Judas Iscariot has gone down in infamy as the ultimate betrayer, thanks to Christian tradition and gospel accounts,

Apparently, he sold out Jesus by giving up his location to the authorities for 30 pieces of silver.
The close friend and confidant who had shared meals with Jesus from the same plate and table, gave him up to be arrested, tried and executed. Or at least so the tradition goes.

In the centuries since the telling of the Judas story, some have come to question the traditional casting of Judas as the ‘bad guy’. Who knows? Was Judas a saint or villain? Did the events play out as the gospel narratives say? Or perhaps, such questions are not relevant. Perhaps, more revelant is the principle hidden within the story.

The betrayal, though painful and traumatic, was a necessary event in Jesus’ path and journey.
It was unavoidable, bound to happen, and necessary on his path to the cross and ultimately for his destiny and glory.

The betrayal was a catalyst for Jesus’ journey back home.

Have you been betrayed by your own thoughts, values, beliefs, self-identity and attachments to people, things and relationships?

Have you been left disappointed and disillusioned by dashed expectations from a carefully crafted world view, image or social network that has failed to deliver?

Have you been let down by the ego’s stories and half truths that you once believed and trusted in?

I certainly have.

Things, beliefs, people and relationships that once gave comfort and relief are now revealed to me as illusionary – not what I thought them to be, and unable to deliver or meet my deepest needs and expectations.

Perhaps you can relate.

This of kind of betrayal; the disappointment and disillusion that follows, is not a bad thing.

Betrayal is good if it causes me to dig deeper,
if it causes me to question my assumptions,
to break out of the shell of my own limited world and perceptions.

Betrayal is good if it can set me on the path to my true identity and awareness in God;

I needed to go through that painful experience of betrayal, so I could let go of the illusionary stuff, or at least see it for what it really is, and so leave me open to receive that which is true, that which has substance and lasts forever.