Voices of the Passion and Easter - James Thaddeus

I have imagined the reactions and thought processes of those people involved in the Good Friday and Easter narrative.

I hope that it will assist you to meditate on these events with fresh thoughts.

Well, I’m rather an anonymous person – people really don’t look at me and think ‘that man must be quite interesting.’ I would blend into the background if the background was blank.

Anyway, I was minding my own business in Galilee (as you do) when the Rabbi from Nazareth passed by and called me to follow him. It was the most exciting that had happened to – it’s normally the upfront people (like Peter) that usually get noticed first. After all, wouldn’t you want to be summoned by a celebrity?

I was even more surprised when He called me to join His select group of twelve.

After a couple of wonderful years of miracles and great teaching, it seemed to go horribly wrong. The religious leaders seemed to be going all out to get rid of Jesus. Also, I noticed that Judas wasn’t his normal enthusiastic self.

We had some great close times with Jesus in that last week, although there were some things that I didn’t understand. I thought that, because I wasn’t involved in the inner group of three (of Peter, James and John), I couldn’t possibly make heads or tails of it. I was greatly relieved when Peter couldn’t get the gist of Jesus washing our feet or saying that one of us was going to betray Him.

The whole thing came to a head in the Garden of Gethsemane when the temple guard came to arrest Jesus. Although I am a nobody, I still didn’t want to hang around – after all, I would be even less protected as who would care what would happen to me?

Jesus’ celebrity status didn’t stop the religious leaders from putting Him on trial and then getting Him crucified by the Romans.

I wanted to fade into the background again, pretending that nothing had happened. I was intrigued though because Jesus had claimed that He would be arrested, beaten and put to death by the religious leaders, He also mentioned that He would rise again on the third day (as usual, it didn’t fully register with me). Although I couldn’t bear to watch the horrible things that they did to Him, I decided to hang around with the others.

When Jesus came alive from the dead, He appeared to us disciples and assured us that that He had conquered sin and death. He made me realise that, in His eyes because He had so much for me, I am a somebody.