Mark 15:21, CEB - Simon, a man from Cyrene, Alexander and Rufus’ father, was coming in from the countryside. They forced him to carry his cross.
I wish we knew more about poor Simon,
the man conscripted to carry a cross that had overwhelmed Jesus. There are many stories and traditions that
have grown up around him since that fateful day, but none rooted in verifiable
evidence. We don’t know if Simon of Cyrene
was a Jew, a sympathetic gentile to the cause of Jesus, or just a bystander who
happened to be by the path of the the awful procession to the cross that
day. In any case, Mark intentionally
mentions him by name. The question is
why.
Most likely, it was because of Simon’s
sons, Alexander and Rufus. By the time
the Gospel of Mark is written and begins to be circulated, Alexander and Rufus
are adults and are followers of Jesus. Mark
mentions them because Mark’s audience would have known who they were. Alexander and Rufus were living breathing
connections to the account Mark is giving of Jesus. They were witnesses to the crucifixion.
What a ghastly thing for children to
witness. I feel quite sure that terrible
images were burned into their little brains that day that would be with them
the rest of their lives. What fear must
have strangled their hearts as their father is torn away from them to get involved
in this atrocity known as Roman crucifixion.
I can’t think about very long without having to distract my mind with
other thoughts. Children should not see
such things. Yet children often do even
to this day.
Some of the images that are burned
into my brain for the rest of my life come from walking through an exhibit at
the MLK Center in Atlanta some years ago.
It was a special collection of pictures drawn by the children of Sudan
depicting the horrifying things they had seen in the genocidal campaign of the
Janjaweed (translation, “Devils on horseback”) during the ongoing Dafur
genocide. I remember tears streaming
down my face as I looked at the stick figure drawings showing their family
members and friends being raped, brutalized, and burned alive. Even as I recall it now as I write, the tears
fall again.
Simon and his sons were forever changed
by a seemingly minor detail of the passion of Jesus recalled in one verse in
the Gospel of Mark. I take comfort in
the fact that this wretched moment became a catalyst for their journey towards
God and the early Christian church. I
pray for similar outcomes for children all over the world who have “seen too
much.”
Question: What are images “burned into your brain” that
have changed you forever?
Prayer: Lord, please protect, redeem, and deliver Your
children who suffer even now. Help them
to know Your presence and transforming power.
Your kingdom come, Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Amen.
Prayer Focus: Pray for children in our country and around
the world who have “seen too much.”
Song: Jesus Loves the Little Children - Wilson World
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