Jesus and the Suffering Women - Rev. Moses Bollam

‘They went to a place called Gethsemane, and Jesus said to his disciples, “Sit here while I pray.” He took Peter, James and John along with him, and he began to be deeply distressed and troubled. “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death,” he said to them. “Stay here and keep watch.” Mark 14:32-34

On that difficult night, Jesus went to Gethsemane to pray. Now that the time of his arrest is at hand, Jesus is portrayed like any other human being, who knowing that his life is growing short, began to be distressed. Most of the New Testament scholarship proclaims that the suffering and death of Jesus was in accordance with God’s redemptive purpose and therefore God preordains it.

However, according to Mark Jesus’ fundamental mission was not to die but to initiate the Kingdom of God (reign of God), (Mk.1:14-15). In the story of the vineyard owner (Mk.12:1-12). Father after sending his servants, finally sends his own son, thinking that they would respect him and not kill him. Instead, the tenants kill him and throw him out of the vineyard.

The mission of the son was to collect the produce. In the same note, the mission of Jesus in Jerusalem was to proclaim the message of the kingdom of God and call for repentance. That’s the fruit that God was expecting from the vineyard keepers in Jerusalem. But, the religious hierarchy was in no mood to lend an ear to a prophet from Galilee, who was a threat to the status quo.

The parable concludes that when the religious leaders heard the parable they wanted to arrest Jesus but were afraid of the people. Therefore, the reality of the situation in Jerusalem was such that Jesus expected his fate to be not much different from that of the son in the parable. Jesus would have probably expected a violent death not because it was preordained by God but because of the conflicts that he encountered in Jerusalem. Jesus’ manifesto was to preach good news to the oppressed and to set the captives free.

He stood against the oppression and exploitation of people like women, widows, lepers and other people. Jesus was willing to meet the demands of his expectation, even towards the end of his life. Jesus’ commitment to the kingdom of God was to remain faithful to his mission of proclaiming and living out the kingdom of God, even till the point of his death. This is not a passive acceptance of violence or a preordained task He was sent to accomplish, but He was committed to His mission and sacrificed Himself willingly.

Jesus did not die as a disappointed messiah. He died with the conviction that not even His own death was going to put a stop to the kingdom of God, that the kingdom of God is even greater than His own life. In fact, He came to the place where He believed that if the kingdom of God meant His own death, He would accept the bitter cup and drink it. What is the relevance of Jesus’ suffering and death for the oppressed in our society?

As a result of domestic violence, women are sometimes forced to suffer. We cannot glorify suffering in the context of domestic violence and view it as a virtue. Sometimes the suffering women are advised to become ‘an ideal woman’ by being submissive and obedient to their husbands in distorted relationships and abusive marriages. Unequal power relations in the world have the root cause for proliferation of domestic violence.

Some propose Christ as an example for women to endure their sufferings as Christ endured his cross. But Jesus’ suffering was necessary part of his solidarity with the oppressed through which he proclaimed a new reign of God.

Jesus initiated a kingdom of God movement in word and deed, therefore, it cannot be used to validate or encourage women to remain in abusive marriages or to sacrifice their selfhood. Jesus’ fundamental understanding of the reign of God is not to take us into another world and escape the reality, but has always challenged the status-quo and questioned the attitude against women of his time. In conclusion, the message conveyed at Gethsemane is that Jesus was willing to accept the ultimate consequence (death) by standing strong against oppression to bring the reign of God. This is not a passive acceptance of violence, but rather a commitment to not to turn back from his mission. Jesus’ example is not to passively suffer and submit to violence, but rather to stand strong against oppression and hope in God’s ability to transform even the worst situations.