BLOG 4/3/18. WHAT FOLLOWS EASTER? HOPE AND PERSECUTION

BLOG 4/3/18. WHAT FOLLOWS EASTER? HOPE AND PERSECUTION!

It is worth a brief reminder, that historically what followed that first Easter was something like four centuries of persecution … and what made that persecution endurable was the incredible hope that was generated by the resurrection of Jesus from the dead, and the verification of his claim that in himself, God’s new age had dawned, and in himself God’s promise of the Messiah was being realized.

That all seems so difficult for us to comprehend in our present North American culture, when Easter signals more the dawning of spring, spring-break from schools, sports, and such. In my native Georgia setting so much is focused on a new baseball season, the Master’s Golf Tournament on that splendidly landscaped course in Augusta, so much so that the tragic events taking place around the world what with all the human atrocities seems almost unreal.

The juxtaposition of hope and persecution as the legacy of the Easter event is difficult to even comprehend from this vantage point. Yet, as we have often asserted in these blogs, the life and teachings of Jesus Christ are counter-cultural to the core: they stood in direct confrontation to both the Temple hierarchy of Jerusalem religiously, and the hegemony of the Roman Empire with its Caesar-worship politically. Neither of these powers took that lightly, so that you see almost immediate persecution, and Christians meeting clandestinely, and yet joyously and contagiously in Jerusalem, and soon across the empire.

But this engagement with an alien culture was not a flash-in-the-pan. It went on for centuries. To be publicly identified with Christ could mean torture, imprisonment, or death. Chew on that for a moment! The time came when making Christians the victims in the bloody spectacles in the Roman Coliseum was a popular spectator sport (along with gladiatorial fights). But even that did not dissuade the heirs of Christ’s cross and resurrection. They counted it an honor to suffer for Jesus’ sake, and the gospel of the kingdom of God continued to leaven the world as it spread it message of a new humanity realized through faith in Christ, and obedience to his teachings.

It is worth retrieving an account (much mythologized, admittedly) of a 5th century Christian monk from Turkey by the name of Telemachus, who upon hearing of this terrible form of entertainment in Rome, traveled to Rome and entered the coliseum as a spectator, and when all of the bloody events of the day were taking place, made his way down in front of the Emperor Honorius’ box seat, and raised his hand in protest, declaring: “In the name of Jesus Christ, forbear!” He was almost immediately struck down and killed by Roman soldiers, so the story goes. But whatever embellishments the story has accumulated, it is noted historically that these bloody spectacles began to decline as of that day. Honorius is a forgotten Roman emperor, but Telemachus is named a saint by the Roman Catholic Church.

The letters of the apostle Peter in the New Testament verify the conviction that to be a follower of Christ is to be an alien and an exile, to be subject to persecution, … and yet in the midst of it all to be the living exhibits of the New Life in Christ made possible by Christ’s death and resurrection. Yes, and even in the most hostile of cultures, to be the incarnation of God’s New Creation in Christ, the “sweet aroma of Christ unto God” in whatever expression of the cultural darkness we inhabit. To bear the name of Christ’s children of Light in this dominion of darkness is a high and holy calling. Go in peace!

[And … if you find these Blogs provocative, recommend them to your friends, and I will be grateful. I am also grateful for your comments. And, may I remind you that my latest book is: Homebrew Churches: Reconceiving the Church for Tomorrow’s Children, and is available from Amazon, or from Wipf and Stock Publishers.]

About rthenderson

Sixty years a pastor-teacher within the Presbyterian Church. Author of several books, the latest of which are a trilogy on missional ecclesiology: ENCHANTED COMMUNITY: JOURNEY INTO THE MYSTERY OF THE CHURCH, then, REFOUNDING THE CHURCH FROM THE UNDERSIDE, then THE CHURCH AND THE RELENTLESS DARKNESS. Previous to this trilogy was A DOOR OF HOPE: SPIRITUAL CONFLICT IN PASTORAL MINISTRY, and SUBVERSIVE JESUS, RADICAL FAITH. I am a native of West Palm Beach, Florida, a graduate of Davidson College, then of Columbia and Westminster Theological Seminaries.
This entry was posted in Uncategorized. Bookmark the permalink.

One Response to BLOG 4/3/18. WHAT FOLLOWS EASTER? HOPE AND PERSECUTION

  1. Bill Serjak says:

    Today Satan is more subtle in luring people away from Jesus, but his subtlety is still quite effective.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

CommentLuv badge