"The Face of Judas Iscariot by Bonnie Chamberlain,

"The Face of Judas Iscariot" by Bonnie Chamberlain, is a story narrated to the author by an old prist. It is a story about humanity. Many centuries ago, a great  painter was asked to paint a mural for a Cathedral in a Sicilian town. The subject was the Life of Christ. The artist worked hard for many years. The painting was almost complete except for the two most important figures- the figures of the Christ Child and Judas Iscariot. He searched far and wide for people who could be models for these two figures. he began to search for a representative model of each. For Jesus, he naturally wanted to find a model that presented a very innocent and merciful image. He spent considerable time search-ing for a model for Jesus and finally found the innocence and peace he wanted to capture on the face of a boy that was playing at a nearby river bank .Although the boy's face was dirty, it was the face of an angel.

The artist now needed a model for the portrait of Judas. He was very worried that he would die before he completed his masterpiece.     He continued his search but he could not find anyone who fitted his imagination of Judas. . However, he could not easily find a representative model for Judah Iscariot. He was searching for a model that portrayed insincerity, vulgarity, and cruelty on a single face. The story of the incomplete masterpiece spread far and wide. Many men who believed that their appearance was wicked came forward to be models. But the artist was not satisfied. He wanted his judas to be a man whose life had been destroyed by greed and just.

One afternoon when the artist was at the tavern, he found his model. A lean, wretched- looking man staggered in, begging for wine. The man's face seemed to bear the mark of every sin known to mankind.     The artist was thrilled at having found his model. He inquired about him and discovered that he was both a thief and a murderer. He asked for the cooperation of a corrections officer in order to get this criminal to be a model for his painting. Eventually the artist was able to create the desired image of Judas Iscariot by using the prisoner as his model. He worked at great speed to complete his painting. As the work progressed, a change came over the model. The dazed, lazy look on his face was replaced with a strange tension. He was horrified to look at the evil in the face that was being painted. The painter wept bitterly and finally said that several years ago he had been the model for the Christ Child. Now he was the model for Judas also!

 It was indeed ironic that a man who as a child had the face of an angel, now has a face that was completely evil. The suggestion is that man is born innocent. But slowly he becomes wicked and losses his innocence. This is a story about all of us.