Reading
for Good Friday: John 18:1-19:37
April 14, 2006
The Rev. Karen Siegfriedt
St. Jude the Apostle Episcopal Church, Cupertino,
CA
If you want to get ahead in life, you need to be at the right place, at the right time, and seen by the right people. So when I got the order to deploy my soldiers into the city of Jerusalem for the yearly Jewish festival of the Passover, I was determined to make the best of it. For a centurion, this kind of duty is actually pretty easy. You act tough, show your military might, threaten a few people here and there, and for the most part, the people behave. Sure, there can be a lot of commotion when so many people descend upon a small walled up city like Jerusalem, but a little punishment goes a long way.
Being a centurion is an honorable position in the Roman army. If you are good at it, you can get ahead in life. The Roman army is divided into legions of 6000 soldiers. Each of these legions is divided into 60 centuries which means one hundred men. These 100 soldiers are ruled by a centurion like myself. We are the backbone of the army; career men who are the most experienced and best informed. We are responsible for discipline among the soldiers, equipping them with the skills they need in order to do their job well, and for making decisions on how to get a task accomplished in the field.
Did you know that there is a ranking among the centurions in each league? The highest ranking centurion in each league is given a special honor, similar to being knighted. The money is great, and once retired, the prime centurion becomes a prestigious and powerful member of society. That is what I what to be: #1. After all, what more could a person want in life? I don’t care what I have to do in order to get this rank and power. If it means killing a few innocent people, what is that to me?
Every few years at this Passover feast, some crazy bible-thumping fanatic, who thinks he is the messiah, comes around. But we have an agreement with the high priests that they will take care of the religious fanatics. We, on the other hand, spend our time and effort weeding out the zealots, those who are deluded into thinking they can overthrow Roman rule. That is why I was a bit surprised when asked to send some of my soldiers to investigate a religious fanatic named Jesus. Usually the Temple security guards take care of that kind of stuff. We just don’t have the time or the interest to meddle in the religious affairs of those superstitious Jews. But, I never question an order and I responded immediately to the request.
When my detachment first arrived at the garden, Jesus was sitting around with about a dozen people. Seemed like a peaceful gathering to me. When he saw the troops with swords and lanterns, he came up to us and asked: “Whom are you looking for?” When we told him that we were looking for Jesus, he identified himself. Then, my troops began to act strangely. They stepped back and fell to the ground. I was furious, especially after all of the training that we had done the week before. Believe me, those troops were disciplined that night. If we Romans show any kind of sentimentality or weakness, it will affect our power base. Fear of retribution is what keeps the domination system of violence working. So, we must keep them fearful at all times.
I guess I could go on and on about what happened that night, but it was pretty typical of power politics-both religious and political. This Jesus guy was a threat to the religious authorities and they wanted to snuff him out. So, various witnesses gave shabby evidence or false testimony against him and before you knew it, he was on trial in front of Pilate. Of course, I didn’t mind bringing him to Pilate. This opportunity could turn out to be a great career move for me. After all, a good word from the governor could significantly improve my standing among the other centurions. If being #1 is your goal, you cannot overlook any opportunity to seize the day.
Well, Pilate saw through the façade and actually tried to release Jesus, although since he was only a Jew, he didn’t try very hard. From my perspective, Jesus was not guilty. He was non-violent and had a history of preaching peace, turning the other cheek, & praying for one’s enemy. What a real gem for an officer like me whose job it is to keep the peace. I actually began to feel a little sorry for this guy. He was a scape-goat and would soon be sacrificed just like other innocent victims.
I thought to myself: ‘Doesn’t he know that anyone who crosses over the conventional wisdom of the day and challenges “the powers that be” is at risk? But Jesus remained calm throughout the trial and sputtered something about truth. This truth seemed more important to him than his own life. Now that is unusual! Most people make survival their highest goal and death their greatest evil. Fear of death is how we keep people in order. Fear of death is how we keep people silent. Fear of death is how we keep people oppressed. Fear of death is how we keep the hierarchy going. Fear of death is how we keep people complacent even in the face of poverty, injustice, suffering, and bondage. Just keep them thinking that this life is all that they have and they will sell their souls in order to hold onto one more day of their lives.
No wonder they wanted to kill Jesus. If he convinced enough people that there was more to life than hanging onto to one’s own physical body, then they might cultivate enough courage to overcome their fears. Once no longer fearful, they might speak up and unmask the delusional system of power that keeps people oppressed and supports the cycle of violence. They might even work for a new world order based on compassion, generosity, justice, mercy, inclusivity, and peace. If that were to happen, I would be out of a job. Wow, that’s just crazy thinking.
Well I am not going to dwell on his crucifixion. It went very smoothly; without a hitch. Oh, there was the usual wailing of women at the foot of the cross, but most of the men had taken off, so we weren’t concern. Nothing like a good crucifixion to keep people in order! In the end, we didn’t break his legs or let his body be eaten by the vultures. He’ll be buried in some tomb and forgotten in no time. I just hope Pilate puts in a good word for me.
...The only thing I don’t understand is why I keep thinking about him. There is a deep nagging inside of me. Who is this Jesus and why won’t he go away?
| Updated 4/14/06 |
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