Seeing the World through His Eyes

Today’s Gospel reading covers betrayal, as in the beginning it shows Judas receiving thirty pieces of silver in exchange for Jesus’s whereabouts. We are then invited by our author Matthew to take a look at the deeply unsettling evening that follows as Jesus tells his followers that one of them will betray him. My first time reading this many years ago as a boy, I remember how much I saw pure evil in Judas for delivering Christ to the chief priests. A swift transaction resulting in the death of a beloved savior. However, as I grow older and now have a chance to analyze this passage with seasoned eyes, I think of Judas’s betrayal as something far more casual.

I believe that Judas was blinded by the humanity in Jesus. I believe that in Judas’s eyes, he saw Jesus as a friend, and not for God that resided within him. Even the other disciples ask Jesus “Surely, it is not I, Lord?”, a statement so absent of any self-assurance that it makes even the strongest of believers seem uncertain of their ability to remain faithful to Jesus. This shows us that betrayal is not a monstrously difficult sin to commit, but rather a seemingly simple alternative that sometimes floods our minds during stressful periods in our lives.

This scholastic year has been incredibly helpful for me in being able to take a deeper look at those around me and see my students and colleagues for so much more than I ever could have imagined. Before having the opportunity to work at Jesuit, I let others give me however much of them they wanted to give me, and my assessments of people were made from that. If people acted out, it was because they wanted to be defined by that. It took lots of time and my judgements are not perfect but being in an environment where we are all encouraged to look deeper, think deeper, and reflect more has given me life changing perspective on humanity. Upon entering a classroom now, I see a room filled with students as well as brothers, sons, friends, extroverts, athletes, and most importantly, Christ himself.

I’ve come to find it imperative that we look at individuals like Judas as ourselves, rather than labeling them as outliers. Judas, like many of us, was tempted into another alternative rather than remaining faithful. I say it can be easy because even Judas’s thirty pieces of silver would be worth between $185-$216 today, a mere utilities payment, as opposed to the small fortune I once imagined it was. I think this passage was meant to relate to us rather than simply highlight an immoral person, because in all of our lives there are Judas tendencies. As we stay home during this stressful period, we must constantly put forth effort to see the world not for what we see it as, but for how our God envisioned it to be in His eyes, not ours.

Author: Patrick O'Malley, Alumni Service Corps