Letters of

Aquila Volume 11 Issue 3

and

Priscilla

Reflections of Jun and Jean Uriarte

Carrying the cross himself Jn 19:17 Among the four Gospels, it is only the Gospel of John that explicitly states that Jesus carried the cross himself: Then he handed him over to them to be crucified. So they took Jesus, and carrying the cross himself he went out to what is called the Place of the Skull, in Hebrew, Golgotha. There they crucified him, and with him two others, one on either side, with Jesus at the middle (Jn 19:16-18). The Gospel of Mark gives the following account: And when they had mocked him, they stripped him of the purple cloak, dressed him in his own clothes, and led him out to crucify him. They pressed into service a passer-by, Simon, a Cyrenian, who was coming in from the country, the father of Alexander and Rufus, to carry his cross. They brought him to the place of Golgotha (which is translated Place of the Skull). They gave him wine drugged with myrrh, but he did not take it. Then they crucified him and divided his garments by casting lots for them to see what each should take (Mk 15:2024). The Gospel of Matthew narrates the same incident as follows: And when they had mocked him, they stripped him of the cloak, dressed him in his own clothes, and led him off to crucify him. As they were going out, they met a Cyrenian named Simon; this man they pressed into service to carry his cross. And when they came to a place called Golgotha (which means Place of the Skull), they gave Jesus wine to drink mixed with gall. But when he had tasted it, he refused to drink. After they had crucified him, they divided his garments by casting lots; then they sat down and kept watch over him there (Mt 27:31-36).

March 2012

In the Gospel of Luke, there is also no explicit mention of Jesus carrying the cross: As they led him away they took hold of a certain Simon, a Cyrenian, who was coming in from the country; and after laying the cross on him, they made him carry it behind Jesus…Now two others, both criminals, were led away with him to be executed. When they came to the place called the Skull, they crucified him and the criminals there, one on his right, the other on his left (Lk 23:26,32-33). All the four Gospels describe the transportation or carrying of the cross. In the Synoptic Gospels (Mark, Matthew and Luke), the cross is carried by Simon the Cyrenian. But in the Gospel of John, the evangelist makes it very clear that the cross is carried by Jesus himself. In fact, Simon of Cyrene is never mentioned in the Gospel of John although he is named in all three Synoptic Gospels, and in Mark even identified as the father of Alexander and Rufus. In Roman crucifixions, the vertical part of the cross (staticulum) is normally already implanted and standing at the place of crucifixion. The condemned person thus carries only the horizontal part of the cross or the crossbeam (patibulum). This crossbeam is normally carried behind the nape of the neck like a yoke, with the arms of the condemned person pulled back and hooked over it. Although the Synoptic Gospels have Simon the Cyrenian carry the cross, he appears in no other role in the Gospels and he is not mentioned in any other part of the New Testament. Despite this lacuna and his absence in the Gospel of John, it is widely accepted that Simon of Cyrene is a historical figure, meaning that he indeed existed and was not a fictional character used for

theological purposes. He came from Cyrene, the capital city of the North African district of Cyrenaica in the area of Libya.

implying some element of compulsion. On the other hand, Luke uses the phrase “laying the cross on him, they made him carry it behind Jesus,” which is more in conformity with the teaching that we should carry our cross not under compulsion but willingly and then follow Jesus.

Attempts have been made to harmonize the clear assertion in the Gospel of John that Jesus carried his own cross with the equally clear statement in the Synoptic Gospels that Simon of Cyrene carried the cross. Bible scholars have harmonized the two differing accounts by saying that Jesus must have carried the cross himself for a while (as described in the Gospel of John) and then, as Jesus grew weak, Simon must have been asked to carry it (as described in the Synoptic Gospels).

Another subtle difference between the account of the Synoptic writers and John is that in the Synoptic Gospels, Jesus is “led” by the authorities to his crucifixion – in Mark: “led him out to crucify him;” in Matthew: “led him off to crucify him;” and in Luke: “they led him away.” On the contrary, John writes: “carrying the cross himself he went out to what is called the Place of the Skull.” The Synoptic Gospels picture a very human Jesus while John’s Gospel depicts him as someone always in control of the situation, going out under his own power, knowingly and willingly, to the place of his crucifixion.

Fr. Raymond Brown, the noted Bible scholar, in his two-volume book The Death of the Messiah, states that “John’s omission of Simon was to emphasize Jesus’ control or authority even in the crucifixion.” Fr. Brown further asserts that “in John’s Christology, there is no room for Jesus’ needing or accepting help. The basic principle of John 10:17-18 comes into play: ‘I lay down my life…no one has taken it away from me; rather I lay it down on my own accord.’ We have seen previous Johannine touches in the Passion Narrative to underline Jesus’ sovereignty: Jesus forced the arresting party to move backward and fall to the ground in 18:6; he challenged the high priest about why he was being questioned in 18:21; he told Pilate, ‘You have no power over me at all’ (19:11).” The silence on Simon of Cyrene in the Gospel of John gives greater focus on Jesus who chooses to carry the cross himself.

Just as Jesus of the Gospel of John willingly and knowingly carried his cross himself, so we too should do the same. For we all have our own cross to carry. This cross is perhaps our current financial difficulties; a spouse afflicted with cancer; a son addicted to drugs; a young daughter who got pregnant; our own health problems; our difficulties at the office; or our frequent marital spats. But like Simon of Cyrene of the Synoptic Gospels, we should also willingly accept the privilege of carrying the cross for Jesus – for the cross is the consequence of our sins since he himself is without sin.

One possible reason why the Synoptic Gospels are silent about Jesus carrying the cross is that it was customary for the condemned man to carry his crossbeam. The writers might have felt that the readers already knew about this well-known practice. They took it for granted that the readers would assume that the condemned man, in this case Jesus, would carry his cross. Thus what the writers mentioned was the unusual – Simon of Cyrene carrying the cross, perhaps for a portion of the journey to Golgotha. It is to be noted also that Mark and Matthew mention that Simon of Cyrene was “pressed into service” to carry the cross,

This Lenten season let us reflect on our cross. Does your cross draw you away from God? Does it bring you to the brink of despair? Do you think it is now too heavy for you to carry? Do you think that you have been carrying it for too long? Have you been praying to God for help in carrying your cross but there seems to be no Simon of Cyrene being sent by the Lord? Does your cross now affect even your relationship with members of your immediate family? If like Jesus you have patiently carried your cross, then rejoice! Since in just a few days it will be Easter and the joy and triumph of the Resurrection will be with you!

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