Justice and Crowds

Zechariah 7:9-10

Isaiah 42:1-4

*Mark 14:43-72* 

Now the chief priests and the whole council  (Sanhedrin) were looking for testimony against Jesus to put him to death; but they found none. For many gave false testimony against him, and their testimony did not agree.  ~Mark 14:55-56

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“ Justice and Crowds” by Gary Sanders

              As a trial lawyer I can assure you that I deal with many rules. When presenting a case before a court a lawyer has to keep in mind rules of evidence, rules of procedure, and let’s not forget, rules of professional conduct (the forgotten stepchild of the legal profession, but I’ll save that for another day.) Entire classes in law school are dedicated to these topics. They are all very important to our system of justice.

Can rules be misused and misinterpreted? Of course. Can “rules” themselves be unjust and require change? Of course. Read up on the Civil Rights movement. However, the rules which govern the course of a trial are designed so that everyone gets a fair chance. Each person who is put on trial, whether in a criminal case or a civil case, is ensured an even playing field because of these rules. Justice demands it. Some examples: No hearsay evidence to prove your case. No leading a friendly witness. A unanimous verdict is required. Jurors cannot pre-judge the case.

If you do some fact checking about the trial of Jesus you will learn that many of the Hebrew rules which were designed to protect the accused were totally ignored the night he was condemned to death. William Barclay calls that night in Jesus’ life “a series of flagrant injustices”. Here are just a few:

• The trial was not to be held at night.
  (It was so late even the disciples had already started to sleep.)
• It was to be held in a special place in the Temple.
  (It was held in the High Priest’s palace.)
• It was not to be held during a Great Feast. (Passover was in full swing.)
• To be a valid verdict there must be at least 2 witnesses, examined separately, who agree in detail on the evidence they present.
  (the false witnesses couldn’t even agree on what they heard.)
• Each member of the Sanhedrin was to give their verdict individually, from youngest to oldest. (This was a one man verdict by the High Priest.)
• If the verdict was death, a night must pass before it could be carried out.
  (Jesus was crucified the next day.)

How did this happen? The Sanhedrin was led by a High Priest and was comprised of chief priests and elders. This means Pharisees and Sadducees were part of the jury. I believe there were 71 members. All of them were experts in the law. Despite their very strict rules, and their constant focus on how important the law was (Jesus and his disciples got more than one lecture on that topic from the Pharisees), none of the crowd of 71 spoke up against the injustice that was being perpetrated right before their eyes. Crowd mentality set in. Justice was denied.

I counted how often the word “crowd” appears in Mark. My rough estimate is 31 times. (Very unscientific. I am sure I will be fact checked.) The crowd was many things: Hungry; sick; wanting a miracle. Always crowding in. I feel stifled and claustrophobic at times when I read Mark due to all the crowds. They were also fickle: Shouting “Hosanna” when Jesus came into Jerusalem, and shouting “Crucify him” a week later. Here in these verses the “crowd” was really a group of church leaders.

The Church--the universal Church which includes us here in Ocala-- is subject to the same crowd mentality. We need to humbly speak out when we see injustice being done and being spoken by the crowd right before our eyes. And yes those crowds include so called religious folks and “experts in the law”. We are part of the crowd that says all poor people can be “fixed” if they just work harder. We are part of the crowd that claims all illegal aliens are here to steal our jobs. We are part of the crowd that tells us gays are out to corrupt our concept of love and are an abomination. When we go along with the crowd we ignore the outcast, the marginalized, our brothers and sisters. When we go along with the crowd, when we do not welcome all people in the name of Christ, we are no better than the 71 who tried Jesus and condemned him to death.

When asked what the greatest “rule” of all was, Jesus responded by sharing two that even the playing field for everyone: “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the greatest commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.” Matthew 22:37-40 (also in Mark 12:30-31).

“And what does the Lord require of you?

To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.” Micah 6:8. 

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 For Courage to Do Justice (UMH #456)

O Lord, Open my eyes that I may see the needs of others;
Open my ears that I may hear their cries; Open my heart so that they need not be without support; let me not be afraid to defend the weak because of the anger of the strong; nor afraid to defend the poor because of the anger of the rich. Show me where love and hope and faith are needed and use me to bring them to those places. And so open my eyes and my ears that I may this coming day be able to do some work of peace for thee. Amen.

("God of Justice" by Tim Hughes)