Condem

“And Jesus said, ‘Neither do I condemn you; go, and do not sin again.’” (John 8:11).

Mary Magdalene in the Cave (Hugues Merle)

I have been reflecting on that forgiveness of the woman accused of adultery.  I have not only been thinking about this with a modern gaze, but I have also been considering this with an ancient gaze.

The story is well-documented in the Gospels.  A woman was threatened with just punishment for her sin, and Christ convinced the crowd to abandon the punishment and instead to allow an act of mercy, under His direction…

“The scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in adultery, and placing her in the midst they said to him, ‘Teacher, this woman has been caught in the act of adultery. Now in the law Moses commanded us to stone such. What do you say about her?’...  And as they continued to ask him, he stood up and said to them, ‘Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her.’ And once more he bent down and wrote with his finger on the ground. But when they heard it, they went away, one by one, beginning with the eldest, and Jesus was left alone with the woman standing before him. Jesus looked up and said to her, ‘Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?’ She said, ‘No one, Lord.’ And Jesus said, ‘Neither do I condemn you; go, and do not sin again.’” (John 8:1-11).

And there is such hope in that action of Christ.  After all, there was a woman who was physically condemned to death in the same way that she was spiritually condemned to eternal death.  She had disobeyed one of God’s commandments.  And that is no simple thing.  After all, it would have seemed so strange when people witnessed this compassion and mercy for the first time.  There was, after all, no precedent for it.  Prior to this the Jewish people enforced the law of Moses with a steadfastness that boarded on zealous fanaticism…

And here – for the very first time – there was a teacher of the Law – a Rabbi – speaking with authority about mercy.  And then, for the very first time – without shame – that same teacher spoke to the sinner with compassion.

There is an old cliche that says, you catch more flies with honey than with vinegar.  And while I do not remember this phrase in a patronising manner in terms of my God, I certainly do consider it in terms of the strangeness of the concept itself.  After all, it is one thing to think theoretically about compassion, and quite another to stare the guilty party straight in the face and lovingly and genuinely forgive them with all your heart.

And this is what Christ did then – for the adulterous woman – and this is what He does for me.  And in considering this it is simply miraculous!  Simply and extraordinarily miraculous!

For with prayer, I stand on Holy Ground where everything is clear. Here. At the Foot of the Cross.