How hard is it for me to realize that I am powerless before the world, that I cannot bend the law for my advantage, that I have to follow the millions of people who are just powerless before the mighty empires of power and influence in the world. I feel that it is even shameful for me to realize that I am powerless before the world, the mighty and powerful, and there are many who would look down upon me for being so powerless, and accept reality as it comes to me! But today as I stand before the Lord willingly and even joyously embracing the condemnation that Pilate had imposed on him, I realize the power of being powerless, power understood as a spiritual energy which can take me to a realm different from the material and physical reality!
I cannot accept the fact that sometimes I am powerless and am advised by everyone who matters to me that I should do something to make myself powerful and prove to the world that I cannot be taken for granted. The other day my elder brother’s case had come for hearing (he had been implicated in a case of fraud which the Central Board of Investigation had initiated on the firm where my brother was a partner), and the judge had given the verdict against my brother’s concern, and soon his world began to be in pieces. He could not accept the verdict – rupees five thousand fine and one year of simple imprisonment! It is not a question of if he deserved it or not, but I would like to look at how he reacted to the verdict.
The next day emails crisscrossed between the brothers; get rid of the case by hook or by crook! Even if you have to bribe the judge and spend far too much money on it, do not hesitate! That was the refrain that formed the main content of most of the emails, and my elder brother promised he would do everything possible in order to get out of the case. There were references given by my younger brother, who could help my brother come out with a clean chit. Money is not a problem if the work is well done, my brother assured the advocate handling his case. The central point is : do anything to get out of the ugly situation my brother was in.
A friend of mine who applied for a visa to visit a neighboring country was turned away, when my friend failed to carry his old passport, at the time of submitting the form. His other friends would be travelling to the neighboring country, and this friend was to accompany them. Now he had to go to with his friends by all means, and these men had all the influence they required to bend the rules, in order to get the visa the very next day. The same thing happened to a family of four, husband and wife, and two boys, whose application was also turned away because the husband did not carry his old passport. But my friend got his visa at a record time, because of the “influence” he had exerted through a higher authority of our college.
Who on earth wants to accept defeat, failure and unjust verdict? No one wants to accept a verdict which is a blatant injustice, but here stands a man who does not open his mouth to oppose an unjust verdict, a condemnation by the Roman governor Pilate and the Pharisees and scribes. Why could Jesus the Nazarene make use of his “influence” to show how powerful he was, that he was more powerful than the Romans, of the Jewish leaders, both political and religious! Why could he not plead to his Father to send his angels to show how powerful the Messiah was? This seemingly stupid godman perhaps did not know the ways of the world, he stood to his guns, to unjustly suffer an ignominious death on the cross, and he would do it willingly.
He even had the guts to defend his position, of keeping mum, of not making use of his influence to defend himself from the worldly powerful. My kingdom does not belong to this world. If my kingdom did belong to this world, my attendants would be fighting to keep me from being handed over to the Jews. But as it is, my kingdom is not here!” (Jn 18:35-36). Did he not know that he was living in the world and he must be a Roman in Rome? It is so hard to keep my mouth shut in the midst of blatant injustice done to others, and done to me, and if Jesus has the audacity to seal his lips before the mighty and powerful men and women of his time, he points me to the seed of being powerless before the world, for being powerless before the world necessarily points me to being powerful in the world beyond!
How heartening it is for me to see you standing like a pillar of stone before the deafening crowd, unjustly condemning you to death, and yet you had no word of protest, no word of rebuttal; you had the greatest ‘influence’, and yet you would not turn stones to fill your stomach! You show to me the amazing power of being powerless before the world, and this power alone is your strength even as you prepare yourself to embrace the barren cross. Next time when I am put into inconvenient situations, or deprived of my due rights and privileges, or even unjustly accused or punished, teach me not to run to the influences to save my skin, but prepare myself to keep my mouth sealed to show to the world the power of being powerless like you, my Master and Lord!
