Mark (Part 2)

Mark

27.19 (Part 2)

She's told me that she's had nightmares about Him. She believes these nightmares are proof that Jesus is innocent. Now my wife is no idiot and she understands the political situation. When the priests come to me and tell me they want Jesus to die, I don't have a choice but to let that happen. And I can put on the show of interrogating the man in front of the crowd, but his fate was sealed. She knows this. She's not asking me to free Him. She wants me to free myself of Him. She doesn't want me to be the one to sentence this Man to death. As always, she's right. She is a loving wife but she might be the actual governor of this city. I look at her and I can see the faces of our children in hers. I do hope that they grow up to be just like their mother and that the only thing they inherit from me is my name.

“When he was set down on the judgment seat, his wife sent unto him, saying, Have thou nothing to do with that just man: for I have suffered many things this day in a dream because of him.”

27.20 - 27.21

I have heard of this rebel Jesus. Of course. From Galilee. He came into the temple and made quite a mess. I was impressed when I heard that story. Sounds like the kind of thing I would want to do. Of course, He didn't kill anyone. However I still admire His courage. And so we are both here now. When I realized that the two of us had been brought before the crowd, I thought for sure my fate was sealed. They would not want to bring me back. I would simply cause trouble again. And this Jesus was a peaceful and loving teacher. Why would they kill Him? But I was wrong. There are those in the crowd that fear Jesus. They hate Him. I am surprised because the man is thin and does not look like He knows how to defend Himself. And yet as I look Him over, He stands stiff and still like a spear. It looks like He could do damage. He looks like He could do more damage than my sword ever has. It's a powerful thought. Could I fight the battles that I need to fight without lifting a hand? Could I discover that the death of my three boys was futile? What would I have to change about my heart in order to follow a path similar to Jesus? We wound up in the same place. Both condemned to die. If I leave this Earth a murderer, who would follow me? He leaves this earth a martyr. It's possible the whole world will follow Him. As these thoughts spin through my brain the crowd has spoken. Pilate is safe. The murderers are unnamed. And Jesus will die. I am saved. I am saved.

“But the chief priests and elders persuaded the multitude that they should save Barabbas, and destroy Jesus.”

“The governor answered and said unto them, Whether of the twain will ye that I release unto you? They said, "Barabbas.”

27.22 - 27.23

It is a job. We live in a time when my job is necessary. I do my job. I cut the wood and turn them into crosses. There is all manner of crucifixion. Many different styles. Whatever it is that I'm asked to build I do. All around the city I see my handiwork. I see the dead like ornaments hanging from the things that I make. It is not for me to judge whether or not this practice is good or barbaric. Killing others is not something that I would ever decide should be done. I am not the law. I am not the judge. I am a carpenter. I once made cribs and tables and windows for homes. But somehow I was tasked to make the crucifixes. My children have to eat. We need a home. These structures that I construct make that happen for us. They give us life.And no matter how long it takes a man to die on one of my crucifixes, he always does. And I am never without something to do.

“Pilate saith unto them, What shall I do then with Jesus which is called Christ? They all say unto him, Let him be crucified.”

“And the governor said, Why, what evil hath he done? But they cried out the more, saying, ‘Let him be crucified.’ ”

27.24 - 27.26

I could see my father. He had moved forward in the crowd but he was close enough that his face was clear to me. I could not describe what his face looked like, but it disturbed me. I had never seen him look that way. He looked as if he had seen something ghastly. At one point he covered his ears. The crowd was chanting. But as I looked around I didn't see anger. To hear the crowd you would have thought that they were angry, but to see them they looked full of sorrow. Full of pain. That's what I felt. I felt pain, and I didn't know why. Something horrible was happening. We were being forced to do something, and the crowd was calling for it. They were calling for his blood. I heard that clearly. But at that moment I didn't understand why. Did they want him to die? Were they calling for his death? When I looked into the faces of the people I knew, I did not see that. It did not see bloodlust. I saw grief. I saw genuine grief. And because of what I saw, I felt it myself. I could not see above the crowd but I knew that the preacher was up there. The young man that they called Jesus. I heard him speak once. I thought he was mild and intelligent. He was convincing and he had quieted the whole crowd as he spoke. There had been such tension over his presence here in the city that felt as if we were all going to break. And now that his death had been decided, there was the sense that we had been saved. And instead of breaking, we melted. We melted under the stare of the sun. And I didn't dare look up towards the sky because I was certain that the sun was angry at us. It was that type of heat. A punishing heat. The kind of heat that makes you believe that you had finally done something truly horrible. That you deserved to be burned.

“When Pilate saw that he could prevail nothing, but that rather a tumult was made, he took water, and washed his hands before the multitude, saying, I am innocent of the blood of this just person: see ye to it.”

“Then answered all the people, and said, His blood be on us, and on our children.”

27.26 - 27.27

I punish who they tell me to punish. The convicted are here for a reason. They are standing before death. They have done something to deserve it. I cannot consider the feelings of the man I might scourge. I use my flagrum carefully and wisely and fairly. I have a rhythm to it. I beat the man evenly. I make sure to hit the parts of his body that will most likely rip flesh from his bone. This is to soften him up before the crucifixion. And this is to punish him for whatever crime he has done. I stand here before this man. This is the one they call Jesus. I know nothing of Jesus. I know nothing of Jews. I am a soldier. I am paid by the emperor himself with coins that bear his face and name. And so this man who stands before me and who has been accused of crimes will be punished just as any man would be who had been placed before me, tied to the post, with his back exposed to me and to the sun. Take what you deserve, criminal. Feel the justice of the emperor Tiberius Julius Caesar Augustus.

“Then released he Barabbas unto them: and when he had scourged Jesus, he delivered him to be crucified.”

“Then the soldiers of the governor took Jesus into the common hall, and gathered unto him the whole band of soldiers.”

27.28 - 27.31

I have half the earth to warm and to light 24 hours a day, but today I'm finding it difficult to take my eyes away from this one city. He is there. I do not know his name, but I know he has significance. I know that the Creator who made me and all the other stars in the sky has something to do with this man. And that same Creator has something to do with his death. But what I'm seeing is not death. Not yet. I'm seeing the common cruelty of human beings on that third planet. I am the master of this solar system, and the only planet where there is life there is nothing but brutality. I know when they are naked they are completely vulnerable to me, and I see him standing there naked. They drape him in some garish cloth and stick a thorny crown in his skull. He rains blood. And his shoulders and his chest are now covered in it. It's unreasonable to think that the other things in the universe don't have emotions. I have emotions. Feelings. And today I am glad that I get to be the sun. I am glad I get to be the hottest thing in this solar system. Because I am upset at this. I am mad that this man is being treated this way. I cannot burn the earth worse than I already do but I am making sure that this city where these monsters live is as hot today as it has ever been. And should they melt into the earth, that would be fine with me. What do I care for them? From up here they look like worthless ants. Not even that. Ants don’t waste their lives staring at the sun. Ants don't burn that way. But these humans have no idea how to avoid their own deaths. You know what? I quit.

“And they stripped him, and put on him a scarlet robe.”

“And when they had planted a crown of thorns, they put it upon his head, and a reed in his right hand: and they bowed the knee before him, and mocked him, saying, Hail, King of the Jews!”

“And they spit upon him, and took the reed, and smote him on the head.”

“And after that they had mocked him, they took the robe off from him, and put his own raiment on him, and led him away to crucify him.”

27.32 - 27.35

I had come to Jerusalem with my sons for the Passover celebration. We traveled from Cyrene. I knew this would be such a special trip with them. They had never been to Jerusalem, and it had been years since I was here. Where we come from there aren't as many of us, but our faith is still strong. Yet here in Jerusalem we are at the center. We are with the temple. The sounds of so many different languages spoken around us are exciting. For my two sons I could see this was a worthy trip. Their eyes were drinking it all in. And I was proud to be able to bring them here. This was not an inexpensive trip, but I had worked hard and built a good career and home. My boys worked with me, but we also had many other workers. Taking this time away from our home was not easy but it was something we could afford. Rufus had run ahead because all three of us could hear cheering and shouting. Alexander stayed by my side. He was my youngest but at this point he was actually taller than I am. They were both tall boys. Their mother was tall. Not me though. I was close to the earth, let's say.

The noise got louder. The crowd got thicker. I could not see Rufus ahead of us and I grew worried. My son had common sense but these crowds look dangerous. These people in Jerusalem were not always lawful, and they were not always respectful of other human beings. In a flash however I could see my son's bright red tunic. He was pointing. I did not see immediately what it was he was pointing at but then I did.

It was a gaunt figure. A Man with a beam on His shoulders, and He was covered in blood. It was a dreadful sight to be honest. It almost looked like we were watching a corpse stumbling up to the gate. As I found myself gaping at this figure, I felt something sharp poke my shoulder. Sharp enough that it could have made a hole, but it didn't. The person wielding this sharp thing knew what he was doing. He was a soldier. He asked me my name and I told him. Simon. I am Simon from Cyrene. “Simon of Cyrene you will help this man carry this crucifix. He is going to Golgotha. He is to be crucified. His name is Jesus Christ. He is a criminal.” I looked over at Jesus. Have I heard His name before? It was possible. It is a common name. There had been some talk about some teacher or rabbi here in Jerusalem causing trouble in the temple. I certainly didn't want to be a part of this, and I looked back at the soldier but then I was reminded in my mind that I am a subject of the governor and the emperor and that I was not free to refuse an order. And so I followed the directions, and I moved towards the Man.

His face was down and feculent and looked as if it had been run through a stone mill. I touched Him carefully on His arm to get his attention, and He looked at me. His dark skin was dry and cool as if somehow the sun had not affected Him. He seemed to know immediately why I was there, and I thought He said my name. I took the beam from His shoulders and I placed it on my own. It was heavy, and I wondered how this Man could have carried it as far as He had. I did not know where we were going and so the soldier had to lead. We were surrounded by soldiers. It was clear that this Man was considered dangerous but somehow standing next to Him I could not believe that He was. I knew He was struggling to walk but still somehow He managed to move as quickly as the soldiers. I admired His strength. His back was covered in wounds. I knew that He had been tortured. I had heard that this was a common practice. I turned to Him, and I said His name. He looked at me when I said it and His face turned serene. He said “I am just a carpenter. A teacher. Listen when others teach my lessons. My words will be your reward.” And then a guard whipped Him so that the tail of it cut him across the face. And I knew it was no good to pay any attention to Him now. It would only mean more torture. And that's how we lurched towards the place of the skull. We were silent, and we moved without a struggle.

“And as they came out, they found a man of Cyrene, Simon by name: him they compelled to bear his cross.”

“And when they were come unto a place called Golgotha, that is to say, a place of a skull,”

“They gave him vinegar to drink mingled with gall: and when he had tasted thereof, he would not drink.”

27.35

I am luck. These men gamble, and so I'm here. Anytime there is gambling, I am always there. I am cruel. I would break them and their hopes. I always do. They're simply is no way to win with me. For even if you win, somebody else will lose. and sooner or later so will you. I have no heart. I do not care about the tears or the broken dreams. I do not care about all of your losses. Your losses are the air I breathe in and out. It's as simple as that. And today these men have joined me in my heartlessness. They are gambling for this dying man's clothes. The innocent man. This man who does not gamble and has never known me. There is no luck involved with him. There is truth. Truth is my enemy. Truth is the only thing that can stop me. And this man while naked on this cross is bathed in truth. And while these soldiers gamble for his clothing, I cannot take his truth. All they would have to do is look at him and they would see it. But instead they have their hands in my pockets. And I will take their lives if I can. If I can.

And they crucified him, and parted his garments, casting lots: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, They parted my garments among them, and upon my vesture did they cast lots.

27.37

καὶ ἐπέθηκαν ἐπάνω τῆς κεφαλῆς αὐτοῦ τὴν αἰτίαν αὐτοῦ γεγραμμένην ΟΥΤΟΣ ΕΣΤΙΝ ΙΗΣΟΥΣ Ο ΒΑΣΙΛΕΥΣ ΤΩΝ ΙΟΥΔΑΙΩΝ.

“And sitting down they watched him there;”

“And set up over his head his accusation written, This Is Jesus The King Of The Jews.”