For some, today is simply Wednesday. If you celebrate Easter in its cultural capacity it’s less than five days left to feather the nests of traditional grass in the Easter baskets. And for those whose systems invite them to a Christian practice – it is the mid-point between Palm Sunday and the joyous celebration of renewal that Easter signifies.<\/p>\n
There is a more somber tone that braids through this day. The concept of friendship and betrayal. You see plenty of that in the news today, you might say?\u00a0 There is the alleged betrayal of Greg Mortenson to his readers – and the potential that all he has said is so – may not be so.\u00a0 We face the sustained capacity for and tolerance of\u00a0 bullying in our own communities.\u00a0 That is a betrayal at so many levels.\u00a0 You might draw to mind a recollection of a friend who betrayed your trust – or perhaps you, in circumstances which increasingly teach you, betrayed a friendship.<\/p>\n
Wednesday of Holy Week, or “Holy Wednesday” is the day many turn their attention to Judas Iscariot and his famous betrayal of his friend, Jesus.\u00a0 Hurt feelings, competitiveness, feeling excluded, wanting more attention or admiration than he received.\u00a0 These are all speculations as to why, for monetary\u00a0 compensation, Judas would disclose his knowledge.\u00a0 His knowledge that he was only able to access by virtue of friendship and trust extended to him.<\/p>\n
Physicists teach us that there is no “this” without a counter-balancing “that.”\u00a0\u00a0 The walk of The Christ that is observed around the world this week would not have happened in the way we know of it – without this betrayal.\u00a0 Bringing the large and sacred truth into my every day experience:\u00a0 I am who I am today because I am shaped and molded by all the experiences of my life which have walked me on this road.\u00a0 The betrayals – those levied toward me and those I have handed out – all become part of the story I tell of my life by who I am today.<\/p>\n
And in the context of a balancing point, let me do two things.\u00a0 I ask you to consider some affirming action toward your loyal friends today – or perhaps an overture to someone with whom you have experienced a betrayal of sorts.\u00a0 And secondly, I offer some inspiring friendship quotes borrowed from my book, “US:CELEBRATING THE POWER OF FRIENDSHIP (Conari Press, 2011)<\/p>\n
“When I least suspected, I turned around and found a friend.”<\/p>\n
“heroic acts and simple gestures offer the same answer, ‘Because you are my friend.'”<\/p>\n
“If you have one friend, you hold the hand of the world.”<\/p>\n
“You are the time worn pages of my favorite book.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
For some, today is simply Wednesday. If you celebrate Easter in its cultural capacity it’s less than five days left to feather the nests of traditional grass in the Easter baskets. And for those whose systems invite them to a Christian practice – it is the mid-point between Palm Sunday and the joyous celebration of…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4,1],"tags":[66,67,68,63,61,62,65,64],"class_list":["post-400","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-between-friends","category-daily-joys","tag-betrayal","tag-friendship","tag-friendship-quotes","tag-greg-mortenson","tag-holy-wednesday","tag-holy-week","tag-judas","tag-judas-iscariot"],"yoast_head":"\n