I like this scene from the Gospel reading today when Jesus is announcing to His disciples that one of them will betray Him. They are shocked and keep asking one by one: it’s not me, right? We know that it was Judas. However even the other disciples were too afraid to stand by Jesus when He was suffering. When they were together and safe, they were able to make declarations of protecting Jesus no matter what, but then most of them got scared and ran away. How about us today, you and me? Because it is easy to claim that we are Christians when we are together in the parish, in the church, where all believe the same. We all pray together, make the sign of the cross, sing religious songs, and share the sign of peace. But how about outside of the church when we go back to our ordinary lives? Are you able to stand by Jesus, protect Him and His teachings, are you able to make a sign of the cross in public, pray before the meal in a crowded restaurant or invite your family to pray together? It is not enough to make our declarations in the church. We should witness our Christianity everywhere we go. “Amen, I say to you, one of you will betray me. Surely it is not I, Lord?”
