Archives For Church of the Holy Sepulcher

The Death of Jesus, Part 8: The Burial

April 7, 2012 — 2 Comments

O darkest woe!
Ye tears, forth flow!
Has earth so sad a wonder,
That the Father’s only Son
Now is buried yonder!

O Ground of faith,
Laid low in death!
Sweet lips, now silent sleeping:
Surely all that live must mourn
Here with bitter weeping.

- Würzburg Gesangbuch, “O Darkest Woe, Ye Tears Forth Flow”

Introduction

In this final post of our series, “The Death of Jesus,” we will explore several aspects of the post-crucifixion burial. Some have claimed that the story we have in Scripture is not credible, and therefore the entire Passion account is untrustworthy. In response to these claims, we will organize our presentation around five questions:

1.   What is the New Testament account of the burial of Jesus?
2.  Were the victims of crucifixion really buried?
3.  Was Joseph of Arimathea a fictional character?
4.  Were there really guards present at the tomb of Jesus?
5.  What does the archaeological record tell us about 1st-century tombs?  Continue Reading…

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The Death of Jesus, Part 6: Journey to Golgotha

April 3, 2012 — 2 Comments

The other gods were strong; but thou wast weak;
They rode, but thou didst stumble to a throne;
But to our wounds only God’s wounds can speak,
And not a god has wounds, but thou alone.

- Edward Shillito

Biblical Account

After his trials, beatings, flogging, and mock worship, Jesus receives back his own clothes and is led out to the crucifixion site. It was customary for criminals to be paraded through the streets, sometimes naked, so the return of Jesus’ clothes may reflect a Roman concession to the Jews for the shame they felt in being exposed in public.

The execution site is called Golgotha, which is Aramaic for “Place of the Skull.” Our more familiar term “Calvary” (which derives from the Latin word calvaria) also means “skull” and was used in the Vulgate (Latin) version of the Gospels. The route of the procession has become known as the Via Dolorosa (“the Way of Suffering”), and we should note—given our hymnody—that there is no specific biblical reference to Golgotha being located on a hill, although it is certainly possible that it was.  Continue Reading…

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