In John’s Gospel (Chapter 13) Fr Paul reflects that Jesus is troubled in spirit, knowing that he is soon to be betrayed by Judas.

Jesus’s last supper has begun and throughout it we see just how weak the disciples are. Time and again they fail to understand the teaching of Jesus. Even as we approach the end of this Gospel, we hear Peter making bold declarations but in a sense he, too, will betray Jesus by denying him 3 times.

Fr Paul notes that, in recognising the weakness in the disciples, they can be models for us.

The disciples fail and fail again. They are weak, like we are, and yet each time they fail they repent and Jesus forgives them.  We see that perfection is not important but what is important, particularly for the disciples and in the eyes of Jesus, is repentance, which is at the heart of our Lenten journey.

Mindful of this Gospel, and through Holy week, we might each ask ourselves, ‘When I have been betrayed in some way have I forgiven the person like Jesus forgave with his disciples? What are my weaknesses in my life at this time? What do I need to repent of before we begin our Easter celebrations?’