Holy Week – Wednesday 16 April 2025
Call to Worship:
It is Wednesday,
and the perfume pours.
With sorrow,
with hope,
with truth.
Reading: Mark 14:1-11 – The Plot to Kill Jesus
14 It was two days before the Passover and the Festival of Unleavened Bread. The chief priests and the scribes were looking for a way to arrest Jesus by stealth and kill him, 2 for they said, “Not during the festival, or there may be a riot among the people.”
The Anointing at Bethany
3 While he was at Bethany in the house of Simon the leper, as he sat at the table, a woman came with an alabaster jar of very costly ointment of nard, and she broke open the jar and poured the ointment on his head. 4 But some were there who said to one another in anger, “Why was the ointment wasted in this way? 5 For this ointment could have been sold for more than three hundred denarii and the money given to the poor.” And they scolded her.
6 But Jesus said, “Let her alone; why do you trouble her? She has performed a good service for me. 7 For you always have the poor with you, and you can show kindness to them whenever you wish, but you will not always have me. 8 She has done what she could; she has anointed my body beforehand for its burial. 9 Truly I tell you, wherever the good news is proclaimed in the whole world, what she has done will be told in remembrance of her.”
Judas Agrees to Betray Jesus
10 Then Judas Iscariot, who was one of the twelve, went to the chief priests in order to betray him to them. 11 When they heard it, they were greatly pleased and promised to give him money. So he began to look for an opportunity to betray him.
Reflection:
There must have been a bad smell.
The smell of death.
The smell of betrayal.
The smell of deceit.
The smell of fear.
And we let the perfume hide it all.
By focussing on that,
the beautiful, costly aroma,
the price, the value of such nard,
we miss the point.
Behind it all, there was a bad smell.
Lurking.
In the restlessness of Judas – Betrayer.
The confidence of Peter – Denier.
The authority of religious authorities – Deceivers.
For all were gathering,
and the reek was a stench,
that not even heaven could not avoid.
The perfume was a fragile moment
that knew the truth,
that smelled sweeter than all the world’s actions
and drew attention to itself
because it smelled so different.
But underneath, the stench of blood.
The broken body. The torn flesh. The dirty lies.
The spitting. The language. The sweat. The fear.
And to the faithful, the perfume in its beauty,
only draws attention, to all that smells bad in the world.
Prayer:
We celebrate extravagance today, Lord.
Love that offers comfort,
and recognition of humanity.
Today we give extravagantly of our love
designed to show your love to others,
small in comparison to your abundant love.
In giving of ourselves we claim you,
on the way to the cross<
waiting to proclaim good news to the whole world,
not quite yet … but soon.
We wait as the darkness descends.
Amen.
Blessing:
With the scent of this moment enfolding you,
may you be reminded of the beauty of that moment.
As the oil was poured out,
along with the woman’s love.
A love that was poured out for you,
on a cross,
on a hill
far away.