Saturday

It's a beautiful day here in north Texas.  Warm sun.  Cool breeze.  Rambling kids.  Greening trees. 

If you followed any of my posts from yesterday, you know the execution of God has consumed my thoughts.  This takes me to a Saturday some 1,990 years back.  What was that Saturday like for Jesus' most intimate followers.

Let's recap.  Less than a week prior, it seemed the whole region would install the Galilean as the foreordained messianic king of Israel, but the week wore on and contention grew between him and the leaders of the nation.  One of the inner circle who had been growing disillusioned turned to those leaders in an act of betrayal of the One who called him by name.  We never get Judas' rationale though film-makers and authors have speculated ever since.

A special seder.  Intimate.  Just the twelve and the Master.  Judas leaves.  Where's he going?  Foot-washings.  Songs.  Vines and branches.  Preparing a place?  It's late.  Pray for me.  Sleep.  Pray for me!  Sleep.  Betrayal.  Clubs.  And then he's gone.  Gone.  Into hiding.

Then the news.  They what?!?  Crucified him.  Despair.  Terror.  All is lost.

Saturday.  Eleven.  They had gotten word that Judas' had hanged himself, that his body had fallen from its perch and ruptured on the rocks below.  A few of the women who followed their Master were with them.

Okay.  What do we do now?  We can't just let the last three years be all for nought.  What are we going to do?  They killed him.  What will they do to us?  I thought something great was going to come about at the hands of the Master.  Do we try and fold his teaching into our lives back home.  But didn't he say he was going to die?  Yeah, but he couldn't have really meant the butchery that took place!  He's DEAD!

Was it a blue-sky day in Jerusalem?  Did the late afternoon sun give the temple constructed by the long-dead Herod a more golden hue that it normally had?  Were they making plans to head back to Galilee?  Were they figuring out how to get out of Jerusalem before anyone saw them?  Peter had been spooked by a little girl.  No doubt they huddled in that room scared to death.  Like sheep without a shepherd and wolves howling in the trees all around them.

Maybe we can get out of here tomorrow.  The women want to go take care of the Master's body.  Okay, but after that, let's put this city far behind us.  Maybe tomorrow things will quiet down.  Maybe tomorrow things can start to get back to normal.

Maybe not.