebels who had committed
murder in a rebellion. The crowd came forward and began to ask him to do for
them as he was accustomed. Pilate answered, “Do you want me to release to you
the king of the Jews?” For he knew that it was out of envy that the chief
priests had handed him over. But the chief priests stirred up the crowd to have
him release Barabbas for them instead. Pilate again said to them in reply, “Then
what do you want me to do with the man you call the king of the Jews?” They
shouted again, “Crucify him.” Pilate said to them, “Why? What evil has he
done?” They only shouted the louder, “Crucify him.” So Pilate, wishing to
satisfy the crowd, released Barabbas to them and, after he had Jesus scourged, handed
him over to be crucified.
The soldiers led him
away inside the palace, that is, the praetorium, and assembled the whole
cohort. They clothed him in purple and, weaving a crown of thorns, placed it on
him. They began to salute him with, AHail, King of the Jews!” and kept striking
his head with a reed and spitting upon him. They knelt before him in homage. And
when they had mocked him, they stripped him of the purple cloak, dressed him in
his own clothes, and led him out to crucify him.
They pressed into
service a passer-by, Simon, a Cyrenian, who was coming in from the country, the
father of Alexander and Rufus, to carry his cross.
They brought him to
the place of Golgotha — which is translated Place of the Skull —They gave him
wine drugged with myrrh, but he did not take it. Then they crucified him and
divided his garments by casting lots for
them to see what each should take. It was nine o’clock in the morning when they
crucified him. The inscription of the charge against him read, “The King of the
Jews.” With him they crucified two revolutionaries, one on his right and one on
his left. Those passing by reviled him, shaking their heads and saying, “Aha!
You who would destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save yourself by
coming down from the cross.” Likewise the chief priests, with the scribes, mocked
him among themselves and said, “He saved others; he cannot save himself. Let
the Christ, the King of Israel, come down now from the cross that we may see
and believe.” Those who were crucified with him also kept abusing him.
At noon darkness
came over the whole land until three in the afternoon. And at three o’clock
Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lemasabachthani?” which is
translated, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” Some of the bystanders
who heard it said, “Look, he is calling Elijah. One of them ran, soaked a
sponge with wine, put it on a reed and gave it to him to drink saying, “Wait,
let us see if Elijah comes to take him down.” Jesus gave a loud cry and
breathed his last.
Here all kneel and
pause for a short time.
The veil of the
sanctuary was torn in two from top to bottom. When the centurion who stood
facing him saw how he breathed his last he said, “Truly this man was the Son of
God!” There were also women looking on from a distance. Among them were Mary
Magdalene, Mary the mother of the
younger James and of Joses, and Salome. These women had followed him when he
was in Galilee and ministered to him. There were also many other women who had
come up with him to Jerusalem.
When it was already
evening, since it was the day of preparation, the day before the sabbath,
Joseph of Arimathea, a distinguished member of the council, who was himself
awaiting the kingdom of God, came and courageously went to Pilate and asked for
the body of Jesus. Pilate was amazed that he was already dead. He summoned the
centurion and asked him if Jesus had already died. And when he learned of it
from the centurion, he gave the body to Joseph. Having bought a linen cloth, he
took him down, wrapped him in the linen cloth, and laid him in a tomb that had
been hewn out of the rock. Then he rolled a stone against the entrance to the
tomb. Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses watched where he was laid.
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Reflection:
Could you fit in
yourself in the gospel of the Lords passion narrative for today? Could
you be one of the crowd who were shouting hosanna as the Lord astride on a
donkey going to Jerusalem?
Could you be Peter
the rock who said to Jesus that he will never deny Him? Yet the same Peter who
professed loyalty to Jesus denied Him not once, not twice but three times!
Could you be the Chief Priest, the scribes and the others who plotted to kill
Jesus? Could you be Judas who betrayed Jesus with thirty pieces of silver?
Could you be one of the crowd who shouted crucify Him , crucify Him?
Could you be Simon
of Cyrene who carried the cross of Jesus, could you be one of the women who
stayed loyal to Jesus until His death? Could you be the centurion who said, “Truly
this man was the Son of God!” after Jesus breathed His last? Could you be Joseph
of Arimathea who took care of the Body of Jesus?
You could be anyone
of these actors in the gospel of the passion of the Lord. You may be one of the
villains or you may be one of those who helped Jesus and who remained loyal to
Him until the end. You could also be the centurion who was enlightened by God
to recognize Jesus as the son of God.
As you begin your Holy
Week, think of your relationship with Jesus. Think of how many times you have
betrayed Him and think of how many times you have helped Him. Your betrayal of
Jesus surely outnumbers the times you have helped Him.
What are you going
to do to this Holy Week to make amends with Jesus who died for you on the
cross? – Marino J. Dasmarinas
