Daily Gospel Reflection
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April 1, 2026
One of the Twelve, who was called Judas Iscariot,
went to the chief priests and said,
“What are you willing to give me
if I hand him over to you?”
They paid him thirty pieces of silver,
and from that time on he looked for an opportunity to hand him over.
On the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread,
the disciples approached Jesus and said,
“Where do you want us to prepare
for you to eat the Passover?”
He said,
“Go into the city to a certain man and tell him,
‘The teacher says, “My appointed time draws near;
in your house I shall celebrate the Passover with my disciples.”‘“
The disciples then did as Jesus had ordered,
and prepared the Passover.
When it was evening,
he reclined at table with the Twelve.
And while they were eating, he said,
“Amen, I say to you, one of you will betray me.”
Deeply distressed at this,
they began to say to him one after another,
“Surely it is not I, Lord?”
He said in reply,
“He who has dipped his hand into the dish with me
is the one who will betray me.
The Son of Man indeed goes, as it is written of him,
but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed.
It would be better for that man if he had never been born.”
Then Judas, his betrayer, said in reply,
“Surely it is not I, Rabbi?”
He answered, “You have said so.”
Excerpts from the Lectionary for Mass for Use in the Dioceses of the United States of America, second typical edition © 2001, 1998, 1997, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc., Washington, DC. Used with permission. All rights reserved. No portion of this text may be reproduced by any means without permission in writing from the copyright owner. The full readings of the day from the Lectionary are available here.
Jesus is visibly anxious—deeply troubled. He knows he will be betrayed by one of his twelve hand-chosen apostles, denied by another, and abandoned, save one, by the other nine. No solidarity here when the going gets rough. No loyalty in time of greatest need.
Having spent three years accompanying Jesus in his ministry, the apostles must have easily recognized their teacher’s agitation before the Passover table and taken on his anxiety. They had witnessed Jesus’ sizeable emotional range, from compassion to rage, but likely had not observed the all-too-human fear he now exhibited. Compounding matters, the apostles demonstrated incomprehension before Jesus’ declaration, “Where I am going, you cannot come.” Jesus’ presence defined their existence, but his absence? Who were they without him?
My husband and I have had a weekly Saturday routine for the past few years. Our elderly
mothers—friends and former neighbors of nearly 60 years—are both severely compromised. My 90-year-old mother is physically housebound but has an agile 30-year- old mind. My 96-year-old mother-in-law has both dementia and loss of speech. Each Saturday, we first shop, then cook, pack up dinner, pick up my mother first to attend Mass, and then have dinner together at my mother-in-law’s assisted care facility.
The preparation for this routine takes all day, yet somehow the effort seems minor: our mothers light up when they see each other, exhibiting loyalty and solidarity during their hours together. Their deep spirituality is what lends us the hope and stamina to plan for these priceless reunions. These evenings seem to linger longer every week as we cherish this sacred time together, not knowing if we will all be present next week.
What does a life not defined by Jesus’ presence actually look like? To whom are we
accountable, if not to him? May we be granted the necessary courage and the innate solidarity to show up for others in difficult times. Let us notice what the Spirit enables us to do and recognize that we can’t do so alone. Who am I without you, Lord?
Prayer
Father in heaven, while Judas looked for an opportunity to betray him, your Son anticipated his betrayal with steadfast faithfulness to your will. With the days when we commemorate his life-giving death and resurrection nearly upon us, help us to enter into the Triduum with prayerful attentiveness to these stories of our salvation. May our participation in these upcoming liturgies help us to mirror his faithfulness, who lives and reigns with you and the Spirit, God forever and ever. Amen.
Saint of the Day
St. Macarius' legacy is one of working miracles and standing for truth even in the face of torture.
Macarius was born in the ninth century in Constantinople, originally named Christopher. He took the name Macarius when he became a monk.
Eventually, he was selected as abbot of his monastery and became well-known for healing miracles, which is how he earned his title: St. Macarius the Wonder-Worker. Crowds would flock to the monastery to seek cures.
Macarius opposed the emperor’s orders to suppress icons in one of the great iconoclasm controversies. The controversy over icons was a dispute that arose when some misinterpreted the Second Commandment, which forbids the worship of images. The church has consistently insisted upon the orthodoxy of icons and other religious imagery as a consequence of the Incarnation: Jesus proved that God redeems all of creation, and that all of creation can help mediate God’s presence to us. Icons and religious imagery point our hearts and minds to God and remind us of holy figures; they are not themselves objects of veneration.
Macarius was imprisoned and tortured for defending the use of icons. When the emperor died, the successor released Macarius from prison and tried to win him over. He rejected the new emperor as well and was exiled. He died during this banishment.
The relics of St. Macarius rest in the reliquary chapel in the Basilica of the Sacred Heart on Notre Dame's campus, and this prayer is attributed to him:
“To you, O Master, who loves all humanity, I hasten on rising from sleep. By your mercy, I go out to do your work and I make my prayer to you. Help me at all times and in all things. Deliver me from every evil thing of this world and from pursuit by the devil. Save me and bring me to your eternal kingdom, for you are my creator, and you inspire all good thoughts in me. In you is all my hope and to you, I give glory, now and forever.”
The icon of Saint Macarius featured today shows him standing next to a cherub.
St. Macarius, who suffered torture and exile for your defense of religious images—pray for us!
Image Credit: Our featured image of St. Macarius is in the public domain. Last accessed February 17, 2025 on Wikimedia Commons.
