Thursday, May 17, 2007

Paul 1.11

Nicanor lived in the Second Quarter, where many Greek-speaking Jews did. Although the Fish Gate to the north was the quickest way in, Barnabas and I went south along the outer wall toward Herod's Palace. We wanted to worship the Lord at Golgotha and Joseph's empty tomb. Of course there had been no Herod living in the palace for about five years, since God judged Herod Agrippa for thinking himself a god. Worms ate his stomach until it exploded on the inside. It was a fitting end for the one who put James the son of Zebedee to death, the first apostle to die.

Cumanus was now procurator of Judea and lived in the palace when he was in town. The brothers in Caesarea had already warned us that he was in Jerusalem. Apparently he made the previous procurator, Tiberius Alexander, look really good. The Judeans had despised Alexander because he was born a Jew and then had apostacized from the faith. But he was at least sympathetic and competent.

By contrast, Cumanus seemed like another Pilate, all too quick to shed Jewish blood. So although we were taken aback, we were not too surprised to find someone hanging on a cross at Golgotha. Barnabas wanted to head back the other way to the Fish Gate. But I wouldn't let a cadre of Roman soldiers make me change course. The cross had become my glory. I would glory in the shame they meant to heap on us Jews.

The crucifixions had abated for a while after Pilate. Alexander had not used them, and even Cuspius Fadus before him had beheaded Theudas when he had claimed to be the Messiah. Maybe he was afraid it would only create another messianic movement like the Way.

But Cumanus clearly preferred the way of force rather than negotiation. I wouldn't be surprised if he instigated some kind of wholesale revolt before he finished his tenure.

Golgotha was just outside the Gennath Gate. It was placed so that Jews leaving the city toward the west would see anyone crucified there in plain view. The victim looked to be already dead, or almost. He was completely naked from head to toe, his legs buckled to the side in the shape of a V. A single nail through his ankles pinned him at the bottom, then one through each wrist at the top.

3 comments:

Angie Van De Merwe said...

Boy, have you given me something to "chew on"!

Power sought to undermine, shame, humiliate and intimidate the Jews, but Paul turned it on its head "theologically" to usurp the Power that message had or could have had in his Jewish mind. I guess Paul was a "resistor" in that sense. His Jewish faith, as well as his Greek education, was helpful in encouraging different churches he encountered. Jesus was THE moral example to these believers in overcoming power in dignity.

Ken Schenck said...

One of the most striking instances of this reversal is in 2 Corinthians when Paul speaks of being led in triumphal procession. The image is one of being taken captive to Rome in defeat. The connotation is victory.

Angie Van De Merwe said...

But, I would add that Power is not always to be submitted to...it takes wisdom to know what is to be resisted and what is to be accepted. God is NOT in CONTROL in the specific sense, but the ABSOLUTE sense in Paul's mind. But, Paul's context IS different than 21st century America (THANK GOODNESS!!!) We have "options" open to us, so that we don't have to be "led in defeat"....because we have a government that allows "freedom" from absolute power of that kind!!! (God certainly doesn't use His power absolutely, does He?)