By Daniel Schantz
“Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do” (Luke 23:34, New King James Version).
In William Wyler”s 1959 award-winning movie Ben-Hur, Charlton Heston plays the wealthy prince of Jerusalem who is arrested by the Roman occupiers and thrown into the dark belly of a Roman ship, where he must row his enemies wherever they wish to go. With every pull of the oar, Ben-Hur”s hate of the Romans deepens, especially for Messala, the tribune who made him a galley slave.
At last, Ben-Hur escapes his nautical prison, and by a quirk of fate he gets his chance for revenge in the fabled chariot race at the Coliseum, where his enemy, Messala, is also a contestant. The race is brutal, and when Messala is mortally wounded in a chariot crash, Ben-Hur goes to Messala”s deathbed to gloat, but he finds that revenge is not sweet, but bitter.
In the end, Ben-Hur witnesses the crucifixion of Christ, where he sees for himself the power of love and forgiveness. When Jesus cries out, “Father forgive them . . . ,” Ben-Hur finally realizes that love is actually stronger than hate, and it changes him. He says, “I felt his voice take the sword out of my hand.”
The face of Christ is never shown in the movie, but the faces of those who meet him are clearly visible, and they are transformed. The hateful face becomes soft and loving. The guilty face grows innocent. The doubting face becomes confident.
A good way to honor Christ, at this time of Communion, is to let him transform me into a person of goodwill.
Who doesn”t have enemies? Who hasn”t been deeply hurt, neglected, kicked around? Who hasn”t put up with a difficult boss or been lied about by someone you thought was a friend?
The Lord”s table is about forgiveness. It”s time to drop the sword of hate and pick up the towel of service.
Perhaps there is someone in the audience today that I have not spoken to in a long time because he wounded me. I need to begin a new conversation with him, to show him that I have put those feelings behind me.
Hard to do? Yes.
Harder still if I don”t.
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Dan Schantz is professor emeritus at Central Christian College of the Bible in Moberly, Missouri.
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