Good Friday

There has been darkness beforebut never was there darkness like this.The sun rose as usual, yetby nine o’clock in the morning,there was no more light or warmththan we’d known at midnight in the Garden.Betrayal is dark and cold.Fear is dark and cold.Silence is dark and cold.Once betrayed, it mattered notthat silver was poured backinto the hands that first gave it.Darkness deepened for Judas whowished he had never been born.Deep despair plunged himinto the deeper darkness of death.And the rest of us?Peter denied he’d ever known the Master.And one denial was not enough.It took three before they left him alone by the fire.Then a rooster crowed to greet the dawn.As they led the Master around the corner,his dark, exhausted eyes looked deep into Peter’s.The rest of us ran away last night.We scattered like lost sheep, yet found each otherin the room where we last broke bread and drank wine.Now, we hide in darkness,filled with fear and shame.We wonder what is happening out thereyet we have no courage to leavethe darkness to find out.We’ve sent the women.No one will notice themin the Passover crowds.They will be out there in the light of daywhile we hide in the deep darknessof our betrayal, our fear, our silence.We hope that they will return with good news.Yet we are not sure they will return at all.Why should they?There has been darkness beforebut never was there darkness like this.It is so deep.It is so cold.It is so dark.We fear such darkness inside uscan never be healed.© The Rev. Sheila N. McJiltonCrucifixion by Salvador Dali accessed at Google images