Jesus' Life and Times - Holy Week (Friday)

Crucifixion was described by the Roman orator Cicero as "the most cruel and hideous of punishments." It was reserved for criminals without Roman citizenship and usually only for those who threatened the Roman social order: rebels, runaway slaves, those who attacked the property of the wealthy and those who committed treason by claiming power not authorized by Rome. It was designed to deter crime. Perhaps invented in a somewhat different form by the Persians and spread to the Middle East by Alexander the Great, this means of execution was said to have been adopted by the Romans from their blood enemies, the Carthaginians, who used it to execute defeated admirals; the Romans refined it to produce a very slow and extremely painful death.

Fifth Station of the Station of the Cross - Jesus takes up his cross

We are now standing alongside Phasael's Tower (right) at the Citadel, the only extent remains of three defense towers that once guarded the north side of the palace of Herod the Great, where Pontius Pilate set up his praetorium, his temporary Jerusalem residence. The upper part of the tower is Islamic, but the stones at the base (which is solid all the way through) are original. This is where we have chosen to mark our Fifth Station of the Cross because these 16 courses of large protruding stones, weighing about a ton each, may have borne silent witness to Jesus' first halting steps northward toward the rocky outcropping called Golgotha in Aramaic and Calvaria in Latin—the place of his crucifixion.

It was early on Friday morning, April 5, 33 AD* (after 6:00 a.m. but before 9:00 a.m.). As recorded by Matthew, following the severe beating and mocking homage by the "the whole company of soldiers," a four-man execution detail, commanded by a centurion, led Jesus toward the site set aside for crucifixions. Stumbling over the rough pavement, Jesus was weighed down by the heavy wooden beam (patibulum) of his cross. Two other condemned men were also straining under their crossbeams on the way to their executions, a pair about whom nothing is known. Processions were part of Roman crucifixions, especially in the case of political prisoners, because they added to the humiliation and disgrace, and demonstrated to onlookers what would happen to anyone else who rebelled against Roman rule.

* This date for Good Friday is given in Dr. Paul Maier's book "First Easter" ©1973 by Paul L. Maier. Assuming 6 BC as the year of Jesus' birth, he would have been 38/39 years old at the time of his crucifixion.

Today, the most direct route to Golgotha from the Citadel heads east along David Street (right), a narrow stepped alleyway lined with shops mostly devoted to selling household items and tourist trinkets, everything from Dome of the Rock paperweights and mother-of-pearl rosary beads to carved olive-wood nativity scenes. In the 1st century AD, as now, Jerusalem was a city teaming with life, with people going about their normal business. Then, as now, shopkeepers were beginning to set out tables of handcrafted wares to entice Passover pilgrims into making last minute purchases; women, too, had begun preparations for their Sabbath meals.

Sixth Station of the Cross - The women of Jerusalem weep over Jesus

Early this Friday morning, word had just begun to spread among city-dwellers and visitors that the Jewish officials had seized the popular rabbi from Nazareth the previous evening, then succeeded overnight in getting him convicted and sentenced to death by Pontius Pilate. Upon hearing the news, a "large number of people followed him" along the narrow street, including some of those who had joyously hailed his arrival five days ago. Jesus turned to a number of them and said:

"Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for me; weep for yourselves and for your children" (Luke 23:28 ).

Right, stone-carved marker at the 8th Station of the Cross on the Via Dolorosa, commemorating Jesus' statement to the women of Jerusalem; note the Latin cross and the Latin word nika (Greek niki) meaning "victory."

Seventh Station of the Cross - Simon of Cyrene is made to carry the cross for Jesus

Severely weakened by horrific beatings, exhaustion and loss of blood, Jesus was soon unable to carry his own crossbeam any farther. The soldiers assigned to his execution detail seized a bystander, a Diaspora Jew named Simon who had come to Jerusalem on pilgrimage from the region of Cyrene in North Africa, and commanded him to carry the crossbar for the weak and bleeding Jesus. The experience is thought to have converted him. From Acts, we know that the Cyrinian Jews had their own synagogue ("Synagogue of the Freedmen," see Acts 6:9) in Jerusalem. Mark (15:21) records that he was the "the father of Alexander and Rufus" (Greek names, but not uncommon among contemporary Jews), who were undoubtedly known to the early Christians to whom the Gospel of Luke was written. The name Rufus also crops up again at the conclusion to Paul's letter to the Romans (16:13).

Two thousand years ago, the topography of the city was roughly the same. David Street heads steadily downhill until it intersects with three covered parallel streets that are Jerusalem's central market. They date back to the reign of Queen Melisenda (1143-52 AD), the widow of the Crusader King Fulk of Anjou, who had built them over the Cardo Maximus, the main street and marketplace of Roman and Byzantine (2nd-6th centuries AD) Jerusalem. At one time the Cardo ran the entire length of the city, up to what is now Damascus Gate. A section of the street to our right (south) has been restored to something like its original appearance to give tourists an idea of what it looked like: a wide pavement flanked by roofed colonnades and lined with shops. Here, however, we turn left (north) onto the center of the three streets (right), called Souk al-Attarin (the spice market), now mostly clothing shops where veiled Arab women gather around stalls selling tennis shoes and cheap plastic toys. The smell of grilled lamb fills the air; men sit sipping tea.

Right, the narrow Souk al-Attarin Street; it was roofed over by the Crusaders, who perhaps could not stand the blazing summer sun of the Holy Land.

Shortly, another left takes us onto Souk al-Dabbagha Street which follows what would have been the course of the northern city wall at the time of Jesus. With the entrance plaza of the Holy Sepulcher church at the end of the street, the few shops here undoubtedly have no shortage of customers for their religious souvenirs. Just after rounding the corner, on our right, is the Alexander Hospice belonging to the Russian Orthodox Church; across the street is the Lutheran Church of the Redeemer. The area opposite the west-facing church entrance is known as the Muristan (Persian for hospital), now an Arab market. During the Crusades this was where the order of the Knights Hospitalers (also known as the Knights of St. John and Knights of Malta) had their headquarters and hospitals for tending wounded knights and sick and injured pilgrims. Some members of the group opt to climb up the seemingly endless spiral staircase within the church's landmark bell tower to take in the amazing views of the city, especially the Dome of the Rock, with the Mount of Olives beyond; also the Church of the Holy Sepulcher.

Somewhere in the northern wall was the Gennath** Gate, where roads led west to Emmaus and Joppa (today's Route 1 to Tel Aviv/Jaffa) and south to Bethlehem and Hebron (modern Route 60). In Christian tradition it is called the Gate of Judgment where Christ's death notice was posted. Here, the execution detail exited the city, squeezing past grumbling pilgrims who were forced to step aside. Many of them had walked all night to ensure arriving in the Holy City before the start of the Passover Sabbath. But their joy soon turned to sadness and anger when they saw the Romans about to execute three more Jews during this holiest of festivals.

Some 30 feet beyond the gate was an abandoned rock-quarry, now converted into a burial complex for wealthy families. Here there was a bare, isolated, 16-foot-high called "Golgotha" (derived from Aramaic, meaning skull, supposedly because it resembled a human skull). No stranger could mistake the fact that this was a place of execution, because upright beams, left there from previous crucifixions, stood naked against the brilliantly blue sky. Today, instead of a stark hill, we see a domed pile of limestone blocks and columns that is the holiest place in the Christian world.

Right, the rocky outcropping called "Golgotha" in an abandoned quarry outside the city walls, as depicted in the scale model of 1st century AD Jerusalem at the Israel Museum in Jerusalem.

A right turn at the end of Souk al-Dabbagha Street brings us into the courtyard before the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, called the greatest shrine in all Christiandom. Before we can enter the church we have to wait for the completion of a recession by a large group of Armenian monks and priests. That gives us time to review some background.

Church of the Holy Sepulcher

The Church of the Holy Sepulcher is one of the most complex, yet fascinating, structures in existence. Belying its status as Christianity's holiest shrine, it lies almost hidden within the Christian Quarter of Jerusalem's Old City; only its two domes distinguish it from its surroundings (right).

First time visitors to the church may be surprised, even shocked, at its unimpressive, almost shabby, appearance. After years of hearing the crucifixion accounts in the Gospels, imaginations may be filled with images of an an isolated skull-shaped hill, situated outside city walls, and a nearby rock-carved tomb in a tree filled garden. Instead they are greeted by a building that is not only inside city walls, its exterior has no visual impact, appearing to be made up of a clutter of mismatched elements. It certainly doesn't rank among the world's most beautiful churches; some have called it ugly. You hardly know where to look for something that will awe or inspire or make you feel closer to Jesus. Its interior has been described as looking like "a cross between a building site and a used furniture depot." American author Herman Melville, of Moby Dick fame, visiting the Holy Land in the mid-19th century AD, was hardly enamored with the church. He thought it "a sickening cheat." But the architectural jumble that is today's church is the result of its tortured history rather than the plan of architects. Consequently, the holiest place in the Christian world is beautiful in its parts, but difficult to consider as a whole.

Here, our tracing of the actual route of Christ's Passion merges with the final five stations of the cross of the traditional Via Dolorosa:

Passing through the main church entrance (right), immediately to the right, a steep flight of 19 steps climbs 16 feet to an archway, beyond which are two chapels:

The first is Catholic (right) with a mosaic over the altar depicting Jesus being stripped of his garments and nailing to the cross.

Immediately left of this chapel, over the actual rock of Golgotha, is the Altar of the Cross tended by the Greek Orthodox (below) commemorating the crucifixion. Behind the altar are life-size icons depicting Christ on the cross clad in a silver loin cloth. He is flanked by icons of the virgin Mary and the disciple John. Below is the rocky summit of Golgotha enclosed by glass to protect it from those who would chip away pieces as souvenirs, as has undoubtedly happened in the past. Under the small altar table is an inconspicuous silver ring marking the spot where it is said Jesus' cross stood. Many, including myself, bend down on hands and knees to reach through the opening and touch the rock below. Two black disks on either side of the altar indicate the positions of the crosses of the two men executed with Jesus.

While artists can admire the skill it took to create the elaborate icons displayed here, they seem cold, lifeless and out-of-place. I wished the rocky summit of Golgotha had been left in a more natural state—stark and bare.

Stumbling weakly to the base of the hill, Jesus was offered a mixture of wine mixed with myrrh (used as sedative to dull pain; ironically, one of the gifts of the Magi at his birth). Mark records that he refused it. He and the other two condemned men were stripped naked and knocked to the ground flat on their backs. Their arms were stretched out over their crossbeams and tied in place. Long iron nails were driven between the bones of their wrists into the wood, probably piercing a nerve and causing excruciating pain. The soldiers then grabbed each crossbeam (patibulum) and lifted them by ropes, dragging the men by the wrists until their feet were off the ground. The three must have writhed with the pain. Each crossbeam was then fixed onto its upright (stipes crucis) already standing atop the hill, forming a cross shaped like a capital T. Then the condemned men's' feet may have been nailed through the ankles to a wooden foot rest (called a suppedaneaum), or against the upright itself. If the feet were pulled downward and nailed close to the foot of the cross, the prisoner died too quickly. The Romans learned to push the feet upward so the condemned could use the nails to stretch upward, prolonging their agony. Their legs were made to straddle a wooden peg—called the sedile or sedere cruce—causing extreme pain because it concentrated the weight of their bodies at the end of the spine. It was a Roman refinement meant to lengthen the time condemned hung on their crosses—from hours to days. At the top of each cross, a sign (titulus) was attached proclaiming each victim's name and crime. The four Gospel writers present Jesus' titulus in slightly different forms, but all include "King of the Jews," and it was written, according to John, in "Aramaic, Latin and Greek" (John 19:20). The chief priests protested the wording to Pilate, saying that he should have written, "This man claimed to be king of the Jews." But Pilate shot back, "What I have written, I have written." It was the anti-Semitic governor's way of making a final stab at the Jewish subjects he despised, saying in essence, "What a pitiful king you Jews have!" Beneath this mocking titulus, Jesus began his ordeal, according to Mark, about the "third hour" (9:00 a.m.).

The trio hung on their crosses totally naked, unable to control normal bodily functions and in agonizing pain; muscle-cramps made breathing increasingly more difficult. "From the sixth hour until the ninth hour (noon to 3:00 p.m.) darkness came over all the land" (Matthew 27:45). Passersby entering and leaving the city through the nearby Gennath Gate joined the soldiers to sneer at Jesus: "He saved others," they said, "but he can't save himself! Let this Christ, this King of Israel, come down now from the cross, that we may see and believe" (Mark 15:31-32).

The Gospels record seven statements by Jesus on the cross: three in Luke only, three in John only, one in Matthew and Mark:

Back at the Temple, at the moment Jesus took his last breath and, as the sound of a flute rose up before the altar of sacrifice, the curtain veiling the Holy Place from the Most Holy Place was torn in two from top to bottom, and an earthquake rocked the massive Temple foundations.

There were other strange phenomena; dead men came out of their graves and appeared to many. The hour of judgment had come, but how many in the city knew it? Certainly not Joseph Caiaphas and the other Jews engaged in the Passover ceremonies realized the importance of the drama on rocky hill of Golgotha to the west. They may not even have taken the darkness brooding over the city as a warning sign. One man, however, felt a connection between the shaking of the earth and the final cry of the man who's execution he had been charged with overseeing—the centurion placed in charge of the execution detail. Standing on the darkened hillside just beyond the city walls, light came to him. "Surely this was a righteous man," he said (Luke 23:47). Nothing more is known of him, the first of millions of non-Jews who came to believe.

Except for the centurion and those family members and followers still standing watch near the crosses, Jesus' death went unnoticed. The soldiers were still gambling over the condemned men's possessions. Then one of the Sanhedrin emissaries sent to observe the execution noticed that Jesus had not moved in a while. With the special Passover Sabbath fast approaching, the men headed quickly to Herod's palace to ask Pontius Pilate to have the men's legs broken to hasten their death so their bodies could be removed from the crosses. We have a law, they said, quoting:

This breaking of the legs was a procedure use only in the case of Jewish crucifixions. Elsewhere the bodies were left on the crosses and might take up to three or four days to die. Per Pilate's orders, the soldiers took large mallets and swung them as hard as they could into the shins of the two men to either side of Jesus, shattering their bones. Without support from their legs to relieve the pressure exerted on the lungs when hanging by the writs, the men suffocated in minutes. When the soldiers came to Jesus' limp body, they saw that he was no longer breathing. To make sure that he was dead, one soldier rammed a spear into his side, producing a flow of "blood and water" (the result of piercing the pericardium, the sac surrounding the heart and the heart itself, according to one medical diagnosis).

Normally the bodies would have been left to the elements—wild animals and scavenger birds. But, Joseph of Arimathea,* boldly came to Pilate, asking that he be allowed to bury Jesus' body. A member of the Sanhedrin and a secret follower of Jesus, he had not voted to condemn Jesus at the earlier trial. Pilate did not grant permission immediately, but waited until he had first checked with the centurion in charge of the crucifixion detail to ascertain that Jesus had indeed died.

Rushing to beat the start of the Sabbath (which began, then as now, at sunset), Joseph went to the market and purchased linen cloth in which to wrap the corpse. Then he and his Sanhedrin colleague, Nicodemus (another secret disciple who, as reported in John 3:1-21, had a private conversation with Jesus earlier in his ministry), lovingly prepared Jesus' body. The normal burial procedure, according to the Mishnah, was to first anoint the body with oil to clean it; followed by a bath with water to rinse off any soil and blood; then a second anointing followed by perfume. Possibly these first steps were omitted because of the approaching start of the Sabbath, because the men simply covered Jesus' body with a mixture of dry spices—"myrrh and aloes, about seventy-five pounds" (John 19:35). Then they wrapped him in the linen strips, and his head in a separate cloth and placed it on a pillow of stones—all according to Jewish custom of the time.

Stone of Unction

Back down on the main floor of the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, directly inside the entrance, is the so-called "Stone of Unction," the supposed place where Jesus' body was taken down from the cross and prepared for burial. Tradition has it that this polished pink stone protects the actual stone where Jesus' body was prepared for burial with "myrrh and aloes" by Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus. The present limestone slab dates to 1810; it replaces a 12th century AD stone lost in the fire of 1808. Still, many people, upon entering the church, drop down on their knees to kiss the stone, some lingering for a few minutes to pray.

We watched as one pilgrim after another dropped to his or her knees to kiss the slab as if it were the very stone where their Savior's cold stiff body had lain. One elderly woman pulled a scarf from her neck, rubbed it on the stone as if to extract its latent healing-force. Returning the now sacred relic to her neck, she stood up, crossed herself on the chest and moved slowly toward the tomb, some 65 feet off to her left.

Below, the edicule (Latin little house) beneath the main dome of the Church of the Holy Sepulchrer enclosing what is thought to be the actual tomb of Christ.

Tenth Station of the Cross - Jesus' lifeless body is placed in Joseph of Arimathea's family tomb

Nicodemus and Joseph then placed Jesus' body in a new, unused, rock-cut tomb in an abandoned quarry. According to John's Gospel it was in a garden (Greek kepos) near the place of execution. This action by Joseph is made doubly meaningful when you realize that such rock-cut tombs were very expensive because of the labor involved in carving them and the fact that he commissioned it for his own burial and that of his family. Thus, Jesus was accorded all the respect of a valued and loved family member. Jesus' burial in this manner must have truly angered Caiaphas, Annas and their Sadducee cronies because interment in a new tomb in a garden setting was akin to treating Jesus as royalty, like two kings of Judah from the line of David—Manasseh, who "rested with his fathers and was buried in his palace garden, the garden of Uzza," and Amon, who "was buried in his grave in the garden of Uzza" (2 Kings 21:18, 26).

Right, the so-called "Tomb of Joseph of Arimathea," an anonymous burial cave in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. This rock-cut Jewish tomb, dating from the time of Jesus, is located in the Syrian-Jacobite chapel directly behind the edicule containing tomb of Christ. The presence of these tombs within the church and so near Jesus' tomb proves that Golgotha and the "new tomb" in a garden of John's Gospel was originally outside the city walls, since burial of the dead was forbidden within the city.

It was now about 6:00 p.m. Across the city, a priest climbed to the top of the tower at the southwest corner of the Temple Mount. Standing alongside a stone marked: "to the place of the trumpeting," he raised a shofar (ram's horn trumpet) to his mouth and sounded a long sad note, announcing the start of the holiest of all days, the Passover Sabbath (and the cessation of all work). As the incessant noise and busyness of the city fell into quietness, Joseph and Nicodemus removed the wedge holding the heavy wheel-shaped stone. It rolled across the outer burial chamber, blocking the tomb entrance against grave robbers and animals. With heavy hearts, they proceeded to their homes in the Upper City for their own Passover observances.

Left, tomb with rolling stone found at Abu Gosh (Old Testament Kiriath-Jearim), on Road 1, about 8 miles west of Jerusalem. Similar ones are found elsewhere in Israel.


Above left, 3rd Station of the Cross on the traditional Via Dolorosa, commemorating Jesus falling under the weight of his cross; Above center, entrance to the small Franciscan chapel at the 5th Station of the Cross: Simon of Cyrene made to carry the cross for Jesus; Above right, stacked wooden cross along the Via Dolorosa awaiting pilgrims who wish to literally take up his or her cross and follow in the footsteps of Jesus to Golgotha.