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And everyone went to his own house. But Jesus went to the Mount of Olives.
Now early in the morning He came again into the temple, and all the people came to Him; and He sat down and taught them. Then the scribes and Pharisees brought to Him a woman caught in adultery. And when they had set her in the midst, they said to Him, "Teacher, this woman was caught in adultery, in the very act. Now Moses, in the law, commanded us that such should be stoned. But what do You say?" This they said, testing Him, that they might have something of which to accuse Him. But Jesus stooped down and wrote on the ground with His finger, as though He did not hear. So when they continued asking Him, He raised Himself up and said to them, "He who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first." And again He stooped down and wrote on the ground. Then those who heard it, being convicted by their conscience, went out one by one, beginning with the oldest even to the last. And Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst. When Jesus had raised Himself up and saw no one but the woman, He said to her, "Woman, where are those accusers of yours? Has no one condemned you?" She said, "No one, Lord." And Jesus said to her, "Neither do I condemn you; go and sin no more."
- John 7:53-8:11
In recent readings, Jesus has been in Jerusalem, and it is Passover week. Yesterday, we read that He spoke to His disciples a parable, after discussions in which Jesus prophesied the destruction of the temple and of Jerusalem, and also spoke regarding His Second Return: "Look at the fig tree, and all the trees. When they are already budding, you see and know for yourselves that summer is now near. So you also, when you see these things happening, know that the kingdom of God is near. Assuredly, I say to you, this generation will by no means pass away till all things take place. Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away. "But take heed to yourselves, lest your hearts be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness, and cares of this life, and that Day come on you unexpectedly. For it will come as a snare on all those who dwell on the face of the whole earth. Watch therefore, and pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man." And in the daytime He was teaching in the temple, but at night He went out and stayed on the mountain called Olivet. Then early in the morning all the people came to Him in the temple to hear Him.
And everyone went to his own house. But Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. Now early in the morning He came again into the temple, and all the people came to Him; and He sat down and taught them. Then the scribes and Pharisees brought to Him a woman caught in adultery. And when they had set her in the midst, they said to Him, "Teacher, this woman was caught in adultery, in the very act. Now Moses, in the law, commanded us that such should be stoned. But what do You say?" This they said, testing Him, that they might have something of which to accuse Him. Today we briefly skip to John's Gospel for this story. Some references suggest that early manuscripts of John didn't include it; others suggest it goes elsewhere in John's Gospel, or here in Luke's Gospel, right after yesterday's reading. In the story in John, Jesus is in Jerusalem attending the Feast of Tabernacles, an autumn harvest festival which is also a feast of the Coming Kingdom, commemorating the time that Israel lived in tents or tabernacles. My study bible says that the law dictated the death penalty for adulterers (Leviticus 20:10). But this ordinance wasn't observed to the letter at Jesus' time. So the conclusion is that the Pharisees are testing Jesus to trap Him, by bringing this woman to Him. If He objected to the punishment, then He could be accused of opposing the Law; if He upheld it then He could be accused of showing no mercy to sinners. My study bible notes that this is the only place in the New Testament where it's recorded that Jesus wrote something. It says, "Several theories exist as to what He wrote. Some say He wrote out the Ten Commandments, which all the accusers had violated at least once. Others say He wrote the names of the accusers who had themselves committed adultery." The statute in Leviticus says that both adulterer and adulteress should be put to death, so one obvious question here remains: Where is the man?
But Jesus stooped down and wrote on the ground with His finger, as though He did not hear. So when they continued asking Him, He raised Himself up and said to them, "He who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first." And again He stooped down and wrote on the ground. Then those who heard it, being convicted by their conscience, went out one by one, beginning with the oldest even to the last. And Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst. When Jesus had raised Himself up and saw no one but the woman, He said to her, "Woman, where are those accusers of yours? Has no one condemned you?" She said, "No one, Lord." And Jesus said to her, "Neither do I condemn you; go and sin no more." My study bible suggests that Jesus' answer confounds the Pharisees, because He's upholding a great principle of the Law -- that the wages of sin is death (Genesis 2:17; Romans 6:23) -- but without neglecting its greater aspect of mercy (Deuteronomy 13:17; Psalms 116:2-117:4; Hosea 6:6). God's mercy is offered freely to all repentant sinners. "In order for us to receive this gift," it says, "we must in turn flee from sin."
There's a small aspect of today's story that intrigues me. I hadn't really noticed it so clearly before today. That is that those whose consciences have been stricken go out one by one, beginning with the oldest even to the last. What is it about being older that would have this effect more quickly on the "elders" in this group? Perhaps they've heard more preaching, or they understand the precepts of Judaism more clearly. Perhaps they've simply been working at this longer, and so know their place here more swiftly. But one thing we can possibly conclude here is that the insight of experience has to count for something. In a spiritual context, the "elders" within a religious community become important figures. That is because religious experience has to count for something, or perhaps we might call it spiritual experience. In the Eastern Christian understanding (in Orthodoxy) the elder plays a very important role. It's considered that an elder (usually but not necessarily someone who has been living in a monastery, devoted to the spiritual life) is a person who can guide others. In this sense, then, an older age isn't necessarily the defining point of an elder, but rather one who has faced the struggle for reliance on God to a greater or deeper extent, intensity, or period of spiritual growth. To battle within ourselves on this journey there is one thing highly necessary, and that is that we know ourselves -- truly know ourselves in a way that is unreservedly honest, even when we would rather not know! There's an ancient Greek adage inscribed on monastery doors, so old that it appeared in the ancient religion at the temple of Delphi: "Know thyself" (γνῶθι σεαυτόν). It was used by Socrates, but existed long before his time as a kind of essential wisdom. Practices of confession came out of this understanding: in the Eastern tradition, confession is not so much simply a catalogue of personal sins as it is a way to confer with an elder, to really come to know oneself, to have as clear a picture as possible of who we are, including the plank in our own eye that Jesus spoke to us about. To know who we are truly is to practice humility, and to grow in this practice. And to grow spiritually really seems to mean to become aware of our own flaws and shortcomings, all those awful things we might see in others and understand just because we've got the same flaws, vulnerabilities, and weaknesses. This is what it means that the elders in the crowd were the ones who went out first. To have any wisdom, to come to know ourselves through spiritual discipline, means that we must be aware, conscious enough to develop a real conscience. I see so many people rushing to judgment these days; and it seems especially true of the young somehow. Jumping on a bandwagon of condemnation is characteristic of both scapegoating and bullying, and contrary to personal responsibility, to conscience. But becoming older and wiser must mean that we grow in knowledge from our own mistakes -- and true spiritual seeking means we become more aware of sin and error, but especially via coming to terms with our own! For today, I would like to focus on this important concept of spirituality; that it is spiritual experience which is essential. It's not just that we grow in our relationship to God, to Christ. But without this serious examination and understanding of ourselves, knowledge of the spiritual struggle and journey, how can we help anyone else on their way? How do we possibly help to remove the splinter in someone else's eye unless we know what it is like to struggle with that plank and with time, remove it? (Or, at least some of it.) We need the humility and honesty to really be good spiritual leaders, and that doesn't come via ideology. It doesn't come with laws. It doesn't come with theories, no matter how true. The best teacher in this struggle is experience; it is an experience not only of our own imperfections and struggle to change (to repent), but also the experience of God, God's love and God's mercy. Without this direct experience, how can we communicate the things of God? How else do we truly know and learn love? We'll never know what Jesus wrote on the ground, so seemingly oblivious to the men around Him. But we know the outcome, and we know the real effect of what it is to understand. Let us remember that Jesus doesn't insist on the innocence of anyone here; rather that He tells her He won't condemn her. But His message is clear to her, too: "Go and sin no more."
