On Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday of Holy Week our first readings at Mass contain the Three Oracles from Isaiah the Prophet of the Servant of the Lord. An oracle is an utterance that is made or received as authoritative, extremely wise or infallible. In this case these oracles are all three.
The oracle for this Monday is about the servant of the Lord who would be God's chosen one, with whom he will be well pleased, upon whom he will put his Spirit. He will be the one to bring forth justice to the nations, not crying out, not shouting – in fact, a bruised reed he shall not break, and a smoldering wick he shall not quench – until he establishes justice on the earth!
God will form him as a covenant of the people, a light for the nations, to open the eyes of the blind, to bring out prisoners from confinement, and from the dungeon, those who live in darkness. It was unmistakably of Jesus the Christ that this oracle was speaking; it is he who is God's favored one, who alone could bring about the long awaited act of justice that would release all of those condemned to a life of gloom and doom!
In the gospel passage we see an immediate prophecy of upcoming events when Mary anoints the feet of Jesus, and Jesus refers it to the imminent day of his burial. Judas misses the whole point and is concerned with worldly affairs such as misuse of funds and embezzlement. Why could not have Judas understood what was happening before his very eyes? Why don't many people in the world today understand what is happening before their very eyes: our relatedness to Jesus and his every command is much more important than any earth-bound project we could involve ourselves in.
Hail to you, Lord Jesus Christ, our King:
you alone are compassionate with our faults!
You alone can forgive our inequities, and iniquities!
Have mercy on us this day!
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