“After Judas took the morsel, Satan entered him.”

The Gospel of this Tuesday of Holy Week presents Judas, one of the Twelve, who shares the table with Jesus, receives the morsel from His hand, and yet opens himself to darkness. This moment reveals a frightening spiritual truth; it is possible to be close to Jesus externally and yet far from Him internally. Judas was not an outsider; he was a disciple, chosen and loved. Still, his heart gradually became a place where betrayal could grow. The phrase, “after Judas took the morsel, Satan entered him,” invites us to reflect not only on Judas but on ourselves. The morsel, given in the context of the Last Supper, echoes the intimacy of communion. Yet, instead of receiving grace, Judas receives it with a divided heart. This teaches us that the reception of the Lord requires interior openness, purity, and sincerity. When the heart is closed, hardened, or attached to sin, even sacred encounters can be distorted. This is why the Catholic Church strongly teaches about the proper disposition for receiving the Eucharist. The Catechism of the Catholic Church reminds us that anyone conscious of grave sin must not receive Holy Communion without prior reconciliation. To receive the Body of Christ unworthily is not simply a mistake it is a desecration, a contradiction of the very love we are invited to receive. The Eucharist is the presence of Christ; therefore, it demands a heart that seeks to welcome Him, not resist Him. Judas did not fall in a single moment. His betrayal was the result of small compromises, hidden attachments, and a gradual closing of the heart. In contrast, the readings from Isaiah remind us that we are called from the womb, chosen and formed to be instruments of God’s light to the nations. We are meant to be “a light,” not a vessel of darkness. The Psalm echoes this trust: “In you, O Lord, I take refuge.” The difference between Judas and a faithful disciple lies in where the heart ultimately rests, in God or in self. Holy Week, therefore, becomes a time of honest self-examination. We must ask: What is in my heart as I approach the Lord? Am I open to His grace, or am I holding on to sin, resentment, or hidden darkness? Like Peter, we may also fall, but unlike Judas, we are called to return, to repent, and to trust in the mercy of Christ. The Eucharist is not just something we receive; it is Someone who comes to dwell within us. If we receive Him with a pure and open heart, He transforms us. But if we receive Him unworthily, we risk closing ourselves further to His grace. As we journey through Holy Week, the invitation is clear: to keep our hearts clean, to seek reconciliation, and to remain open to the Lord whom we receive. In doing so, we move from betrayal to fidelity, from darkness to light, and from death to life.