44th Day of Easter, Monday May 25: Acts 25:1-12

The new governor of Judea, Festus, continues the dance of keeping his local ethnic and national leadership happy, while respecting Paul’s citizenship and entitlement to appeal to the Roman imperial justice system. Have you ever been in shoes like Festus’? Have you ever been in shoes like Paul’s?

Charles Schultz, the creator of the comic Peanuts, used to have Snoopy writing a book of theology. Snoopy had a working title: ‘Has it ever occurred to you that you might be wrong?’ Things we used to condemn in church may now be accepted, and in retrospect we may be embarrassed at how our standards fell below even the world’s standards of fair play. What will we regret from today?

Festus agrees to pass the buck up the line. If Paul wants to appeal to the emperor, let him go to the emperor! When are local contextual municipal responsibility and judgment better than provincial, national or global standards – and when is an appeal to a wider context and forum better? Was Festus doing the right thing, or avoiding doing the right thing by passing the buck?