Today's gospel tells how Judas finalized his plot to betray Jesus into the hands of the chief priests; in some places this day is referred to as "spy Wednesday." The gospel does call him a thief and relates that he stole from the common purse which he held in trust for Jesus and the other apostles.

The first mention of Judas as a traitor was on the occasion when Jesus promised that He would give His flesh to eat and His blood to drink. Jesus made that day of preaching on the Eucharist a supreme test of faith. When some of His own disciples walked away from Him in protest that His words were hard to endure, He turned to the apostles to let them know that He demanded absolute faith as He asked. "Do you want to leave me too?" Though Peter manifested his faith in the name of the apostles, Jesus replied, "Have I not chosen you, the twelve? Yet one of you is a devil." And St John comments, "He was speaking of Judas Iscariot ... for he it was, though one of the twelve, who would betray him" (Jn. 6:71-72).

It was from the supper table at which Jesus instituted the Eucharist that Judas left to carry out his betrayal. The impression, at least, is left that Judas turned traitor because he had failed to pass the supreme test of faith in the Eucharist.

Tomorrow, Holy Thursday, we celebrate the institution of the Eucharist. Let us take that occasion to profess our complete faith in Jesus, and let us pray that our faith will make us loyal and faithful to Him.