The forces of evil have had their “hour”. “Chief priests, captains of the Temple guard and elders” have been their instruments (-53). But they have not prevailed. God’s plan is fulfilled in accordance with the Scriptures (-27,44-47), and it is a merciful plan for the salvation of all.
75. The beginning of Acts depicts Christ’s apostles passing from a narrow perspective, the establishment of the kingdom for Israel (Ac 1:6), to a universal one of witness “to the ends of the earth” (1:8). The Pentecost episode, https://hookupdate.net/escort-index/chattanooga/ curiously enough, sympathetically places Jews in this universal perspective: “There were devout Jews from every nation under heaven living in Jerusalem” (2:5). These Jews are the first recipients of the apostolic preaching, symbolising at the same time the universal destination of the Gospel. Luke suggests as well, more than once, that far from being mutually exclusive, Judaism and universalism go together.
Acts ends on a surprising, but all the more significant, note
The kerygmatic or missionary discourses preach the mystery of Jesus by emphasising the strong contrast between the human cruelty which put Jesus to death and the liberating intervention of God who raised him up. “Israel’s” sin was to have “put to death the Prince of Life” (3:15). This sin, which is principally that of the “leaders of the people” (4:8-10) or the “Sanhedrin” (5:), is recalled only as a basis for an appeal to conversion and faith. Besides, Peter attenuates the culpability, not only of the “Israelites” but even of their “leaders” by saying that they acted “out of ignorance” (3:17). Such forbearance is impressive. It corresponds to the teaching and attitude of Jesus (Lk 6:36-37; ).
Nevertheless, the Christian preaching quickly stirs up opposition on the part of the Jewish authorities. The Sadduccees oppose the apostles’ “proclaiming that in Jesus there is the resurrection of the dead” (Ac 4:2) in which they do not believe (Lk ). But a very influential Pharisee, Gamaliel, takes the side of the apostles in thinking that their enterprise possibly “comes from God” (Ac 5:39). Then opposition decreases for a while. It flares up again in Hellenistic synagogues when Stephen, himself a Hellenistic Jew, works “great wonders and signs among the people” (6:8-15). At the end of his discourse before members of the Sanhedrin, Stephen has recourse to the invective of the prophets (7:51). He is stoned. Following Jesus’ example, he prays to the Lord that “this sin be not held against them” (7:60; cf. Lk ). “That day a severe persecution began against the Church in Jerusalem” (Ac 8:1). “Saul” zealously took part in it (8:3; 9:13).
After his conversion and during all his missionary journeys, he himself – as we have already noted – experiences the opposition of his fellow countrymen, sparked by the success of his universalist preaching. This is particularly evident immediately after his arrest in Jerusalem. When he spoke “in the Hebrew language”, “the assembly of people” () first heard him calmly (22:2), but from the moment he mentions his being sent “to the nations”, they get terribly agitated and demand his death (-22).
After his unsuccessful attempt, he repeats the very harsh words of Isaiah concerning the hardness of “this people” (-27; Is 6:9-10), and announces instead the docile acceptance that the nations will give to the salvation offered by God ()
Shortly after his arrival in Rome, Paul “called together the local leaders of the Jews” (), a unique gesture. He wants “to convince them about Jesus both from the Law of Moses and the prophets” (). What he wished to obtain was not individual adherents, but a collective decision involving the whole Jewish community. In this ending, which gives rise to interminable discussion, Luke apparently wishes to accept the undeniable fact that, in the end, the Jewish people collectively did not accept the Gospel of Christ. At the same time, Luke wishes to reply to an objection that could be made against the Christian faith, by showing that this situation had already been foreseen in the Scriptures.
Leave a Reply