Our Crucified King

Rev.Gus Carter

11/26/06

The last nine chapters of John's Gospel are called "The Book of Glory." In these chapters John describes the tragedy of Jesus death. Yet John sees beyond the sufferings of Jesus to the glory of God's love for humans. This section of the Gospel begins, "Having loved his own who were in the world, he showed his love for them to the very end." Roman crucifixions were meant to degrade the victims as much as possible. They were always demonstrations of what happens to traitors to the Roman Empire. But because Jesus lays down his life with power to take it up again, there is a triumphant element in John's concept of Jesus' crucifixion. In John's mind Jesus death established the Kingdom of God on earth, a Kingdom of love. John presents us with the special kind of love Jesus had for his disciples. He gave his life for his friends. This is the love Christians are to have for one another, self-sacrificing love.

Emphasizing the kingship of Jesus was one of the goals of John's Gospel, as he related the events of Jesus' Passion. The passage we have read today discusses the nature of Jesus' kingdom. His kingdom is not of this world, that is, one whose major aim is not what humans generally seek, wealth, power and celebrity. The Kingdom Jesus presents comes from above. It is generated by the power and grace of God. John portrays Jesus as the unique revealer who alone can speak and show the truth about God. Jesus has followers who hear his voice as truth. Only those who live and belong to the truth understand in what sense Jesus has a kingdom and is a king.

In his Passion Narrative John presents the irony of Jesus' sufferings. Pilate had political trouble with the Jewish ambition to be free of Roman domination. To taunt the Jews Pilate unknowingly proclaims Jesus' Kingdom. On the cross he had placed in the three languages of the Roman Empire in Jerusalem, Latin, Greek and Hebrew: "Jesus of Nazareth, king of the Jews." The Roman soldiers mock Jesus by dressing him in royal purple. They gave him a reed as his royal scepter. They tauntingly kneel before him saying, "Hail, king of the Jews." Then they struck him in the face. After this Pilate presented Jesus to the crowd, "Behold your king." The mob replies, probably encouraged by their religious leaders, "Crucify him."

Jesus went through his Passion, not as a victim but as sovereign and superhuman. Any moment Jesus could have brought his suffering to a halt. John's point was that Jesus, out of love for the Father and love for us, freely accepted the attempts to degrade him.

Jesus was handed over to Pilate because he had borne witness to the truth. John's whole Gospel preaches that the most important thing in life is the love for God and neighbor. That is the truth that Jesus proclaimed. He died because he was a threat to unjust religious and political practices. The truth of life is that we are made for each other. We are opposing the rule of God when we are unjust. Earlier in John's Gospel we read a statement by Jesus, "The world hates me because I testify to it that its works are evil."

Like Jesus we are called to enlarge God's family of people who are lovers, to share the love of God, even as Jesus shared it. In his death Jesus, according to John, "gives up the Spirit." John loves double meaning. Jesus dies but in the very act of dying he sends out the Spirit of love to all who will listen. John also said that Jesus' followers would be begotten from above, so that God becomes our Father and Jesus our brother. At the beginning of John's Passion Narrative Jesus washes the feet of his disciples. He taught us on that occasion that we should wash each others feet. We realize that our efforts to be just and loving will not always be welcome. To follow Jesus we must be willing to sacrifice our lives.

Meditating on the Passion of Jesus has been referred to since earliest times as the "School of Sanctity." Reflecting on Jesus' suffering and dying help us probe the depths of God's love for us. St. Ignatius encouraged us to remember: "He did all this for me. " We live as followers of Christ, as those filled with the Spirit of love. We belong to a community of love. Le t the love of Christ for us inspire us to spread the love of God throughout all the places where we work and live.