Wednesday of Holy Week
“My Time Is Near”
Liturgical Cycle: A, B, C | Lectionary Cycle: I, II
Introduction
Today, we hear the bad news of the betrayal of Judas, together with the sad yet joyous good news of Jesus’ Passover meal with his disciples. “My time is near. I will keep the Passover with my disciples.” Jesus will eat the Passover meal surrounded by those who have followed him. The traitor leaves them to betray Jesus. But Jesus, the Servant of God and people, faces his death with the fullest trust in God. Jesus will celebrate this Passover in a new way making it the Eucharist. This is like a testament that he leaves to his disciples. It is the deepest way that he is going to stay among his disciples then and now.
Opening Prayer
God, our Father,
when the hour of your Son, Jesus, had come
to accept suffering and death
out of love of you
and his saving love for us,
he did not refuse that suffering and deep pain.
In the hour of trial,
that we may have to pass through,
do not let us become rebellious
but keep us trusting in you,
for you save us
through Jesus Christ, our Lord.
Responsorial Psalm
Psalm 69:8-10, 21-22, 31 and 33-34
R. (14c) Lord, in your great love, answer me.
For your sake I bear insult,
and shame covers my face.
I have become an outcast to my brothers,
a stranger to my mother’s sons,
because zeal for your house consumes me,
and the insults of those who blaspheme you fall upon me.
R. Lord, in your great love, answer me.
Insult has broken my heart, and I am weak,
I looked for sympathy, but there was none;
for consolers, not one could I find.
Rather they put gall in my food,
and in my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink.
R. Lord, in your great love, answer me.
I will praise the name of God in song,
and I will glorify him with thanksgiving:
“See, you lowly ones, and be glad;
you who seek God, may your hearts revive!
For the LORD hears the poor,
and his own who are in bonds he spurns not.”
R. Lord, in your great love, answer me.
Alleluia Verse
Glory and Praise to You, Lord Jesus Christ
Hail to you, our King, obedient to the Father;
you were led to your crucifixion like a gentle lamb to the slaughter.
Glory and Praise to You, Lord Jesus Christ
Gospel
Judas’ Betrayal
Then one of the Twelve, who was called Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests and said:
‘How much will you give me if I hand him over to you?’
They promised to give him thirty pieces of silver,
and from that moment he kept looking for the best way to hand Jesus over to them.
Preparation of the Passover Meal
On the first day of the Festival of Unleavened Bread, the disciples came to Jesus and said to him, “Where do you want us to prepare the Passover meal for you?”
Jesus answered, “Go into the city, to the house of a certain man, and tell him, ‘The Master says:
My hour is near and I will celebrate the Passover with my disciples in your house.’”
The disciples did as Jesus had ordered and prepared the Passover meal.
Announcement of the Betrayal
When evening came, Jesus sat at the table with the Twelve.
While they were eating, Jesus said:
“Truly, I say to you: one of you will betray me.”
They were deeply distressed and asked him, one after the other:
“You do not mean me, do you, Lord?”
He answered:
“The one who dips his bread with me will betray me.
The Son of Man is going as the Scriptures say he will. But alas for the one who betrays the Son of Man: it would have been better for him not to have been born.
Judas, the one who would betray him, also asked:
“You do not mean me, Master, do you?”
Jesus replied:
“You have said it.”
Prayers of the Faithful
Let us join our prayers to those of the Lord Jesus, as we say: Lord, hear your people.
– For all those whose love had been betrayed or rejected, we pray:
– For the people who are facing death, that they may trustingly put themselves into the Lord’s hands, we pray:
– For all who suffer and face difficult decisions, that God may be their strength and inspiration, we pray:
– For all Christians, that they may seek the presence of the Lord in the Eucharist, we pray: Lord, stay with us. We love you, now and for ever.
Prayer over the Gifts
Praise be to you, eternal God,
for you invite us to the table of your Son.
Let us, Jesus’ disciples today,
eat his bread of love and strength
and drink his wine of gladness,
that our trust in you may never fade
and that we love one another
in good days and in times of pain.
We ask you this, through Jesus Christ, our Lord.
Prayer after Communion
Our Saving God,
a new world could be born,
when Jesus laid down his life for us
and left us the sign that you have made with us
a new and everlasting covenant.
Thank you for letting us celebrate,
in memory of him,
that sacrifice which brought us life
and unites us in him.
All thanks and praise to you
through Jesus Christ, our Lord.
Blessing
It is good to be with the Lord this Holy Week. It gives us the opportunity to reflect on the immense love with which God loves us. How do we answer his total love? How much do we echo and mirror it to the people around us? Especially you, parents, how much do you make your children feel God’s love in you? May Almighty God bless you all, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
Reflection:
Matthew 26:14-25
Betrayed, denied and broken
In today's Gospel, we encounter a profound moment during the Last Supper. Judas conspires to betray the Master for thirty pieces of silver. His actions show the depths of human weakness and the allure of material gain. We must examine our own hearts: Are there moments when we prioritise personal gain over fidelity to Christ?
As the days of Holy Week move forward, we reflect on Judas' fateful betrayal of Jesus. As a result of this behaviour, medieval Christians referred to Judas as a spy. From Wednesday on, Judas secretly plotted to deliver Jesus to the chief priests, and therefore, this Wednesday is also called "Spy Wednesday."
According to the Passover custom, the head of the family would say a prayer of praise and thanksgiving for God's liberation of Israel from slavery in Egypt andshare the bread among the family members. But Jesus radically broke with the custom by identifying his body as bread. Body, in Aramaic, means life, the totalperson.
Jesus broke the bread before giving it to the disciples. His gesture anticipated the violence that the powers of this world would soon inflict on him. They would break his body. In the Hebrew mind, blood was a synonym of life. The cup of wine is shared as his Blood of the Covenant, recalling the blood that Moses sprinkled on the Hebrew people to seal their acceptance of God’s offer of love and protection.
Every Eucharist would be a visible sign of Jesus’ real presence amidst his people. This last supper will culminate in the resurrection, in the dawn of new life and new hope. Partaking in the Lat supper of the Lord, let us grow in the hope of life eternal, that Jesus alone offers us.
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Matthew 26: 14-25
The betrayal of Judas and our call to serve God, not money
As we reflect on Holy Wednesday, or "Spy Wednesday," the day when Judas betrayed Jesus for thirty silver coins, we are reminded of the temptations that lead us away from loyalty to Christ. In today’s world, many still sell out the needy for personal gain, exploiting vulnerable people for financial profit. From human trafficking to unfair labour practices, the heart of greed drives this betrayal, mirroring the actions of Judas.
Judas, once a disciple, succumbed to his love for money and turned his back on the very Saviour who loved him. His weakness led him down a dark path of betrayal, selling Jesus to the chief priests. This tragic story highlights a stark truth: when money becomes our master, we fall into a form of spiritual slavery. We are given a choice: to serve God and love our neighbour or to serve money and become enslaved by its false promises.
Jesus never called Judas a “traitor” directly, even as He knew what was to come. He called him “friend,” showing us that love and forgiveness are always available, even to those who betray. However, Judas’s end reminds us of the empty promises of sin—the devil offers fleeting satisfaction but leaves us in despair.
Today, as we contemplate our own choices, let us ask: Do we, like Judas, choose self-interest over loyalty to Christ? Do we exploit others for personal gain? Each of us must confront the “little Judas” within, the part of us that is tempted by materialism, greed, and betrayal. Let us choose to serve God, seek justice, and love others with a pure heart, remembering that betrayal only leads to sorrow. May we be true disciples, free from the chains of worldly desires.
The betrayal of Judas and our call to serve God, not money - Youtube