What can Christians learn from Judas?

Painting by Carl Heinrich Bloch, late 19th century.

Portraying one of the most notorious villains in the Bible can get a man thinking about his faith.

David Berger did that a lot when he played Judas Iscariot in Lake Harriet United Methodist Church’s production of “Jesus Christ Superstar.” The musical’s Judas is not so easy to write off as history’s greatest monster. Instead, he comes across as a man agonized about his decision to betray his friend, even as he rationalizes that it is for his friend’s own good.

“I am more inclined to cut Judas some slack,” said Berger, a member of Lake Harriet in Minneapolis.

“But I think his own self-righteousness, his sense that ‘I know what’s right,’ really got him into trouble. Of course, it got Jesus into trouble. too.”

At the same time, Berger said, Judas set in motion Christ’s Passion — the sacrifice that would be the world’s salvation.

So how should Christians view Judas: As a traitor or an essential help to the Crucifixion and Resurrection? Or perhaps he is something else. Like the Beatles’ tune his name resembles, is Judas an example of God taking a sad song and making it better?

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