Well, we are back to the Book of Acts again. When we left off, our friend Paul was in Roman custody for causing a riot at the Temple because someone saw him earlier hanging around with Gentiles and jumped to conclusions that he was bringing them into the prohibited area. And if you've been following this story, knowing Paul and the things he was going around saying, that's not such an unreasonable assumption. Except you know what they say about assuming.
So anyway he's now in Roman custody and here the pace picks up and gets rather confusing, I won't go into all the details about who, what and where, you can read it for yourself. He does start a riot at a gathering of the Sanhedrin by claiming he is on trial because he believes in resurrection (no, Paul, that is not why you are on trial and you know it). Now there are two parties in the Sanhedrin, the Pharisees (who believe in resurrection) and the Sadducees (who don't), and we are asked to believe that they have all gotten along prior to this despite their disagreement until Paul opens his mouth. To make a long story short, Paul is whisked off to Caesarea where he stays for about two years until there is a change of governors. He then tells the new governor that he wishes to use his right as a Roman citizen to appeal to Caesar. This suits everyone just fine. If he wants to go to Caesar, let him. At least he's out of our hair.
While following this story it dawned on me that there is something missing. To use a contemporary example, suppose the State of Texas executed an inmate in the 1980's and all of a sudden in 2012, there are all kinds of e-mails and other things popping up on the Internet claiming that because this inmate was innocent, now nobody has to pay any taxes or any debts of any kinds because this inmate paid the ultimate penalty. Well, you know how that would go over. Supposing now the ringleader behind all this goes down to Texas, runs afoul of the authorities, and ends up on trial. Now here's the part that is hard to believe. None of the Texas authorities, whether it is the governor, or the prison officials, remember anything at all about the inmate that was executed 30 years ago! And yet what this guy is claiming is linked directly to what they did back then.
This is what is missing from all that. I don't have a timeline in front of me, but I am guessing it must be some 30-40 years after the crucifixion. And Roman crucifixions were pretty public acts. There had to be people there who remembered that particular one. I don't know if Pilate had been transferred by then, but there had to be others around who were there. 30-40 years isn't that long ago. Yet none of this comes out in the Book of Acts. There is no one who says, hey, yeah, I was there, or I knew so and so and he was there. Yeah, I remember that guy, he was the one going around claiming he was the Messiah, there was something funny about after he died somebody said that they saw him. The events described in the Book of Acts--even Pentecost where they all started talking in foreign languages--are events people would remember. So why isn't there anyone who can step forth and verify what was being claimed?
But does Pastor address all this? Or how it is that we have detailed accounts of what was being said at Paul's various hearings when presumably none of his friends were present. No, he talks about Paul being a role model. Now I do have to give him credit, he did come out and say we were NOT to fight for God, let God defend himself. But Paul being a role model? That unless we are going out and living like Paul, getting arrested and all that, we aren't really committed to Christ? Ok, Pastor, how many times have you been arrested (and I'm not talking traffic tickets)? And what exactly do you mean by living like Paul? This is where you have to tread carefully. This is where and how the unstable members of your congregation, the fanatics, get their ideas. Where the young and impressionable, especially those that might be on the spectrum, get encouragement. YOU don't have to pay the consequences if they get it wrong and it all goes wrong, they do.
I heard a priest tell his congregation once that they should all go out and be like John the Baptist. At that time I was pretty active in the pro-life movement, picketing and all that, and I was taking quite a bit of heat for my stance on that and other things. It did not make me popular at work, not that I was interested in a popularity contest, but it did cause quite a few difficulties. I have already written about the gay IT employee who refused to help me when I had a computer problem. That's not a trivial matter. His refusal to help me meant I could not get my work done on time. Yes, I did go to my supervisor about his attitude and got nowhere. So I know about playing Paul, playing John the Baptist. I said to the priest, "Father, do you honestly know what you are asking of your congregation?" He said, "it (living the Faith) is hard." No, that is not at all what I am talking about. You are asking them to do something that you are not either willing or in a position to do yourself. At least Reverend King went to jail along with the other Civil Rights marchers. He didn't stand safely behind a pulpit and send Rosa Parks and the others out to get their heads cracked in, torn by dogs, and blasted by fire hoses. He walked the walk.
No, I don't think Paul is an appropriate role model at all. And the silence at the end of the Book of Acts concerning his fate makes me wonder what actually did happen before Caesar.
So anyway he's now in Roman custody and here the pace picks up and gets rather confusing, I won't go into all the details about who, what and where, you can read it for yourself. He does start a riot at a gathering of the Sanhedrin by claiming he is on trial because he believes in resurrection (no, Paul, that is not why you are on trial and you know it). Now there are two parties in the Sanhedrin, the Pharisees (who believe in resurrection) and the Sadducees (who don't), and we are asked to believe that they have all gotten along prior to this despite their disagreement until Paul opens his mouth. To make a long story short, Paul is whisked off to Caesarea where he stays for about two years until there is a change of governors. He then tells the new governor that he wishes to use his right as a Roman citizen to appeal to Caesar. This suits everyone just fine. If he wants to go to Caesar, let him. At least he's out of our hair.
While following this story it dawned on me that there is something missing. To use a contemporary example, suppose the State of Texas executed an inmate in the 1980's and all of a sudden in 2012, there are all kinds of e-mails and other things popping up on the Internet claiming that because this inmate was innocent, now nobody has to pay any taxes or any debts of any kinds because this inmate paid the ultimate penalty. Well, you know how that would go over. Supposing now the ringleader behind all this goes down to Texas, runs afoul of the authorities, and ends up on trial. Now here's the part that is hard to believe. None of the Texas authorities, whether it is the governor, or the prison officials, remember anything at all about the inmate that was executed 30 years ago! And yet what this guy is claiming is linked directly to what they did back then.
This is what is missing from all that. I don't have a timeline in front of me, but I am guessing it must be some 30-40 years after the crucifixion. And Roman crucifixions were pretty public acts. There had to be people there who remembered that particular one. I don't know if Pilate had been transferred by then, but there had to be others around who were there. 30-40 years isn't that long ago. Yet none of this comes out in the Book of Acts. There is no one who says, hey, yeah, I was there, or I knew so and so and he was there. Yeah, I remember that guy, he was the one going around claiming he was the Messiah, there was something funny about after he died somebody said that they saw him. The events described in the Book of Acts--even Pentecost where they all started talking in foreign languages--are events people would remember. So why isn't there anyone who can step forth and verify what was being claimed?
But does Pastor address all this? Or how it is that we have detailed accounts of what was being said at Paul's various hearings when presumably none of his friends were present. No, he talks about Paul being a role model. Now I do have to give him credit, he did come out and say we were NOT to fight for God, let God defend himself. But Paul being a role model? That unless we are going out and living like Paul, getting arrested and all that, we aren't really committed to Christ? Ok, Pastor, how many times have you been arrested (and I'm not talking traffic tickets)? And what exactly do you mean by living like Paul? This is where you have to tread carefully. This is where and how the unstable members of your congregation, the fanatics, get their ideas. Where the young and impressionable, especially those that might be on the spectrum, get encouragement. YOU don't have to pay the consequences if they get it wrong and it all goes wrong, they do.
I heard a priest tell his congregation once that they should all go out and be like John the Baptist. At that time I was pretty active in the pro-life movement, picketing and all that, and I was taking quite a bit of heat for my stance on that and other things. It did not make me popular at work, not that I was interested in a popularity contest, but it did cause quite a few difficulties. I have already written about the gay IT employee who refused to help me when I had a computer problem. That's not a trivial matter. His refusal to help me meant I could not get my work done on time. Yes, I did go to my supervisor about his attitude and got nowhere. So I know about playing Paul, playing John the Baptist. I said to the priest, "Father, do you honestly know what you are asking of your congregation?" He said, "it (living the Faith) is hard." No, that is not at all what I am talking about. You are asking them to do something that you are not either willing or in a position to do yourself. At least Reverend King went to jail along with the other Civil Rights marchers. He didn't stand safely behind a pulpit and send Rosa Parks and the others out to get their heads cracked in, torn by dogs, and blasted by fire hoses. He walked the walk.
No, I don't think Paul is an appropriate role model at all. And the silence at the end of the Book of Acts concerning his fate makes me wonder what actually did happen before Caesar.
