The Good Man Jesus and the Scoundrel Christ

Christ is Saved by the Stranger

But at the edge of the crowd someone had noticed what Christ was doing as he noted down the words of Jesus, and said, ‘A spy! Here’s a spy from the Romans – throw him off the mountain!’

Before Christ could defend himself, another voice spoke beside him:

‘No, friend, you’re wrong. This man is one of us. He’s writing down the words of the teacher so he can take them and tell others the good news.’

Christ’s accuser was convinced, and turned back to listen to Jesus, forgetting Christ in a moment. Christ saw that the man who had defended him was none other than the stranger, the priest whose name he had not managed to learn.

‘Come aside with me for a moment,’ said the stranger.

They withdrew from the crowd, and sat under the shade of a tamarisk.

‘Am I doing the right thing?’ said Christ. ‘I wanted to be sure I heard him correctly, in case there was any judgement later.’

‘It is an excellent thing to do,’ said the stranger. ‘Sometimes there is a danger that people might misinterpret the words of a popular speaker. The statements need to be edited, the meanings clarified, the complexities unravelled for the simple-of-understanding. In fact, I want you to continue. Keep a record of what your brother says, and I shall collect your reports from time to time, so that we can begin the work of interpretation.’

‘These words that Jesus is saying,’ said Christ, ‘they might be seditious, I think. The man thought I was a Roman spy… It wouldn’t be surprising if the Romans did take an interest, would it?’

‘Very shrewdly observed,’ said the stranger. ‘That’s exactly what we have to bear in mind. Political matters are delicate and dangerous, and it requires a subtle mind and a strong nerve to negotiate them safely. I’m sure we can rely on you.’

And with a friendly squeeze of Christ’s shoulder, the stranger got to his feet and moved away. There were a dozen questions that Christ wanted to ask him, but before he could utter a word, the stranger was lost in the crowd. From the way he had spoken about political affairs, Christ wondered if his first guess had been right: perhaps the stranger was not just a priest, but a member of the Sanhedrin. That was the council that settled all doctrinal and judicial matters among the Jews, as well as dealing with Jewish relations with the Romans, and its members, of course, were men of great wisdom.