Barabbas is a fictional novel written by Par Lagerkvist about the life of Barabbas (the actual person for whom Jesus died) after the resurrection. The book won the Nobel Prize for literature in 1951 and is really a parable about the life that is lived by those for whom Christ died. In the end, Barabbas, by a twist of fate and his own doing, finds himself crucified with a group of Christians:
“And so they were led out to be crucified. They were chained together in pairs, and, as they were not an even number, Barabbas came last in the procession, not chained to anyone. It just turned out like that. In this way, too, it happened that he hung furthest out in the rows of crosses.
A large crowd had collected, and it was a long time before it was all over. But the crucified spoke consolingly and hopefully to each other the whole time. To Barabbas nobody spoke.
When dusk fell the spectators had already gone home, tired of standing there any longer. And besides, by that time the crucified were all dead.
Only Barabbas was left hanging there alone, still alive. When he felt death approaching, that which he had always been so afraid of, he said out into the darkness, as though he were speaking to it:
---To thee I deliver up my soul.
And then he gave up the ghost.”
What do you think of Barabbas being led out alone and the Christians speaking "consolingly and hopefully to each other" while no one speaks to Barabbas? How does this contrast with Christ's actions on the cross?
ReplyDeleteWhat do you make of the "spectators" leaving because "the crucified were all dead," only to turn the page and find that Barabbas is still alive on the cross?
When Barabbas speaks "as though" he were speaking into the darkness and says "to thee I deliver up my soul," do you think he is giving up his soul to darkness or to Christ?
Barabbas, although a quick read, was a tough read for me. Throughout the book I kept wondering, Is this guy going to see the light or not; does he believe or not; does he want to be counted as one of the Christians or is he more comfortable in the role he had before he encountered Christ? Finished the book and still had no answers.
ReplyDeleteMuch like the previous comment, I had a tough time with this book. I too was looking for Barabbas to see the light. I was also trying to relate to and find meaning in each of the people he encountered...I was having a tough time making the connection.
ReplyDeleteIt might have been my frame of reference, but I certainly felt that Barabbas was speaking to Christ at the very end with the statement "to thee I deliver up my soul". It seemed to me that not until his own death did he finally give his life to Christ.
The entire time I read this book, I found myself feeling that, hard as it may be to face it, don't we all feel like Barabbas at times? We are doubtful by human nature. We are seeking, but sometimes don't let ourselves take the biggest risk and just believe. I was particularly struck by the scene in the book when Barabbas and the slave he is chained to are asked by the slave owner: "Your tag says you belong to God. Do you?" The one answers "yes" and is put to death. Barabbas replies: "I want to" and lives. "I want to" is so very different than "yes". It scares me to admit that I too sometimes feel like "I want to." I guess my hope is that if it takes me until the end to call out "to thee I deliver up my soul," He will still be waiting for me.
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ReplyDeleteanon 3:31
ReplyDeleteI think that you are spot on when you are considering Barabbas and his comfort level being higher with who he is before he encounters Christ. I think that it is that way for many people. We are more comfortable being the person we want to be instead of the person God wants (and challenges us) us to be and become.
anon 8:58
Certainly Christ will be (and is) waiting for us as we say "I believe...but please help my unbelief" just like a man Jesus meets in Mark's gospel.
What do you think of the fact that the Christians in the story seem to have little and no time for the exact person that Christ died for?
ReplyDeleteWhat is Lagerkvist saying about the church and the way we as followers of Christ interact with the exact people (sinners [like us]and people who want to believe but can't [like us]) who Christ died in the place of? Who are the Barabbas's among us? Aren't we all in some sense Barabbas?
Further thoughts?