Mark 14:26-52
Dear RTB’ers,
For the past three weeks at Avanza we have focused on Holy Week. On the 15th we watched videos covering Gethsemane and the betrayal and Jesus’ arrest (today’s RTB reading), then His trial and Crucifixion. On the 22nd we saw the Resurrection video and Jesus’ appearances to hundreds of His followers. Finally, yesterday, we celebrated Pentecost with these Avanza kids. It is amazing to me the attentiveness that we get from these kids during introductions before the videos, then the videos, then comments after the videos. There’s something about Jesus’ suffering, His Crucifixion, and His Resurrection that “commands” these kids’ attention. It is a gripping story, no matter how many times these students, even the 4th– and 5th-graders have heard it.
I felt the same today reading Mark’s account of Jesus’ agony in the Garden, Judas’ betrayal, and Jesus’ arrest. I had vivid images of Peter slicing off a servant’s ear and of another young man fleeing naked into the night. My Catholic background seems (to me) to be much stronger on Jesus’ sufferings and Crucifixion than I see in Protestant churches. That background has stayed with me. Our next few RTB readings will remain powerful for me.
Blessings!
See also: