Betrayal And Denial

Do you still think that you would never deny Christ? Could you stand strong if you saw innocent people suffering and it would stop if you denied Christ? Could you stand by and watch your neighbor tortured or your parent or your child or your spouse? It is easy to say we would never deny Christ. It is much harder to live. But, I would further submit to you, while there is without question allusion to Peter in the line, “somewhere off in the distance a cock crowed,” stepping on that image of Christ is the most Christ-like thing that Father Rodrigues could do. You see, Rodrigues knew that the second he stepped on the image he would no longer be a priest, yet being a priest is what he was called to do. It was all the life that he knew. In that moment he picked up his cross and followed. He followed out of love of God and love of neighbor. He didn’t deny Christ. In that setting the only way that he could have denied Christ was to not step on the image to save those Rodrigues was called to serve.

It would be hard for us to live out our words in such trying times. Why, it is even hard, better yet it is impossible, for us to live out our claims of faithfulness here and now. We are Kichijoro. We are Judas. We are Peter. We deny Christ, we betray Christ when we fail to live in neighborly love with those around us. We deny Christ, we betray Christ when we choose not to feed the hungry or clothe the naked or give the thirsty something to drink, etc. etc. etc. Friends we deny Christ, we betray Christ every day by the things that we say and the things that we do. Didn’t Jesus tell those around him and through Matthew tell us, “for if you’ve done it to one of the least of these you’ve done it to me?” When we deny others the love of Christ we are denying our love of Christ. When we fail to meet the needs of others we are betraying Christ. And yet, sometimes we even manage to be Father Sebastian Rodrigues.

That is good news and there is more. Sebastian Rodrigues spend the rest of his life living in Japan in exile. He spends the rest of his life believing in his heart that he denied Christ. Still Kichijiro comes back asking Rodrigues to hear his confession. Kichijiro, probably without knowing enables Rodrigues to continue his work as a priest, he allows Rodrigues to maintain some small amount of his identity. Kichijiro was, for Rodrigues, even if Kichijiro didn’t know it, an instrument of God’s grace. And I think it might be safe to say that every time Kichijiro came back asking for forgiveness, God found a way to forgive. After all, despite his denials of Christ, we know that Peter still managed to find forgiveness and went on to lead the early church. If God can forgive Peter, God can forgive Sebastian Rodrigues and Kichijiro too.

And, if God can forgive them, God can for give the likes of us as well. God will forgive us. Yes, we are just like Peter and Judas and Sebastian Rodrigues and Kichijiro, yes we deny Christ, and yes we betray Christ. But also, just like Peter and Rodrigues and Kichijiro, we can find forgiveness through the grace of God.