At the Cross: Meditations on People Who Were There

by Richard Bauckham, Trevor A. Hart

Designed for more than simply reading, this book is ideal for Lent use and provides a profound way of enabling the power of Jesus and his crucifixion to touch our lives at any time.

Genres: Theology, Devotional

128 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1999

About the author

Richard Bauckham (PhD, University of Cambridge) is senior scholar at Ridley Hall, Cambridge University, in Cambridge, England, where he teaches for the Cambridge Federation of Theological Colleges. He is also a visiting professor at St. Mellitus College, London, and emeritus professor of New Testament at the University of St. Andrews. He is a Fellow of the British Academy and the author of numerous books.

Reviews

[Cbarrett · Rating 4 out of 5]

Meditative, reflective, thought-provoking. Speculative in places, but not so much that it was distracting or diminishing of the book’s benefits.

[Todd · Rating 2 out of 5]

While these meditations began with two intriguing and somewhat provocative chapters it quickly becomes overwhelmed by the influence of modern exegetical methods where long-held understandings of the text are overturned in favor of more modern readings. For instance the authors make a point of distinguishing the disciple, John, from the "disciple whom Jesus loved. This interpretation is then used in an attempt to say that none of the twelve disciples were present at the cross. And finally the authors take rather heavy liberty in inferring the inner beliefs, feelings, and thoughts of people we knew very little about. In the end these meditations become far more eisegesis then exegesis which is not very compelling.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Imaginative reflections on eleven individuals whose lives were intertwined with Christ's death. This is a great Lenten devotional, but creative liberty certainly is taken in imagining what each character must have been thinking at the cross. Ironically, one of the best features of this book is the inclusion of poetry or further excerpts that follow each chapter, meant as prayer or devotional aids.

[Christiane Enéas]

I'm looking for this book, I've read it once and it's a book that impressed me a lot, I'd like to reread it and I couldn't find it in Brazil to buy. can anybody help me? Thanks
I loved this book, the first part of Maria Magdalena, and the part that the author describes Pedro. I'm looking to buy it as I'd like to reread it.

[Tom]

Not going to rate this as it was not what I was looking for when I started it. I was looking for more of a historical view, and this is not that. It isn't necessarily bad, just not what I was looking for.

[Stephen Bedard · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting look at characters related to the passion story. This would be a great devotion for Lent. It includes, in addition to historical background, poems and prayers.

[Daniel · Rating 4 out of 5]

In At the Cross, Richard Bauckham and Trevor Hart offer up meditations on eleven men and women intimately connected with Jesus’ Crucifixion. They essentially attempt to examine the meaning of Jesus’ sacrifice in multiple ways by considering the perspective each of their chosen subjects has to offer in terms of those fateful hours. The title is something of a misnomer, in my opinion, because most of the individuals examined here were not literally there on Golgotha to witness Jesus’ death – yet they all offer different and potentially instructive viewpoints on this pivotal event in world history. Each chapter is complemented by selected poems, essays, or stories that were apparently chosen to help put the reader in a more meditative mind.

Only two disciples are examined here, one of whom is the betrayer, Judas Iscariot. His is, of course a negative lesson to be gleaned from these pages. Peter’s situation, on the other hand, is exceedingly instructive. Having failed Jesus by denying him thrice on the night of his Master’s arrest – and having to face the excruciating guilt that came crashing down on him after the fact – he went on to lead Jesus’ post-ascension church. Caiaphas, the high priest most responsible for Jesus’ arrest and execution, is presented as the man who wouldn’t live with Jesus, while Pontius Pilate’s inability to make up his mind concerning Jesus’ crime and punishment is presented in a short but revealing historical and political context.

Mary of Bethany, excoriated by some of Jesus’ own disciples for anointing him with expensive oils prior to his final journey to Jerusalem, is praised for having the foresight that all of the Twelve lacked. Nicodemus, whom I rarely even associate with the Crucifixion, is likewise held up as an example for braving the rebuke of his peers (he was a Pharisee and a member of the Sanhedrin, after all) to bring an extraordinary amount of spices with which to prepare Jesus’ body for the tomb. The authors transform Nicodemus from an almost forgettable participant in post-Crucifixion events to a proverbial key to the door of the true kingdom of God.

Of the eleven Biblical personages examined in these pages, only two – Mary Magdalene and “the disciple Jesus loved” – were actually there to watch Jesus’ suffering and death on the cross. The centurion at the foot of the cross is presented as an accidental witness. Why, the authors ask, would this man who had seen untold numbers of crucifixions in his years of service make the bold statement that “Truly this man was the Son of God!?” And what of Simon of Cyrene, the only man to literally take up Jesus’ cross, and Barabbas, the true criminal who should have been executed instead of Jesus? The authors succeed in introducing further insight into Jesus’ death by examining events through their eyes. I daresay the disciple Jesus loved is of particular significance to the authors. I know that Bauckham has written extensively on the subject of this disciple (see, for example, The Testimony of the Beloved Disciple: Narrative, History, and Theology in the Gospel of John), and At the Cross helps explain his interest in this person. Bauckham rejects the notion that this disciple was John, the son of Zebedee, or a member of the Twelve at all. Leaving aside the controversy over the Beloved Disciple’s identity, the important point in the context of this book is the authors’ classification of him as the “perceptive witness” whose personal knowledge of Jesus’ life and death make him an ideal author.

With such a range of experiences and perspectives to draw upon, Bauckham and Hart have given us a work that should prove insightful to Christians wishing to grow in their faith. Relatively short and straightforward, it combines history and theology in a reader-friendly way that is rich with insight.