Unvarnished Jesus: A Lenten JourneyMuestra

Sunday, April 7

John 12:1–8

Jesus Is Anointed in Bethany

Mary of Bethany anointed Jesus’ feet with an exotic perfume worth a year’s wages for a common laborer. Judas, whose motives are of course suspect, raised an objection that I’m sure many today would agree with: “Why wasn’t the perfume sold and the money given to the poor?” Is it not true that there is no higher priority than doing works of justice? Be careful, a devil lies down that road of reasoning. Jesus defends what Mary did because it was done as an act of pure worship. Jesus indeed teaches us to provide for the poor — this is part of the second great commandment to love our neighbor as ourself. But the first commandment is to love God with all of our heart. I am skeptical that we can, in the long term, fulfill the second commandment without being formed by the first.