Wednesday: “High Priest’s Robes”

As the holy elements of bread and wine

were distributed among the people by the elders,

a parishioner called over an usher.

Proudly he explained to the usher that he was fasting

and therefore could not partake of the body and blood today. 

“Untitled” by Julius Shumpert (2021)

Scripture Reading

“Then the high priest stood up and said to Jesus, “Are you not going to answer? What is this testimony that these men are bringing against you?” But Jesus remained silent. The high priest said to him, “I charge you under oath by the living God: Tell us if you are the Messiah, the Son of God.”

“You have said so,” Jesus replied. “But I say to all of you: From now on you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven.”

Then the high priest tore his clothes and said, “He has spoken blasphemy! Why do we need any more witnesses? Look, now you have heard the blasphemy. What do you think?” “He is worthy of death,” they answered. Then they spit in his face and struck him with their fists. Others slapped him and said, “Prophesy to us, Messiah. Who hit you?”

(Matthew 26:62-68)

“When the soldiers crucified Jesus, they took his clothes, dividing them into four shares, one for each of them, with the undergarment remaining. This garment was seamless, woven in one piece from top to bottom.”

(John 19:23)

Take With You

Truth has the power to unravel the facades we build around ourselves. That is why so many people are afraid of it. They become afraid to speak it, face it, and let it expose what they’ve hidden. Like light in darkness, truth clarifies and reveals.

During his night trial in the High Priest’s house, Jesus openly claims to be the Messiah, the Son of the Living God. In a room filled with the most educated religious leaders of the time, Truth stood before them unrecognized and unwelcome. Pressured by Rome and unsettled by Jesus’ authority, the High Priest tore his sacred robes in outrage, just as Moses once shattered the tablets in response to Israel’s rebellion. Revelation had arrived, and religion fractured under its weight.

Later, as Jesus hangs on the cross, soldiers gamble for his clothes. John notes that his garment was “seamless, woven in one piece from top to bottom.” While religious authority was torn apart, Jesus’ clothing remained whole. Even in death, he preached restoration. From top to bottom, he came to heal what religion had broken and to reopen our connection with the Father, something systems alone could never accomplish.