Jesus' sayings on the cross as preserved in the various traditions are the voice of an alternative consciousness. His initial plea for forgiveness for his enemies is an act of criticism (Luke 23:34), for it asserts the insanity of the dominant culture. On behalf of the world which has now sentenced him, he enters a plea of temporary insanity. A reference should be made here to the insightful interpretation of Paul Lehmann, who shows that the trial of Jesus before Pilate in fact has Pilate, and not Jesus, on trial. The cry of Jesus from the cross, then, may be regarded as a decision (by the Judge) that the defendant (the old order) may not be punished because it is insane.
I never noticed that before or put it together with the prophecy that Christ would have the role of judging the living and the dead in this part of the narrative. Now that I've been introduced to the idea in a deep way (writing down a text can do that for you) it makes a kind of sense of the passage I'd never considered from just listening to it or reading it. It's certainly to be compared to the worldly powers which so seldom forgive unless it's to the rich and powerful or otherwise favored unequally. Whether it's a king or president or prime minister or judge or Supreme Court "justice" of a governor, etc. even those who will make a profession of faith in Christianity have followed bishops and ministers and popes in going all old-order when it comes to even those who never offended them but especially on those who they perceive as their enemies. In that regard, Pope Francis in not using his power to severely punish some of the worldly bishops and cardinals who have set themselves, publicly as his enemies, to silence them is impressive in a way I don't remember his immediate predecessors doing.
Second, his cry of despair (Mark 15:34) is an announcement of abandonment. The whole known network of meaning has collapsed in and a new dangerous situation of faith has emerged. Thus Jesus experiences the result of the criticism; the old assurances and awareness's of meaning are now all gone.
It is certainly also something that shows Jesus was fully human, I doubt anyone of us has such complete confidence in our judgment and choices, our own perceptions that we will not fear that we were wrong in believing at that point.
Third, the ultimate criticism ends in submission (Luke 23: 46), the last thing possible in a world of competence and control. Thus in that very world of control Jesus presents a new way of faithfulness that completely subverts the dominant way.
I read this and recalled several accounts of near death experience that said the terrifying feeling of everything from hellish mirages to total aloneness and nothingness persisted so long as they tried to maintain control but passed as they gave up control. Never having had the experience, I have to rely on the reports of those who have. You really can't take anything with you, including your old habits of assurance, or so it seems. Again, Jesus was fully human and one of us, perhaps this was the only way to convince us that the Resurrection is a new thing in the world, the "cosmos." Maybe Jesus died because of our sins and also as a means of breaking through our resistance to a new reality.
And finally, his assertion of paradise (Luke 23:43) is a speech about the delegitimization of the world that killed him. Now he speaks from a very different value system. The very one called criminal is now welcomed to paradise; the outcast is the welcomed one. Jesus' new way of acting and speaking announces that another way is now operating. It is the final assertion that the old way is null and void.
Again, this is certainly not somehting that self-called "Christian" societies, governments, churches have done much to follow. "Christian" prisons and capital punishment - the most enthusiastic states for killing people are full of those fastest to tell you they're "Christians" - are the leaders in showing no mercy to anyone but the rich and powerful. That's not confined to any one region of the country, it's true in even states which have abandoned capital punishment that those who are most eager to get it back include those most ready to make a show of religion. At least that's what I've seen in Maine, one of the earliest states to get rid of at least that level of old-order governance and "justice." The prisons here are not excessively humane, though.
Too much should not be made of these isolated statements of the cross, for each has its own complex development in the history of the tradition, which is undoubtedly in part a history of the liturgy. Nonetheless, together they form a statement that completely refutes the claims of those who seem to be in charge. These statements (a plea of insanity; a cry of abandonment; a groan of submission; and an assertion of a new way of graciousness) are a refutation of the world now brought to an end. The old order may be characterized as madness masquerading as control; phony assurance of sustained well-being; a desperate attempt to control and not to submit; and a grim system of retribution. Thus each statement of Jesus is a counter-possibility that places all the old ways in question. The passion narrative of Jesus provides ground for prophetic criticism. It hints at a fresh way for the repentance of Lent.
To that all I feel like saying right now is Amen.
No comments:
Post a Comment