this post was submitted on 17 Sep 2023
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Note also that in the only gospel where the whip is mentioned, the construction of the weapon is premeditated. He didn’t just grab some leather strips off a table and start swinging; the action in John 2:15 starts specifically when he has made a φραγέλλιον, phrageillon in Greek, more famous in Latin as the flagellum.
A different Greek word is used for ‘whip’ elsewhere in the New Testament; this one only occurs here in John, and in Matthew and Mark to describe the particularly Roman whipping Jesus receives later on.
Anyway, a flagellum is basically a cat o’ nine tails, and has either a braided leather handle or a heavy stick attached to cords with knots. Making one takes a while, and one worth using to drive out the cattle is going to take some chunks out of a moneychanger. Fancy Roman flagella that feature later on in the scripture had hooks and chains, and were sometimes gladiatorial weapons. Castlevania shit.
This has been your regularly scheduled moment of the dad from My Big Fat Greek Wedding. There you go.
As a Christian Anarchist, this is one of my favorite facts.
My dear brother in Christ, not only did our Lord whip the money changers, He took the time to construct the whip and contemplate just how badly He was gonna fuck up those bastards.
I wish churches would teach that to kids braiding lanyards in Vacation Bible School.
And big ups to anyone who goes hard for Tolstoy!
How freaking awesome would that be, man? I grew up on VBS and Kawanis, Wednesday night dinners and Sunday school at Baptist churches in the south. I loved those times, but would never dream of putting my kids (If I'm ever so fortunate) in those same groups because of the awful politics. It would be amazing if there were something like that that taught radical Christianity. We'd live in a different country.
Grew up in similar fairly liberal environment and ended up running the Christian fellowship group at my college, was big in to New Monasticism and Shane Claiborne etc. Eventually left but it definitely had some radical elements that seem to be lacking now. There was always a toxic side to the church culture as well that never sat well with me, very cliquey and hetero. You could feel the politics seeping in a lot during the Bush years too, even more than in the 90s. Glad I left before I married in to it though, I could never be in a Christian marriage in the way my friends from those days are.
I'll be honest, I'm not familiar with new monasticism.
But yes, I loved growing up in the Baptist church, I loved the sense of community, the feeling of connection. But the politics of the far right that has taken over these once radical traditions is honestly depressing. It makes me sad to know that if I ever have kids, they will not be able to have those same experiences. I wish there was something similar in the more lefty churches, like the episcopals, the the United church of Christ, or the metropolitan community Church, but it seems like, in my area at least, mainline and fringe lefty churches don't generally offer those some kind of things. :/ and of course, there is no Christian anarchist community to speak of.