Matthew 25:31-46; John 12:20-50; Mark 14:1-11; Matthew 26:1-16; Luke 22:1-6; John 12:1-11

These readings--Mark 14:1-11, Matthew 26:1-16, Luke 22:1-6, and John 12:1-11--describe great devotion to Jesus. A unidentified woman and/or Mary, the sister of Lazarus, anoints Jesus with an expensive scented oil. Jesus' inner circle of followers object to what seems to them like an extravagant waste of resources. But Jesus defends the woman's act. Lyrics from "Jesus Christ Superstar" put it this way:

     Apostles:
     What's the buzz?
     Tell me what's happening

     Judas:
     It seems to me a strange thing, mystifying
     That a man like you can waste his time
     On women of her kind
     Yes I can understand that she amuses
     But to let her stroke you, kiss your hair
     Is hardly in your line
     It's not that I object to her profession
     But she doesn't fit in well with what you teach and say
     It doesn't help us if you're inconsistent
     They only need a small excuse to put us all away

     Jesus:
     Who are you to criticise her?
     Who are you to despise her?
     Leave her, leave her, let her be now
     Leave her, leave her, she's with me now
     If your slate is clean, then you can throw stones
     If your slate is not, then leave her alone

So these same readings--Mark 14:1-11, Matthew 26:1-16, Luke 22:1-6, and John 12:1-11--describe conflict with Jesus and the beginning of his betrayal by Judas.

Great devotion and grand deception in the same few paragraphs...

Kiss of Judas, from Art in the Christian Tradition, a project of the Vanderbilt Divinity Library, Nashville, TN. http://diglib.library.vanderbilt.edu/act-imagelink.pl?RC=55267[retrieved November 2, 2015]. Original source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/brtsergio/2338660292.