Conversations on the way to the Cross 4: The Anointing

Judas goes to the High Priest

"My name's Judas Iscariot, my lord. Zach.. Zach here said you might... you might be interested in some, um, some information about Jesus. Jesus of Nazareth."

"Jesus of Nazareth! Yes, indeed! And tell me, young man, what kind of information might you have?"

"Well, I'm... I was one of his friends. His disciples. The Twelve, he called us. I know where he's staying, what he's doing. He trusts us. Me. It would be easy."

"He trusts you. I see. And why, Mr Judas Iscariot, should I trust you? What makes a trusted disciple of Jesus come running like a rat to his enemies?"

"He... I told him! He could have had this city in the palm of his hand, and he knew it! I saw his eyes light up, and I knew. And then there was that dumb donkey, and then tonight... tonight there was that woman... no better than a common whore..."

"Your revered teacher has been consorting with prostitutes? I didn't think he was that type."

"No!! Yes! Well, no, not consorting with, not like that, but she poured perfume on him! Nard! Pure nard, can you imagine? Three hundred denarii down the drain, and oh yes, she can afford it, but the rest of us have been living hand to mouth these three years, giving up everything to follow Jesus, believing.. trusting him when he says he's going to bring in a kingdom, and what does he do?"

"I take it he didn't ask for a receipt."

"A what? No. No, he sat there, expensive perfume dripping down his beard, and said he'd been anointed for his burial. His burial. He's given up. He was the only person in this whole damn world... the only one... he could have changed everything, and now... now he's given up. I should never even have hoped in the first place."

"Well, Mr Iscariot, there's no use crying about it. All our idols fall in the end. And you've earned yourself a little pocket money in coming to us, anyway. Not quite three hundred denarii, but I think we can run to... hmm, thirty pieces of silver. There you go.

"Now, dry your eyes and let's talk details. I think you will be very useful to us..."

Mark 14: 3-11

Other Conversations from the Cross
1: The Donkey
2: The Commotion
3: The Authority

5: The Betrayal
6: The Burial
7: The Precaution
8: The Resurrection

Comments

Erewash Valley Trail: Ilkeston

You could spend a lot of time following old canals and railways in the Erewash Valley. This walk included parts of the Erewash Canal, the Nottingham Canal, the Nutbrook Canal, and the Stanton branch line, and I could have continued further along any one of those, if I'd had the time. I started in Kirk Hallam, which is mostly a post-war housing estate with a distinctive outline on the map: the main road to Ilkeston through the middle, and a loop road encircling the village. It looks like the London Underground logo. I parked at the lake at the top of the loop. There was a sculpture commemorating the nearby Stanton Ironworks - the ground remembers the roar of the blast read the inscription around the base - and the remains of a lock on the Nutbrook Canal. Heading towards Ilkeston, I crossed a former golf course, now a nature reserve called Pewit Coronation Meadows, passed a large sports centre, and was soon in the town centre. There was a general impression of red-brickiness, with l...

Ten books that shaped my life

Ten books that shaped my life in some way. Now that wasn't a problem. I scanned the bookshelves and picked out nine favourites without the slightest difficulty (the tenth took a little longer). The problem was that, on the Facebook challenge, I wasn't supposed to explain why . Nope. Having picked out my ten, I couldn't let them go without saying why they were special to me. These books are more than a collection of words by an author. They are particular editions of those words - taped-up, egg-stained, dust-jacketless and battered - which have come into my life, been carried around to different homes, and become part of who I am. How to Be a Domestic Goddess Well, every woman needs an instruction manual, doesn't she? Nigella's recipes mean lazy Saturday mornings eating pancakes, comforting crumbles on a rainy night, Christmas cakes, savoury onion pies and mounds of bread dough. If you avoid the occasional extravagance (20 mini Bundt tins...

Unto us a son is given...

Did I mention something about life getting back to normal in October? Oh yes, I was just finishing work and looking forward to at least two weeks off to organise the house, stock up the freezer and buy baby stuff. Then little Toby threw a spanner in the works by turning up five weeks early! Which would put his birthday in... let's see... October. So much for normal! For those who would like the gory details, here goes. If you are a mother who had a long and protracted labour, I advise you to skip the next bit - or if you don't, please don't start sending me hate mail. You have been warned. You see, we'd been to all the childbirth classes (yes, just about managed to finish them) and learned all about the different stages of labour, and how many hours each lasted. We learned some relaxation techniques and various things Graham could do to help coach me through long periods of contractions. And then we turned out not to need any of them, because the entire thing...

Martha's Marvellous Munchies

Search This Blog