Trust is The Start of Friendship
By: Xavier Woon
Tags: Leadership, Parenting, Christian, Family, Catholic

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Photo by Joseph Chan on Unsplash

Reflection Mark 14:43–52

Earlier, Jesus had a Passover meal with His disciples. The Passover meal was usually celebrated with close friends and relatives. During the meal, Jesus mentioned that someone was to betray Him. While He knew the betrayer was Judas, He did not want to dishonor him. Hence, He did not mention him by name. Rather, He gave him an opportunity to speak to Him in private. Probably, if Judas had confessed, Jesus would have forgiven him. In the Garden of Gethsemane, He allowed Judas to kiss Him. This was a gesture of friendship despite knowing Judas had brought a crowd who came from the chief priests, the scribes, and the elders to arrest Him. While Jesus gave His friendship to Judas, Judas did not reciprocate. On the contrary, he broke Jesus’ trust by betraying Him. Later, he realized how terrible it was to break the trust of friendship that he took his own life.

Corporate Leadership

Jesus had many disciples with Him. Among them, He chose twelve Apostles. Of these twelve, Peter, James and John were closest to Him. Jesus placed great trust in them and valued their friendship. When Judas realized his mistake in betraying Jesus, he was so remorseful he took his own life. Likewise, people trust each other after working together for many years. One of the things a good leader does is to foster that feeling of camaraderie because trust among workers brings about productivity naturally. Having said that, there could be instances whereby one black sheep could betray the others and break the bond of friendship. A good leader always gives him the chance to explain himself rather than seek revenge first. When the leader shows forgiveness, the person may be sorry for what he has done and try to gain back the confidence and trust of his friends. Stanley Allen McChrystal, a retired US Army general, said, “I cam to believe that a leader isn’t good because they’re right; they’re good because they’re willing to learn and trust.”– XW

Family Leadership

In Jesus’ three-year ministry, His disciples heard His teaching, saw Him healing the sick and performing miracles. Jesus did these because it was the will of God. In fact, He taught that “whoever does the will of God is My brother and sister and mother.” (Mark 3:35) He emphasized the actions of a person over blood ties as a test of the family bonds. Even for Judas who betrayed Him, He gave him opportunities to repent and even accepted his kiss. In children, however, obedience does not come naturally. There could be instances whereby children could disobey their parents openly. When that happens, parents should refrain from shaming their children openly. Instead, bring them aside and give them a chance to explain. When children see that their parents are sensitive to their feelings rather than react negatively, they are more likely to trust their parents the next time around. Dr. Brene Brown, an American author said, “When people we love, stop paying attention, trust begins to slip away and hurt starts seeping in.” — XW

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