Not quite Herman Cain’s (RIP) 999 but I’m getting there. Anyway, a few pieces I came across that you may find of value and a quick thought about today’s readings.

WHAT WE CAN LEARN FROM JUDAS ISCARIOT

Both Judas and Peter realized their sin, and they turned away in repulsion, but in different directions: Judas upon himself and Peter to Christ. This directional difference distinguished Judas’s despair from Peter’s repentance. Judas returned to the source of his sin; Peter returned to the source of mercy

An excerpt from the article named in the section heading that gave me new insight into the respective sins of Judas and Peter on the first Holy Thursday. Dominicana Daily makes a wonderful addition to my inbox — sign up here.

PAGANS FOR BIDEN

Atheists lined up behind Joe Biden, along with pagans, agnostics, humanists, and witches—and The New York Times.

Some fascinating stats on voting patterns of people of various faith traditions and no faith whatsoever. Find the full article here.

JONAH AND JESUS

Today’s reading give us Jonah walking through Nineveh conveying the Lord God’s message of repentance (Jon 3:1-10) and Jesus referring to Jonah as the “sign” that will be given to Jesus’ contemporaries (Lk 11:29-32). Something I never considered that I heard recently but is kind of obvious particularly in light of Jesus’ words: Just like Jesus would die and be hidden away for three day so did Jonah die when being swallowed by the sea creature. Makes sense, right? Digestive juices and no oxygen are not hospitable for any living creature — they do not a siesta make. Could the Lord have preserved him by a miracle? Of course. But the typology works much better if Jonah, like Jesus, died then rose again to save a people. True, Jonah did it reluctantly while Jesus did it freely, and Jonah would have resurrected by God’s power while Jesus did it of His own power, but the outcomes were of a kind. Worth chewing on, I think.

God bless.