In mystery plays, the unknown author often dramatizes Biblical material to educate an illiterate medieval audience on Christian history. This is an idea that is reflected in the York play of the Crucifixion. While the unknown author of the play faithfully retains some details of the Crucifixion depicted in all the Gospels, he or she seems to favour particular aspects of one gospel and alter the presentation of the characters to reflect the message in that specific gospel. By analyzing the York play of the Crucifixion and the four gospels, this paper will argue that the unknown author of the York Crucifixion play draws extensively from the Gospel of Luke and alters the presentation of the characters in order to stimulate a sympathetic response from their medieval audience that reflects God’s own sense of forgiveness for humanity. While the author of the York Crucifixion play likely had …show more content…
As the Gospel of Luke deals more directly with the theme of forgiveness and compassion than the other three gospels, the unknown author’s unique presentation of the characters makes the audience witness the events of the Crucifixion in a way that encourages a sympathetic or forgiving response because this ability to forgive would bring a medieval audience spiritually closer to God. Furthermore, the possibility that the soldiers might attain spiritual salvation further suggests — to a medieval audience — that spiritual salvation is possible with the belief that God is a forgiving Creator. Ultimately, the unknown author of the York Crucifixion play creates a work that seems to be mindful of the religious politics in late medieval England and emphasizes God’s sense of forgiveness for a medieval
Let’s talk about the world about 2,000 years ago. It was a world where the mass of people were illiterate, taxes were extremely high, and the leaders would cheat and kill to feed their ever growing need for power. We all can relate to having a good storyteller in our lives, most were read to at night by their parents or are parents themselves that read to their children. What is the purpose of storytelling? It’s simple, comfort. A good story can ease your psychological unrest as well as offer a moral purpose. Sometimes you can even relate a story to your own life and offer an explanation to something you may be experiencing. This is exactly what the four gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John were. They told their stories of Jesus to offer comfort to their people in a time when people could not pick up a story and read it themselves. It is part of human nature to have the desire for a good story. This paper will describe several events that were written by great storytellers in the bible.
Society uses manipulation to divert people’s attention every day and oftentimes people do not realize that they are being manipulated. An advertisement through television is one of the many ways that people are manipulated. TV uses advertisements daily by incorporating subliminal messages to get people to do things that they would not otherwise be thinking about doing. The following articles “Can TV improve us?” by Jane Rosenzweig, On Sale at Old Navy: Cool Clothes for Identical Zombies!” by Damien Cave and TV’s War of Words” by Deborah Tannen exemplify instances where manipulation is being showcased at its best.
Bartlett’s book revolves around William Cragh, who was hanged for his crimes in the late 1200s. Shortly after his hanging, Cragh came back to life and was proclaimed to be a miracle. The sources that Bartlett uses to construct his historical narrative are not records of the trial or the crime. But rather, Bartlett uses records from the canonization process of Thomas de Cantilupe. This is because the miracle of Cragh’s resurrection was done through the intervention of Thomas de Cantilupe. While the story of William Cragh is extremely interesting by itself,
The books of Matthew and John though have many similarities, also have many differences due to the goals that they are trying to achieve and the importance of points/events they are trying to get across. The reason behind the initial portrayals of Jesus helps achieve the goals of each book; whereas Matthew’s book tries to ‘convince’ the educated readers and quarrelers (Pharisees), John’s book does not care much about reputation per se. For example, Jesus turns on the Jews who believe in him to generate a readers response to him as the definitive expression of God 's will or revelation as opposed to Matthew’s intentional readers response to God 's will as expressed in the Mosaic Law. While there are many qualities I could delve into regarding the difference in characters of Jesus, my essay in particular will look at what each book views is especially important with regard to Jesus and his intentions. Specifically, my main focus will be on the presentation of Jesus and reasons for doing so; setting in context what the book is basically about.
The Bible has been translated into 451 languages, sold over 6 billion times, and depicted in over 40 movies. The Bible and the crucifixion of the Messiah are prominent aspects in cultures all around the world today. The death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ has been translated, dramatized, televised, adapted, and cartooned. In “The Dream of the Rood,” translated by R.M. Liuzza, the Biblical cross comes to life to tell its own version of Christ’s death and resurrection. The author recreated the Biblical account to appeal to the Anglo-Saxon warrior group to effectively convert them. However, the story from the cross’s perspective matches the crucial material of the Biblical account of the crucifixion without defaming Christ.
Jesus' decision to physically cast out the moneylenders from the temple stands as one of the most interesting events of his life, because it represents what seems to be the only moment in the Gospel narratives where he becomes visibly angry to the point of physical action. While one could argue that Jesus is frequently (and justifiably) angry with the disciples from time to time, this is the only moment that Jesus' anger moves him to physical force. Although the event is recorded in all four of the Gospels, this study will focus specifically on its rendering in Matthew, because when considered in the context of Matthew's larger narrative, one can see how Jesus' decision to cleanse the temple does not represent an aberration in either his character or theological message, but rather the natural culmination of Jesus' life and works prior to that point, and demonstrates a kind of revolutionary, anti-authoritarian element of Jesus' message of salvation that is all too often overlooked by Christians and critics alike.
In The Judaeo-Christian Tradition by Jack H. Hexter, the trial of Jesus is addressed in an unorthodox perspective. The trial of Jesus incorporates two trials: the Roman trial and the Jewish trial. In Hexter's book the Roman trial is addressed in great length while the Jewish trial is almost unaddressed. Hexter provides a perspective of the trial of Jesus with only one cause: the charge of sedition, for claiming to be king of the Jews. By using the four gospel texts, Hexter's view is illuminated and we find crucial aspects to the trial that not only counter Hexter's view on the sedition charge but also provide evidence for other important charges. Themes other than the charge of sedition supporting Hexter's perspective include, the
When somebody needs help, do you help them? Well one time i was at the shooting range and a worker needed help setting up a skeet thrower. He was new on the job so he didn't really know how to set it up. So i helped him carry it to the trap house, then we got it on its blocks. He didn't know how to set it up, so i showed him how to plug it in. then i had to calibrate it, and make sure it was throwing at the right height. Finally, we got to have are skeet practice, and as always i shot the best.
Readers of the Gospel of Luke often try to identify Luke’s intended audience. Understanding Luke’s intended audience can provide insight into how Luke used current culture to strategically spread the word of God. Specifically, we can look at the period of Hellenization, along passages, to interpret Luke’s Gospel as intended for a Greco-Roman audience.
The Canterbury Tales, written and narrated by Geoffrey Chaucer, explores manipulation and dishonesty in the Catholic Church. The Nun in “The General Prologue” exemplifies improper qualities to which a Prioress should have. Along with the Nun, The Friar in “The General Prologue” uses false information to gain customer. In “The Pardoner’s Tale,” the Pardoner uses greedy tactics to wield other pilgrims into buying his relics.In Geoffrey Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales, Chaucer uses the Nun and the Friar in “The General Prologue” and the Pardoner in “The Pardoner’s Tale” to show the hypocrisy in the Church.
• Writes about Christ suffering extreme penalty during the reign of Tiberius at the hands of Pontius Pilatus. Refers to an immense multitude of Christ followers willing to die for their beliefs. Pg. 82
The crucifiers would drive a stake into the ground when whoever was being crucified arrived at the execution place. Sometimes they attached the victim to the cross only with ropes. In that case, the crossbeam, where they bound a victim’s arms, was fixed to the vertical beam. They then continued to tie their feet to the stake with a rope. If the victim was pinned down by nails, he was laid on the ground, with his shoulders on the crossbeam. They would hold out his arms and nail him to the crossbeam, which was raised. The victim's feet were nailed down against the previously nailed stake.
It is possible to write on the life of Jesus from the information gathered from the bible. I will be dividing my essay into three parts. In the first part of the paper, I will talk about the nature of the gospels, John’s views vs. the Synoptic, discuss if the authors of the gospels are eyewitnesses and how they used written sources. Also I will talk about the Q source. Then I will elaborate on the topic of how Matthew and Luke were similar. Then I will continue on by discussing how the Old Testament uses Moses, Samuel and Elijah to interpret Jesus, and finally whether or not the Sermon on the Mount happened. In the second part of my paper, I will talk about Jesus’s birth and childhood, his miracles, his resurrection, and what Jesus did to cure people, spirits and how they are interpreted to the prophet, magician and the mad man compared to Saul and Elijah. The final part of the paper I will talk about what Jesus talked about as regards to the Kingdom of God vs. the Kingdom of the Romans and what he intended by speaking of the end of the world. I will also speak of the reasons behind the Romans executing him. My sources for this paper will be the New Jerusalem Bible Readers edition as my primary source and lecture notes from Professor Trumbach.
The severity of the humiliation that was precedent to the death of Jesus is strategically diminished when it is recounted in order to
Religion has played a significant role in the shaping and molding of human civilization. In the Middle Ages, religion was a core pinnacle that served as a source of guidance and meaning for individuals and the state. The medieval play, Everyman, explores the journey of Everyman to Heaven and the phases he must go through in order to stand before God to give an account of his life. Everyman was written during a time when the Catholic Church’s practice of penance was paramount as a means for attaining salvation. The personification of the everyday person and spiritual qualities in this play gives an impressive insight into the trials and victories that are part of the Christian walk on the journey to eternal life. This work embodies the