To Flee or Not To Flee

“The Lord will give you understanding.” 2 Timothy 2:7

Had a quick Starbucks in the Nashville airport before leaving on a jet plane to California. I’ve found that the crampiness of flying is not conducive to writing. Kind of makes me think of how the apostles must have felt when Jesus was crucified on the cross. I know… it must be my wild imagination for me to think that there’s any connection between being cramped and being crucified.

Something I’ve always pondered, though – what were the apostles thinking when they heard that Jesus was about to be hung on the cross? Did they hang around (no pun intended) to see what was in store for them? Or did they flee to another place to get away from the authorities? They must have been frightened for their lives, don’t you think? If I were in their shoes, or sandals, and seeing how my savior was treated and killed, I would certainly be scared out of my mind. We all know how Judas turned on Jesus and ratted him out. And what about Peter? He denied him thrice before the cock crowed.

So, what did the followers of Jesus do and where did they go? Did they think they would ever see Jesus again? Let’s see what the writers of the Gospels and Acts has to say.

The Gospel of Mark has no resurrection narrative (in the authentic writings). Mark does, however, have a message from a divine character of a promise of a resurrection. The divine messenger told the women at the tomb to tell the disciples to flee to Galilee where they will see Jesus again (Mark 16:7). Matthew’s Gospel confirms the appearance to the disciples in Galilee (Matthew 28:16-20). Makes complete sense to me. I wouldn’t hang around the Jerusalem area where the “King of the Jews” was just tortured and killed on a cross.

But wait a minute. In the last chapter of Luke’s Gospel (24:49) and the first chapter of the book of Acts (1:8) – same writer, by the way – Jesus tells the disciples to stay in Jerusalem to wait for his return. So, they did stay after all? Who am I to believe?

Goes to show you how stories change over time. Mark was written about 40-50 years after Jesus died and Acts was written in the beginning of the second century, about 80-100 years after Jesus’ death. I can’t remember what I did even 10 years ago and I’m bound to tell stories where the fish I caught was much larger than my mother says it really was. The truth is always an illusion. I doubt that we will ever know how this religion we call Christianity came about. It certainly wasn’t the same in the early decades after Jesus died. But then again, who am I to say?

I’d say it’s time for another cup but airplane coffee is not for me. For now, I’ll just sit here patiently and fantasize about having another cup of dark roast.

“Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path to my coffeehouse.” Kaffeina 119:105