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Just as I am - notes on some of the characters
MARY
There are many Marys in the gospels and we have chosen to name our key
female character Mary. She was on the margins of Jewish society as it
was feared that her sinful lifestyle might corrupt others and was
evidence of the influence of Satan, rather than God, in her life.
She
is not named in the story of the anointing of Jesus’ feet in Luke ch 7;
perhaps she is the same anonymous women accused of adultery in the
incident found in some manuscripts of John ch 7 and 8.
She is not to be
confused with Mary of Bethany, sister of Martha and Lazarus, nor with
Mary Magdalene who John’s Gospel tells us was the first to discover the
empty tomb nor, of course, with Mary the mother of Jesus.
It is hard for us today to understand some of the ideas of 1st century
Judaism, but many people were thought to be beyond God’s love and
forgiveness. As well as immorality, physical and mental illness were
also regarded as evidence that someone was in the grip of evil forces
and therefore should be shunned.
The hoped for Messianic age would be a
time when the blind could see, the deaf hear, the lame walk and the
captives would be released; the stories of Jesus’ healing ministry for
people at the time would have been “signs” that God’s rule on earth was
established, the power of Satan was destroyed, goodness was stronger
than evil and that God’s love was inclusive and open to all.
SIMON PETER
Despite his elevated position in the church as St Peter, the first
Bishop of Rome, he is presented in the gospels as someone we can all
identify with. Simon, the fisherman from Galilee in the north appears
impulsive and passionate but flawed and although he has proclaimed his
loyalty to Jesus, he three times denies his involvement with him when
Jesus is arrested.
His “confession of faith”, that Jesus is the long
awaited Messiah is accompanied by an unwillingness to accept that
Jesus’ mission will be fulfilled through suffering and death rather
than through fame and triumph. Matthew’s Gospel tells us that Jesus
gave him the nickname, in Aramaic, Cephas, in Greek, Petros or “rock”
and it is as Peter that he is usually known. In John ch 24 the
post-resurrection Jesus gives Peter the chance to cancel out the three
denials by proclaiming his love three times and the fisherman is
charged to be a shepherd of the flock and to “feed my sheep”.
NICODEMUS
The Pharisees have such a bad press in the Gospels! This is probably
the result of early Christian propaganda attempting to disassociate the
fledging Christian movement from Judaism. In reality the Pharisees, a
lay movement within Judaism, represented much that was admirable and
the group may have originated a few centuries before Jesus as defenders
of the faith during times of persecution. They were passionate and
knowledgeable about the Jewish Law, were dedicated to worship in the
local synagogues and upheld tradition.
To them all aspects of life were
sacred and formed part of their worship but perhaps their zeal for the
Law and their high moral standards may have sometimes led to a lack of
compassion for those who were more vulnerable. This is where Jesus and
the Pharisees appear to have clashed. There were some important
Pharisees in the story of early Christianity: Gamaliel defends Peter
and the disciples in the Acts of the Apostles and of course the
Pharisee Saul, on experiencing his conversion on the road to Damascus
becomes the great missionary and theologian of Christianity, Paul.
The Pharisee Nicodemus is clearly attracted to Jesus’ teaching but
finds it hard to reconcile with all he has previously held dear. He is
challenged to travel on a spiritual journey and to be “born again”
recognising that following Jesus does not demand a rejection of the
Jewish Law but an acceptance of him as the fulfilment of it. In John ch
7 Nicodemus reminds his fellow Pharisees that Jesus has a right to a
fair hearing. After Jesus’ crucifixion Nicodemus plays a part in his
burial with Joseph of Arimathea (a member of the Jewish Council, the
Sanhedrin and possibly also a Pharisee), providing expensive myrrh and
aloes to anoint the body.
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