Many of us draw from our religion when we are seeking answers for how to live through life’s situations. But one issue many may find with that approach is this is not an easy step-by-step guide for life today. Though fairly young, as far as world religions are concerned, the Christian Bible must still come with footnotes to interpret the life and times of the first century. Is any of this truly relatable in today’s climate?
Let try! Imagine Jesus’s life was documented today, as the crowd and his followers hold up their camera phones and filmed each miracle.
The Scene:
[Jesus standing in the temple court. Early morning, near the Mount of Olives. A group of Pharisees arrive with a woman in tow.]
The crowd whips out their phones and all push record. This is going to be good, they think, as the Pharisees inform Jesus of her crime. They remind him of the punishment by the law of Moses for a woman who commits adultery. Stoning. The crowd licks their lips with excitement and anticipation. Jesus is stuck now. He cannot deny the law in front of the lawmakers. He will either have to submit and we get a stoning, or rise against them and we get to see the new teacher arrested.
Jesus, causally looks into each camera as they swam closer to his face. His eyes sink with sadness. This is not what he had planned to preach today. As the Pharisees demand for Jesus and the crowd to stone the wicked woman, Jesus quietly and carefully bends down to write into the sand. (Disclaimer: we have no idea what Jesus writes, this is only my vision of the scenario.)
Adultery
Lying
Murder
Coveting thy neighbor’s wife
Gluttony
Pride
Envy
Wicked thoughts
Jesus spoke as he possibly continues to write all the ways to sin against God, “If any of you is without sin let him cast the first stone.”
The phones pan over the words below as the people look away from their cameras and with their own eyes see the terrified woman, shaking with fear. Phones fall to their sides, and one by one, the audience fades away. This is not worth taping, it was a test and they have failed.
The brilliance of Jesus in this scene is that even as he appears to be talking to the masses, he understands the words are not for them. He knows that what he says may not sink in to those living through the circumstances right then, but people around him are documenting his words for a future impact. If this were on camera, he would be looking into it, looking at me and you.
It is the reader who is changed by this story, not the crowd. Share on X
So, what does this have to do with Internet trolling? We are constantly still throwing stones at each other. The biggest platform for these stone throwers is social media. We do not always stop and think about the person behind the profile. We do not consider what these stones may do to them. Jesus did nothing more than make the crowd see the woman as themselves: a scared and misguided person, as we all can be at times. Jesus forced them to see the person behind the deed.
Again, we do not know what Jesus wrote that day in the sand. It is also very possible he simply drew a line. Cross this line if you are perfect. Cross this line if you are better than this woman. Cross this line if you are not just ready to judge, but to be judged.
When negative comments get hurled over social media, we are crossing a line. This line is drawn to remind us, we are not perfect, we are not better, and we are not ready to face judgement day.
Walk away. Take a breath. Post love, post creativity, post peace, post positive.
Melanie is the Director of Marketing and Content Writer for WinternetWeb Technologies.
Melanie writes content for clients to promote marketing and branding in her web development business. She also writes for a blog and local community history projects and publications. She earned a Bachelors from Virginia Tech in Communications, English, and Religion. Melanie also enjoys writing fiction, spending time with her two daughters, antiquing, gardening, and community volunteering.