When something bad happens to someone, is it a sign that they must have sinned in some way and are now being punished? Put that way, it seems like a pretty shallow belief to hold, doesn’t it? (Though I believe it’s pretty common for people to believe that the good that comes to them is a reward for their virtue – but that’s a subject for another play.) However, in this play about Jesus’ response when asked about a bad thing that happened to a group of people, he seems to say just that. Or does he?
As is often the case, it’s a bit of a mystery just what he says, and that, of course, is the bread-and-butter of The Wineskin Project. But as interesting as the subject turned out to be to explore, there was actually an aspect of the story that puzzled me even more than the theological question, and it has to do with the event that precipitated the discussion with Jesus: a group of worshippers being killed by Pilate while they were performing their religious duties. What I find almost unbelievable is how anyone could bring that story up and then use it to launch a doctrinal debate.
Think about it. If you heard that story, would your first question really be, “Was this God punishing them?” when there’s a clearly identified killer already in the story? (It’s not like the example that Jesus then brings up, the falling tower that could more accurately be described as “an act of God”.) Wouldn’t your first question more likely be, “Why did Pilate kill them?” Or maybe, “Could I be next on Pilate’s hit list?”
After all, Jesus and the disciples were, themselves, a group that often saw itself in opposition to the Romans, and the Messianic promise was freedom for the nation. Wouldn’t the assassination of this other religious group raise far more pressing questions in their minds than the one that was asked? And even if it didn’t, I would think the that Hand of God would be the last thing any Israeli would associate with the Romans.
So I ended my play on this foreboding note: the constant tension the disciples must have felt between the political and the religious, and the fear that must have haunted them as they followed this man whom they believed would some day challenge the Roman rule.
Note: Oops! I got my years mixed up and wrote this play way out of order, thinking it was the text for Lent 4 in Year A rather than C!