The plot thickens. Jesus has raised Lazarus, and as happeneds over and over again, some of the witnesses believe him, and others go running to the Pharisees. They call a meeting of the Sanhedrin, the ruling council of the Jews. They determine that Jesus must be put to death because his acts threaten to bring the Roman rulers down on their heads. Jesus heads out of town, and the Sanhedrin issues a warrant for his arrest.
In his commentary, Burridge writes:
They [the Pharisees and the Sadducees] are frightened that 'the Romans will take away our holy place and our nation.' (11:48). They are not concerned bout whether what Jesus says is true, or if God's glory is really with him, but with their own control. The temple of God has become 'our place' and the people of God are 'our nation'. (p. 150)I cannot help but think of our present situation in the Anglican Communion. I know that many of the conservatives within the Episcopal Church, and especially those who have left the Episcopal Church and placed themselves under the "guardianship" of other provinces, feel that the current leadership of our church is the current equivalent of the Sanhedrin. They see the leadership, and a "liberal cabal" behind it (and not so secretly, they say), ignoring Jesus or not believing in him at all. Many liberals see the entire thing as a power struggle to maintain power by those who were once in control and see that power slipping away.
But Burridge continues:
Ultimately their fears are realized in the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple by the Romans in AD 70; with no temple and no power the Sadduces disappear, and the Pharisees are left to regroup Judaism around the law. (p. 151)So who is so focused on the law that they can't see what Jesus is seeing? Again, the conservatives point their fingers at the liberal leadership of the Episcopal Church, claiming that the lawsuits are "Unchristian" and the deposition of conservative bishops illegal under the canons of the church. Of course, they are not above pulling out the rule book when it supports their purposes. And who is it that holds up a tiny handful of biblical passages that they claim are immutable law/rules for lbgt folks who want to be Christians? And who is it that is pushing for a Covenant, a set of rules, for the Anglican Communion? And who is it that once they have pulled the Anglican Communion apart will focus on the rules that will keep them "pure"?
Meanwhile, Jesus is out in the world doing God's work. Shouldn't we be doing the same?
Peace,
Jeffri
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