Category
📚
LearningTranscript
00:00The kiss of Judas.
00:05Following this infamous act of betrayal,
00:09Jesus will be tried and crucified.
00:17But 2,000 years, Judas, a disciple who walked with Jesus,
00:23has been the most reviled man in all of Christendom.
00:26When Jesus announces publicly that Judas,
00:32and he points to Judas by giving him the morsel of bread,
00:34is the one that will betray him and then tells him to go do it,
00:38why doesn't everyone jump up and grab him?
00:40Why don't people try to stop him?
00:45Who was this man, Judas Iscariot?
00:49A traitor? A thief? The devil incarnate?
00:53Might one of the most heinous acts in the Bible
00:56not have been a betrayal after all?
01:03Was Jesus betrayed by one of his disciples,
01:07and was that disciple Judas?
01:09I answer both questions with an unequivocal no.
01:15Did Jesus ask Judas to hand him over for trial
01:18so that scripture could be fulfilled?
01:22Was Judas chosen for this agonizing task
01:25because he was Jesus' most trusted disciple?
01:29Or perhaps even his own brother?
01:34These are but a few of the mysteries of the Bible.
01:38We're truth to this gang of translators
01:55that are the Vijay Tuh rasa band
01:56to the people of the English
01:57and through this book,
01:59I missed their aunts
01:59if Espero has made a voice
02:01as well as deserve Ð’Ñ‹
02:03orathendom
02:04asgive
02:04or whatever
02:05necessary
02:37Only three short years before the infamous kiss that will lead to his crucifixion, Jesus begins his public ministry. One at a time he calls twelve men to be his disciples, to leave home, family and possessions and follow him.
03:07On the mountaintops and shores of Galilee, Jesus heals the sick and proclaims the impending kingdom of God.
03:24The disciples are at his side.
03:36This roving band of the faithful lead a communal life based on mutual trust and devotion to their master.
03:45Judas is one of them.
03:50The names of the apostles are these.
03:58First, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew, his brother, James, the son of Alphaeus, Thaddeus, Simon the Canaanian, and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him.
04:13Matthew 10, 2.
04:25Who is Judas Iscariot?
04:27Why has this enigmatic figure commanded such an unrelenting grip on Western culture for 20 centuries?
04:34Perhaps the fascination lies in one unanswered question.
04:47Why did Judas betray his beloved teacher?
04:51Generations of scholars have searched for Judas' motives in biographical clues.
05:06Where was he born?
05:08Who were his family?
05:11What were his political associations before he came to follow Jesus?
05:17Did he even exist?
05:20Judas certainly was a historical figure.
05:23He was a slime ball in some ways.
05:26The guy was dishonest.
05:28He was a thief.
05:29And we can all picture a Judas that we know in one way or another.
05:34So if you want to pick some character who is simply not believable, maybe pick Jesus or pick another of the disciples.
05:42But Judas truly was a real historical figure and he's believable.
05:50The scholarly consensus is that Judas Iscariot was indeed a person of flesh and blood.
05:59A first century Jew who was a disciple of Jesus of Nazareth.
06:04Beyond these biographical fragments, all else remains obscure about him.
06:15One of the most puzzling mysteries is that of his very name, Judas Iscariot.
06:21A name that is found nowhere else in the Bible.
06:26There are hundreds of mysteries behind the name Iscariot.
06:29Scholarship has never been able to figure out what it is.
06:32Is it some kind of a family name?
06:35Is it some kind of a place name?
06:37Is it describing his appearance like a nickname?
06:40Is it describing his action?
06:42Is it some kind of a place name?
06:45I think the correct interpretation of the word Iscariot is it means zealot.
06:53There is a Latin name which for one particular branch of the zealots was Sicarius.
06:59Sicarius means a dagger man.
07:01The zealots were Jewish guerilla fighters intent on overthrowing oppressive Roman rule through armed struggle.
07:13Was Judas one of them?
07:15Even if people belonging to Jesus' band adopted his pacifist views, they might have had previously belonged to some violent zealot group.
07:31And I think that is the case with Judas.
07:34He joined Jesus' band, but he was still known by his background as Judas Iscariot, Judas the Dagonal.
07:41Was Judas a zealot who put down his weapons to follow Jesus?
07:51Historians have no definitive answer to the question.
07:59Perhaps the only point of agreement among scholars is the place of Judas' birth.
08:07Like Jesus, he was born in Judea.
08:12Some believe that herein lies a clue to one of the single greatest mysteries in the life and death of Jesus.
08:21Might Jesus and Judas have been more than teacher and disciple?
08:26Could they have been related?
08:28We know for a fact that Jesus had a brother called Judas, because in the list which is given in Matthew of Jesus' brothers, one of them is Judas.
08:42The first two lists which are given of the twelve disciples, there's only one Judas mentioned, and that's Judas Iscariot.
08:53It's only in the later lists that we get a second Judas coming in.
08:56We ended up with two Judas's, the evil one, Judas Iscariot, and the good one who was Judas, the brother of Jesus.
09:05They're really, in my view, the same person.
09:07So that makes them one Judas who was the brother of Jesus.
09:11We know very clearly who is important by name in the circle around Jesus.
09:18If Judas Iscariot had some other role in that group, as a special disciple, as his brother, then we would be told that.
09:28And we are not told that.
09:29Whether or not they were related, the Gospels indicate that once Judas became a disciple, he was no less faithful nor loyal than any of the other followers of Jesus.
09:47In fact, Judas was held in such high esteem by Jesus and his fellow disciples, that he was entrusted with the keeping of their meager communal funds.
10:05Is it possible that the seeds of betrayal were planted when Judas was made keeper of the purse?
10:11For centuries, the answer has been an unequivocal yes.
10:24According to the popular version of the Judas story, interpreted from the four Gospels of the New Testament, the motive for Judas' betrayal was greed.
10:34We know from scriptures that Judas is a thief, and Judas probably wanted more money than he could steal from the purse of the apostles, and that is resulting in the payment of 30 pieces of silver.
10:49In this most well-known version of the story, Judas approaches the high priests in Jerusalem, and offers to betray his master for 30 pieces of silver.
11:05Then, at the conclusion of the Last Supper, he leads an arresting party to the Garden of Gethsemane.
11:24There, in the dark of night, Judas identifies Jesus by kissing him.
11:29Today, this traditional version of the Judas story is the subject of passionate debate.
11:39One area of dispute is the apparent contradiction between the various Gospels on the crucial issue of Judas' motivation for betraying Jesus.
11:48There is nothing in Mark's Gospel about Judas being the keeper of the purse, stealing from it.
11:55That is found only in John's Gospel, which is probably using Mark as a source here.
12:01So John has added that in.
12:03And what he's doing is answering the question that in the first century, as in the 20th century, we all want to know the answer.
12:09Why did Judas do it?
12:11John's answer is because he was a thief, stole money, and wanted more, either to replenish what he had stolen, or simply to get more.
12:20But that's John.
12:21It's not Mark, and it's not history.
12:26Some Biblical scholars suggest that because there are apparent contradictions, either one account or another is simply not true, or they were all invented.
12:36I don't think that's the case at all.
12:38I think we can harmonize the account of Judas from the four Gospels, and really come up with a believable and understandable story.
12:54Why did Jesus call the man who would ultimately betray him to be his disciple?
12:59The Gospels are silent on this point, but they do clearly tell us that day after day, for three years, Judas walked with Jesus in the Galilee.
13:17But in the Hebrew month of Nisan, in the year 30 of the Common Era, the story takes a fateful turn.
13:24It is the time of the Passover celebration.
13:31When we return, the disciples make the annual Passover pilgrimage to Jerusalem.
13:39Within one week of their arrival in the Holy City, both Jesus and Judas will meet their fates.
13:47One man will lose his life.
13:50The other will lose his soul.
13:54Jerusalem.
14:20The Holy City of the Jews.
14:24the year is 30 of the common era it is the time of the Hebrew celebration of
14:33Passover as pilgrims throng into the city for the annual temple rites there
14:42is no indication that this year will be unusual
14:47after ninety years under the Roman rule the Israelites have grown accustomed to
14:55being under the heavy yoke of Imperial Rome
15:01yet any appearance of calm is merely an illusion
15:09Roman and Jewish authorities grow increasingly tense with each passing hour
15:17Passover was almost always the most volatile day of the year in the Jewish homeland they were
15:24celebrating their deliverance from Egyptian bondage from Imperial Egyptian power huge numbers of people
15:32in a crowded space celebrating independence from one empire when another empire breathed down their
15:38necks all of that spelt danger
15:41it is into this uneasy atmosphere that Jesus arrives in Jerusalem
15:49according to the ancient biblical prophecies the Messiah would enter Jerusalem at the head of massive
15:59armies after driving Israel's enemies from the promised land he would usher in a new age of
16:08national glory seated on the throne of King David himself
16:17when Jesus declared himself to be the Messiah and Messiah in Jewish term doesn't mean God or it doesn't
16:26it's not a divine title it's a human title and it means King of the Jews anyone in this period of Roman rule
16:32who said I am the king of the Jews was automatically declaring war and rebellion against Rome
16:39I do not mean that Jesus was himself a zealot because he had a different outlook with Jesus which was that God would bring about this miraculous liberation from Roman rule
16:51yet Jesus entrance into Jerusalem does not spark an armed uprising
17:01indeed the Romans seem at first not to even feel threatened a fact that Judas and the other disciples could not have failed to notice
17:11if Judas was expecting a warrior Messiah in Jesus could he have felt betrayed by Jesus peaceful entry into Jerusalem
17:23what Judas expected from Jesus I think was no different than what other disciples all of them expected from Jesus
17:32they believed that he was the Messiah and they believed that he was the Messiah and they expected him to act as the Messiah
17:39as time went on it became increasingly problematic for them because Jesus wasn't taking on kingship
17:48he was talking love your enemies and share your goods he was saying all kinds of nice things but he wasn't affecting at all the Roman control over their country
18:01although the Romans seem initially unconcerned about Jesus
18:07the high priests of the temple in Jerusalem are keenly aware of his presence
18:12for a week each day Jesus appears at the temple the sacred domain of the high priests
18:22there Judas and the other disciples listen as their teacher preaches peacefully to enthralled crowds
18:33then suddenly one day Jesus displays an uncharacteristically violent side
18:44and he overturned the tables of the money changes and the seats of those who sold pigeons and he taught and said to them is it not written my house shall be called a house of prayer for all the nations
19:12Mark 11 15
19:20is Judas perhaps offended by what he perceives to be an insult against the temple
19:25considered by the Jews to be the most holy spot on earth
19:29can it merely be a coincidence that Judas will hand Jesus over to the authorities that very night
19:35some scholars have suggested that Jesus action in the temple may have only confirmed a terrible doubt that had already taken hold of Judas
19:45in the Galilee in the final weeks before the pilgrimage to Jerusalem
19:49Jesus had begun to proclaim a divine identity
19:53Jesus had also begun to predict his own imminent death and resurrection
19:58proclamations that may have seemed blasphemous at the time
20:02there were people in the first century who looked at Jesus and said he is criminal and he should be crucified
20:10and they were not evil people
20:12they thought that Jesus was a threat to public order
20:16there were people who looked at Jesus in the first century and said this man is divine and should be followed
20:22that ambiguity has to be retained from the first century into the 20th century
20:28and Judas in a way partakes of that ambiguity
20:32did Judas perhaps become convinced that Jesus was a false prophet?
20:38one who was dangerously leading others astray from the laws of Moses
20:44I am now inclined to at least open up the possibility that Judas may have been more a whistleblower
20:54by whistleblower using a modern term
20:57maybe Judas came to the decision that Jesus whom he knew very well was dangerous
21:03dangerous to the Jewish people
21:05in today's society we see a whistleblower as the great hero
21:11and here Judas would be this whistleblower to report Jesus
21:16to report Jesus on what?
21:18that Jesus healed the sick and made the blind to see?
21:24in the aftermath of the overturning of the moneychangers tables
21:28there is confusion and chaos in the crowded temple precinct
21:34as the Roman soldiers search for the perpetrator of the openly seditious act
21:39Jesus and his disciples disappear through the crowds avoiding arrest
21:46the day is quickly drawing to an end
21:49before sundown the disciples must find a hiding place
21:53where they can celebrate the Passover
21:56just in time a follower of Jesus provides a room safe from the pursuing authorities
22:04when we return
22:08Jesus will share one last meal with his beloved companions
22:13sitting next to him and sharing his food
22:17will be his disciple Judas Iscariot
22:21the one who will betray him
22:23and deliver him to his terrible fate
22:26we now return to Mysteries of the Bible
22:33we now return to Mysteries of the Bible
22:35the sun sets over Jerusalem as Jesus begins to partake of the Passover meal
22:50the sun sets over Jerusalem as Jesus begins to partake of the Passover meal
23:02a palpable sadness pervades the room
23:12next to Jesus sits Judas close enough to share a bowl of food
23:19as he breaks bread and passes around the communal cup of wine
23:30Jesus offers a teaching veiled in symbolism
23:34Jesus took bread and blessed and broke it
23:49and gave it to the disciples
23:51and said take eat this is my body
23:55and he took a cup
23:59and when he had given thanks
24:01he gave it to them saying
24:03drink of it all of you
24:05for this is my blood
24:07Matthew 26 26
24:13it is with these words that Jesus informs his disciples
24:20of his imminent death and resurrection
24:23and administers to them the first holy sacrament
24:27for two thousand years Christian theologians have anguished
24:34over how Judas could have taken the sacrament
24:36and then betrayed the one believed to be the son of God
24:49the Gospel of Luke attempts to resolve the mystery
24:51by saying that the devil took possession of Judas
24:54as he received the holy sacrament
24:57the Bible speaks of all sin coming from the world
25:05the flesh and the devil
25:07and so I think we can see Satan having a part
25:11in Judas turning Jesus over to the authorities
25:15but I don't think we should see this as Satan himself
25:18or evil having necessarily entered Judas in a unique way
25:23I think all of us face this kind of evil
25:26we all face temptations from the evil one
25:33Judas and the other disciples are still recoiling
25:36from Jesus' self-imposed death sentence
25:38when he surprises them further by saying that one of them
25:41will be the instrument of his terrible fate
25:50One by one the incredulous disciples ask which one of them
25:54will betray him
26:01Jesus answered
26:04it is he to whom I shall give this morsel when I have dipped it
26:09so when he had dipped the morsel he gave it to Judas
26:15Jesus said to him what you are going to do, do quickly
26:24John 13 26
26:30perhaps no words ever spoken have been more steeped in mystery
26:35does Jesus not only foresee the time and circumstances of his death
26:40but actually see the face of the man who will betray him
26:44when Jesus announces publicly that Judas
26:50and he points to Judas by giving him the morsel of bread
26:52is the one that will betray him and then tells him to go do it
26:56why doesn't everyone jump up and grab him?
26:59why don't people try to stop him?
27:01John is not writing history
27:03John is writing theology
27:05he is saying as clearly as he can
27:08Jesus is in control
27:10not Judas
27:11Judas
27:15Judas was foreordained if you will
27:18for this role as betrayer
27:20as the one who would turn Jesus over to the authorities
27:23but that doesn't let Judas off the hook at all
27:26Judas had free will
27:27and this is one of the great mysteries
27:29the great paradoxes of scripture
27:31how God can be sovereign on the one hand
27:33and how there can be human free will on the other
27:37and Judas really illustrates this paradox
27:40yet what of the will of Jesus on this dark night?
27:53is he passively accepting his fate?
27:56or is he orchestrating his own betrayal?
27:59is it possible that Jesus actually asked Judas
28:03to hand him over to the authorities
28:05so that scripture could be fulfilled?
28:09or was it simply to allow him to speak directly
28:11to the high priests about his beliefs?
28:16one of the weaknesses of the traditional theory
28:19of betrayal
28:20is this openness that is evident in the fact that
28:26Judas leaves
28:27and Jesus and he talk about his leaving
28:30and there's very open discussion about the handing over
28:33there's nothing sneaky here
28:34you know it's all an open deed
28:36and Judas goes out to do what Jesus asked him to do
28:42some people have suggested that Judas may have had this plan
28:46with Jesus all along
28:48and that they had behind the scenes
28:51figured out how Judas would turn Jesus over to the authorities
28:55to the authorities
28:56the scripture doesn't say anything like that at all
28:59so Jesus simply excuses him
29:02if you will
29:03sends him out to do it
29:04because he knows he's going to do it anyway
29:06we will never know what passed between Jesus and Judas that night
29:23one thing is clear
29:34Jesus understood the eternal burden
29:37that was about to be placed on Judas' shoulders
29:40woe to that man by whom the son of man is betrayed
29:45woe to that man by whom the son of man is betrayed
29:49it would have been better for that man
29:51if he had not been born
29:54Matthew 26 24
29:57Judas approaches the palace of the high priests
30:10then Judas Iscariot
30:20who was one of the twelve
30:22went to the chief priests
30:24in order to betray him to them
30:27and when they heard it
30:29they were glad
30:31and promised to give him money
30:33this is the moment of controversy
30:44that has swirled around Judas for 2,000 years
30:48did he truly betray Jesus
30:52merely for 30 pieces of silver
30:55no more than the meager son paid to a laborer
30:58for one month's work
31:00it's not actually a very convincing motivation
31:04because 30 pieces of silver isn't all that much money
31:07and one wonders
31:09why someone who has been an enthusiastic supporter of Jesus
31:14should be tempted by such a relatively paltry sum
31:23the motives of everyone involved
31:25on the fateful night of the Last Supper
31:27remain shrouded in mystery
31:29yet now events take on new momentum
31:36when we return
31:40Judas will lead an arresting party
31:42to the garden of Gethsemane
31:44there the light of soldiers' torches
31:47will illuminate the kiss
31:48he will give to his master
31:50the ultimate act
31:52of biblical betrayal
31:54it is the dark of night
32:09when Jesus walks in the moonlit God's light
32:11garden of Gethsemane
32:12it is the dark of night
32:21when Jesus walks in the moonlit garden of Gethsemane
32:24with a heavy heart he asks his disciples to stand watch over him
32:28so that he may pray
32:38Jesus breaks off from prayer
32:43to find that his disciples had been unable to stay awake to guard him
32:54but now
32:57it is too late
33:01Judas, Jesus' disciple
33:03perhaps even his very own brother
33:05has arrived in the garden
33:07leading a contingent of soldiers
33:09now the betrayer had given them a sign saying
33:16the one I shall kiss is the man
33:20seize him
33:22and he came up to Jesus at once and said
33:24hail master
33:26and he kissed him
33:28Matthew 26, 48
33:36Judas is coming into the garden
33:38leading the authorities
33:39and he meets Jesus
33:41and he greets him affectionately with a kiss
33:43I think about that
33:45and I wonder
33:46could I have betrayed Jesus
33:48but if I could have
33:49could I have betrayed him with a kiss
33:51in this affectionate warm greeting
33:54betraying the very son of God
33:58now unfortunately of course
34:03because of the role
34:04the twist that has been given to Judas' role
34:06the kiss of Judas today
34:08is always seen
34:09as a kiss of betrayal
34:11I think it's a misrepresentation
34:13of what went on between two people
34:15who were committed to a common task
34:21Jesus is immediately arrested
34:23and led away in shackles
34:25not one of the disciples follows
34:29to protect him
34:30or to speak on his behalf
34:35as Jesus is questioned by the high priest Caiaphas
34:38it is likely that Judas passes an agonizing
34:41and sleepless night
34:43and the morning does not bring good news
34:55when morning came
34:57all the chief priests and the elders of the people
35:00took counsel against Jesus
35:02to put him to death
35:04and they bound him
35:07and led him away
35:09and delivered him
35:10to Pilate the governor
35:12Matthew 27 1
35:17did Judas intend that Jesus be turned over
35:23to the Roman governor
35:24Pontius Pilate
35:25or does this turn of events represent a plan
35:28that has gone terribly awry
35:34Judas did not turn Jesus over to Pilate
35:38Caiaphas did that
35:41and it's very important to make that distinction
35:44because in Jewish law of the time
35:47to turn a fellow Jew over to the high priest
35:51was considered meritorious
35:53he got paid for it
35:54to turn a fellow Jew over to a pagan king
35:58or leader like Pilate
36:00was a serious crime
36:02he never intended for Jesus to go to Pilate
36:05he definitely intended
36:09that Jesus would be executed
36:11to have handed him over
36:13to Roman and Jewish collaboration
36:16I don't know what else
36:18he could have expected to happen
36:25according to the Gospel of Mark
36:27when Judas learns that Jesus is in Roman hands
36:31he is overcome with remorse
36:33then Judas
36:37the one who handed him over to them
36:40seeing that Jesus had been condemned
36:43was deeply moved with remorse
36:46he returned the 30 pieces of silver
36:49to the chief priests and elders
36:51saying
36:52I have sinned
36:53in delivering over to you
36:55an innocent person
36:56Matthew 27 3
37:00Judas attempts to nullify his agreement
37:05with the temple authorities
37:06by returning the money they had given him
37:09but the high priests refused to take it back
37:14nor will they approach the Romans
37:17to intervene on Jesus' behalf
37:19I believe that he had done what he did
37:22because Jesus asked him to do it
37:24but it wasn't turning out the way he had expected
37:27meanwhile unable to stop the inevitable
37:37Judas runs out into the labyrinth of Jerusalem streets
37:42and into the unforgiving light of day
37:45when we return
37:51high noon will be fast approaching
37:54before the sun sets one more time
37:57on the burnished stones of Jerusalem
38:00both Jesus and Judas
38:02will meet their agonizing fates
38:04mysteries of the Bible
38:07mysteries of the Bible will be right back
38:11mysteries of the Bible will be right back
38:14It is just after sunrise when Jesus is paraded
38:35through the streets of Jerusalem
38:37on the way to his death
38:39where is Judas?
38:50the Bible is entirely silent on the question
38:53is he among the crowds as Jesus passes by
38:56wearing his crown of thorns?
39:00does he witness the agony of the crucifixion?
39:07why are the Gospels silent about Judas
39:09in these defining hours of Christian history?
39:14the companions of Jesus in the first days after his execution
39:18had far more serious things on their mind
39:20than what happened to Judas
39:22they wanted to know what was happening with God
39:25what was God up to?
39:27was the execution of Jesus his rejection by God?
39:30or was Jesus still held in the hands of God?
39:33very low on their agenda was the question
39:36where is Judas?
39:37where is Judas?
39:38or what is happening to Judas?
39:43it is not difficult to imagine
39:45that the last hours in the life of Judas
39:47are spent in bitter anguish
39:49according to Matthew's Gospel
39:54it is very clearly stated
39:56that when Judas saw
39:58that Jesus had been handed over to Pilate
40:01then his whole world caved in
40:04according to an influential 13th century Dominican priest
40:12Judas tried to make his way to Jesus
40:15so that he could beg forgiveness
40:17but it is said that he was unable to break through the mob
40:20to draw close enough to speak
40:22then in the feverish hope that his soul would be united with Jesus on the cross
40:37Judas committed suicide by hanging himself from a tree
40:41perhaps the most mysterious aspect of Judas Iscariot
40:51is that he continues to generate heated controversy
40:542,000 years after his death
40:56there is however unanimous agreement on one point
41:03from the first century of the common era
41:07the image of Judas in the Christian world
41:10became an increasingly negative one
41:12at a certain point it became necessary
41:19to find a figure of evil
41:22who would betray Jesus
41:23the one who was picked on was this one whose name was Judas
41:27for the simple reason that his name was that of the Jewish people
41:30which is Judas really stands for the whole Jewish people
41:33Jesus and all of his disciples were Jewish
41:37why did Judas alone become associated with the Jewish people
41:42and why did this association become so fraught with hatred
41:49the gradual transformation of Judas from loyal disciple
41:55to the personification of evil
41:57may have been intended to serve a sinister propagandistic purpose
42:02according to some interpretations
42:05its function may have been to blight
42:08not only the name of Judas himself
42:10but that of all Jews
42:12through the centuries
42:14Judas indeed has been called a traitor
42:17a Christ betrayer
42:19a Christ killer
42:20and he has been used to symbolize the Jewish people
42:24and so his role has been magnified
42:26not because the scripture magnifies it
42:28but because anti-Semitic people
42:31have sought to magnify his role
42:33to represent the Jewish people
42:35I think the story of Judas
42:38is what I would call a story that kills
42:41because Judas has become
42:43overtly or covertly
42:46the personification of the Jews
42:49and somehow Jesus is not a Jew
42:52but he's a Christian
42:53as if all the first Christians
42:56were not a group within Judaism
42:58so we sort of divide good and evil
43:01Christianity and Judaism
43:04Jesus and Judas
43:06and that is an obscenely dangerous way to see the world
43:10and almost inevitably
43:12so dehumanizes those with whom you disagree
43:15that killing them becomes really
43:17almost a service to God
43:22in the midst of passions
43:23unabated for two millennia
43:25it is easy to forget
43:26that among the last words of Jesus on the cross
43:29was a prayer of forgiveness
43:32father
43:35forgive them
43:36for they know not what they do
43:39Luke 23 34
43:47it is perhaps the ultimate mystery
43:50of the story of Judas Iscariot
43:52is he too included in this prayer of forgiveness
43:56I take it for granted
43:59God accepts the dying prayer of Jesus
44:02so that it is part of our tradition
44:05that everyone involved
44:06whoever everyone is
44:08and whatever it includes
44:10is already forgiven
44:11before Jesus dies
44:13that too if you are a Christian
44:16you have to accept
44:21what is the power of the Judas story
44:23that it has held us in its grip
44:24for two thousand years
44:30the answer may lie
44:31in the eternal struggle
44:32to understand
44:33what motivates someone
44:34to commit such an evil act
44:38or perhaps the kiss of Judas
44:39continues to resonate
44:41because the ultimate hurt
44:43in any life
44:44is to be betrayed
44:46by someone we love
44:49or it may be because of a lingering
44:51and terrible doubt
44:52has Judas been condemned
44:54for a crime
44:55he did not commit
44:56it is a question
44:58which will forever remain
44:59a mystery
45:01of the Bible
45:02of the Bible
45:32the Bible
45:33or the Bible
45:34or it may be the one
45:34that day
45:35will be the evil
45:37of the Bible
45:38of the Bible
45:40the Bible
45:42or the Bible
45:43who will suffer
45:44or the Bible
45:46in the end
45:47or the Bible
45:48of the Bible
45:49or the Bible
45:50that you know
45:51were in the church
45:52to describe
45:53the Shift
45:53and the Bible
45:54of the Bible
45:55the Bible
45:56who will forgive
45:57at the following
45:58after the following