The Challenge
It makes no sense to try to understand Jesus' entry into Jerusalem in
isolation. It is necessary to take into account the religious expectations and
the political climate of the time. This wider context will provide the stage on
which Jesus' bold move, an act which is clearly a major turning point in his
mission, was enacted.
Previously he was carrying out
his ministry predominantly in Galilee, even then avoiding the larger cities. He
chose to do his work remote from the centre of religious and political power in
Jerusalem. As Mark would have it, he was endeavouring to keep his activities
from attracting widespread attention. How often we read statements such as:
“And he strictly ordered them not to make him known”(3: 12), or “And he charged
them to tell no one about him”(8: 30).
These were dangerous times and
he could not afford to have the Roman authorities believing that he was
gathering a large following. This could have been construed as organising a
revolutionary group.
Now however on entering
Jerusalem, the headquarters of his opposition – Roman authority and Jewish
religious leaders – he is publicly declaring his purpose. It appears as if
Jesus is openly challenging those in power.
This Sunday demonstration is a
challenge to the oppressive Roman occupation and Roman theology which
accompanies it. The next day's “cleansing of the temple” challenges the Jewish
religious hierarchy.
These were powerful opponents,
but as Jesus made known on his way to Jerusalem, he was well aware of the inevitable
outcome (see for example 8: 31, 9:31, 10:32-34).
Model of the Jewish temple (built by Herod the Great), the seat of religious power in Judea.
Roman rule in
the Jewish lands.
Ultimate governing power in the
Jewish homeland at this time was concentrated in the hands of the Roman emperor
who at this time was Tiberius. At the local level it resided in his appointed
representative, the Governor, Pontius Pilate, and the temple and its
administration. The temple had always been the centre of Jewish religious life.
Now it took on an extra function – acting as a representative of Rome in maintaining
order and collecting the taxes. So the chief priests, elders and scribes, as
Mark described the leaders of the temple, who themselves were wealthy people,
were alienated from the general populace.
Pilate resided mainly in his
palace in Caesarea Maritima, situated on the Mediterranean coast. The climate
and general environment here were much preferable to that in the capital city
located in the hills inland. At the times of the major Jewish festivals he
would come up to Jerusalem. This was not because of any religious fervour,
after all he was a Roman. He came up with military reinforcements to be close
on hand to deal with any trouble which might erupt. With the many thousands of
pilgrims arriving in the already crowded city, and knowing from experience the
discontent under which the people lived, he knew that it would only take a
spark to start a nasty anti-government protest.
Two
processions
At this time preceding Passover,
two processions entered the Holy City of Jerusalem. There was Jesus' entry
as recorded in the gospels. There was also another which has not been mentioned
in the gospels. This was the entry of the Roman governor, Pontius Pilate,
coming from Caesarea Maritima to be on hand for the festival. And herein lies
the audacity of Jesus' procession.
Pilate embodied locally all that
the emperor Tiberius represented. That included not only the power of civic
government but also the notion of Imperial theology in which Tiberius was to be
worshipped as the Son of God. This entry from the west was an exhibition of
Roman might. Modern film and television has shown us today how this or other
similar processions may have looked . We hear the beating of drums and the
sound of marching feet. There is the governor seated on a finely decorated
steed, surrounded by members of his cavalry. The colourful uniforms of the
legionnaires surge forward with their helmets and weapons glinting in the
spring sunshine. All this with the regimental banners fluttering creates an
awesome sight for the onlookers.
The remains of a Roman parade of power - arches, columns and visitors wondering over the power that once was Rome.
This was the might
of Rome on show. It represented not only power, but also violence and
oppression. The pilgrims and local inhabitants did not join in this procession.
Contrast this spectacle with Jesus' symbolic entry.
The way the evangelists have
written their accounts would seem to indicate that Jesus had deliberately
orchestrated his entry to contrast with that of Pilate's. It was a graphic
illustration of Jesus' message about the Kingdom of God carried out in
humility. Here was a contrast between the Kingdom of Domination, the present
system under which the Jewish people suffered, and the Kingdom of Heaven which
could be theirs.
Jesus was challenging his
followers to realise there was another way to live other than under the control
of a dominating power. As history records, he was to pay the ultimate price for
his bold act.
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