"When Pilate saw that he was getting nowhere, but that instead an uproar was starting, he took water and washed his hands in front of the crowd. 'I am innocent of this man's blood,' he said. 'It is your responsibility!'" -- Matthew 27:24

In this reading, we find indications that Pilate was a reasonable man.  Not sure what to do with this Jesus character, he asks the crowd, "What crime has he committed?"  They in turn, won't have it.  They basically see Pilate wavering a bit, and in order to seal the deal, they put the pressure of the crowd on him.  A skilled politician, Pilate knows better than to turn the crowd against him, so he says it's on them.  Gladly they take the blame off of him.  He "washes his hands of it" and makes clear that he's not in agreement, but he won't do the unpopular thing.  Though he had the power, he would not spare Jesus' life.

We read this story and, like armchair quarterbacks, say how we would have done it differently.  I wouldn't have washed my hands of it...  I  wouldn't have sent Jesus to be crucified... I would have stood up to the crowd.  But then I think of things in our own time that seem to be the popular trend, and I have to wonder, when issues are brought up and batted around, how much am I influenced by the crowd's leanings?  How much do I let the crowd's view of it color my own understanding of it?   We are all political, whether we like to believe it or not.  We all have the need to be accepted by society to some degree, but we're also called to effect change for God, and sometimes that means doing the unpopular thing-- sometimes it means going against the crowd.  When change is called for, courage on our part is even more called for.  Be brave and stand up for the right thing.  Your hands may be dirty for it, but your conscience will be clean.

Readings:  Exodus 34:1-35:9; Matthew 27:15-31; Psalm 33:12-22; Proverbs 9:1-6