Dear sisters and brothers in Christ:

In Dante’s imaginative masterpiece, The Divine Comedy, he places in canto (chapter) XVII (which describes the 7th circle of hell, reserved for the “violent” sinners, including usurers, who have sinfully lent money at immoral interest rates) the Paduan banker Reginaldo Scrovegni. As Scrovegni was far from the only immoral moneylender in medieval Italy, Scrovegni must have been particularly notorious and wicked in his actions to merit Dante’s attention! Legend holds that, to improve the family reputation and expiate their sins, his son Enrico Scrovegni (d. 1336) decided to build the Scrovegni Chapel, adjacent to the family palace. Still visited by thousands of art enthusiasts today, the chapel’s main drawing card is the extraordinary cycle of frescoes depicting the life of Christ by the artist Giotto di Bondone, one of which is reproduced here. This depiction of the betrayal of Jesus recalls that which we have recently contemplated during Holy Week, both on Palm Sunday and Good Friday. It is at this moment of betrayal that Jesus says to his disciples, “Rise, let us be on our way.” As you might recall, I have used the Latin translation of these words as an episcopal motto, Surgite eamus. For me, the motto is a call to action, to take on the crosses of the Christian life as a sharing in the salvation and resurrection that Christ has borne to the world through his saving cross!

A nice detail in the painting: The mysterious figure dressed in a purplish-grey cloak with his back to us (to the left of the image) has grasped the reddish cloak of a figure who seems to be pulling his way out of the image and away from Christ. Starting with Christ in the center (who is receiving the kiss of betrayal from Judas Iscariot), moving to the left across this chaotic scene we see another full golden halo, that of St. Peter (who has just severed the ear of the high priest’s servant. …) and then, the receding figure, whose halo we can see only a part. This clue reveals that this fleeing figure is one of the disciples, who will later become a saint, but for now is abandoning the Lord, as all the disciples do. Jesus says to his disciples as he approaches his way of the cross, Surgite eamus, “Rise, let us be on our way.” At first, they all go their own way. Later, after the resurrection, empowered by the Holy Spirit, they do return to the Way of Christ, as each is called to dramatic self-sacrifice and martyrdom as an expression of love of God and love of neighbor.

We too have journeyed with Jesus through his passion and cross during Holy Week and now we find ourselves basking in the light of the Resurrection, where we are called to rise and go with him into life. Though, like the disciples, we too may have resisted the Lord’s call to follow his way of sacrificial love for others, let’s renew our trust in the power that God has poured into each of our hearts in the resurrection and the Holy Spirit and let’s look for ways to show Christ’s sacrificial love to others, especially in this beautiful season of Easter!

May the Risen Lord bless you and all your loved ones!

+Scott E. Bullock
Bishop of Rapid City