Jesus — the classic scapegoat — ‘carried the sins of all’

Father Perry D. Leiker, pastor.

By Father Perry D. Leiker, pastor

A reflection on the daily readings by Father Perry.

Jesus was exalted!

He was exalted through his suffering and death, and all was saved, loved, helped, redeemed, and renewed in him and through him and because of him.

Jesus was seen as the classic “scapegoat” of the Jewish scriptures — the goat that was let go in the wilderness after the chief priest symbolically laid the sins of the people upon it.

That poor goat had to wander away and carry away all of those sins. How else could the people be cleansed and released from the weight of their sins?

Wasn’t it — it was — Caiaphas the high priest who proclaimed Jesus as a scapegoat when he was said to have said: “It was Caiaphas who had counseled the Jews that ‘it was better that one man should die rather than the people'”?

There it is — a classic scapegoat. We all do it. We all have had it done to us. It really is one of the most basic human faults to not take responsibility for our actions.

When it feels bad, we tend to want to “put the fault” on another rather than ourselves.

We escape through the scapegoat. Jesus — the classic scapegoat — “carried the sins of all.”

But, the wondrous, redeeming, human, divine and grace-filled thing was the way he did it.

As they dumped everything upon him through their rejection, jealousy, condemnation, and the passion and death on the cross — as they scapegoated the Holy One — he showed how to be the scapegoat of love.

All of the hate, blame, rejection, and hideous and murderous acts against him could not — would not, did not — make him hate in return.

That scapegoat loved to the end. That scapegoat redeemed broken humanity by being more human and more loving than those who were scapegoating him.

+ Dear God, how slow they were! Amazed at one moment, crying out “Crucify him!” in another moment.

+ Dear God, why could they not pay attention and really hear what even a possessed man with an unclean spirit could see: “I know who you are — the Holy One of God.”

+ That man did not see him as a scapegoat or any kind of goat at all. Rather, he had the spirit to see Jesus as John the Baptist had seen him: “There he is, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world.”

Amen!

Father Perry D. Leiker is the 14th pastor of St. Bernard Catholic Church. Reach him at (323) 255-6142. Email Father Perry at pleiker@stbernard-church.com. Follow Father Perry on Twitter: @MrDeano76.