Station III : Jesus is condemned by the Sanhedrin

Luke 22:66-71

66 When day came, the assembly of the elders of the people, both chief priests and scribes, gathered together, and they brought him to their council. 67They said, ‘If you are the Messiah,* tell us.’ He replied, ‘If I tell you, you will not believe; 68and if I question you, you will not answer. 69But from now on the Son of Man will be seated at the right hand of the power of God.’ 70All of them asked, ‘Are you, then, the Son of God?’ He said to them, ‘You say that I am.’ 71Then they said, ‘What further testimony do we need? We have heard it ourselves from his own lips!’

 

Some Background to the Scripture

By contrast to Mark’s version of Jesus ‘trial’ which was at night (and therefore invalid), Luke presents a formal and valid trial before the full Sanhedrin. Whilst Jesus does not acknowledge the truth of his identity in plain language, he does commit blasphemy by claiming he – the Son of God – will sit at God’s right hand.  Within Judaism, what he is doing is claiming to be like God and to share God’s power and authority. Whatever happens “from now on” is immaterial in one way because Jesus will rule from “God’s right hand”.  Perhaps not so obviously, he is also foretelling the resurrection. The use of ‘all’ indicates that Jesus receives total rejection from the Jewish leaders.

Reflection

We cannot see what is “out there” merely by looking around. Everything depends on the lenses through which we view the world. By putting on new lenses, we can see things that would otherwise remain invisible.

Parker J. Palmer, The Courage to Teach: Exploring the Inner Landscape of a Teacher’s Life

Reflection Question

Whom do I condemn?  How might I see them through a different lense?

Prayer

Open my heart to see others as you see them, Lord.

Response

Malala Yousafzai was shot by the Taliban for speaking out about the rights of girls to be educated.  She claims: “One child, one teacher, one book, one pen can change the world.” Visit her website and see what you can do to support her work.