Gospel in Art: Some Sadducees, those who say that there is no resurrection

Three attempts to trap Christ, from Holkham Bible Picture Book England, 1327-1335, Written in Anglo-Norman French © British Library, London / Alamy

Gospel of 23 November 2024
Luke 20:27-40

Some Sadducees - those who say that there is no resurrection - approached Jesus and they put this question to him, 'Master, we have it from Moses in writing, that if a man's married brother dies childless, the man must marry the widow to raise up children for his brother. Well then, there were seven brothers. The first, having married a wife, died childless. The second and then the third married the widow. And the same with all seven, they died leaving no children. Finally the woman herself died. Now, at the resurrection, to which of them will she be wife since she had been married to all seven?'

Jesus replied, 'The children of this world take wives and husbands, but those who are judged worthy of a place in the other world and in the resurrection from the dead do not marry because they can no longer die, for they are the same as the angels, and being children of the resurrection they are sons of God. And Moses himself implies that the dead rise again, in the passage about the bush where he calls the Lord the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob. Now he is God, not of the dead, but of the living; for to him all men are in fact alive.'

Some scribes then spoke up. 'Well put, Master' they said - because they would not dare to ask him any more questions.

Reflection on the Illuminated Manuscript

In today's Gospel reading, Luke introduces the Sadducees, a group who did not believe in the resurrection. Comprising high priests, aristocratic families, and wealthy merchants, they maintained favourable relations with Roman authorities and upheld a conservative interpretation of Judaism. Unlike the Pharisees, the Sadducees largely rejected beliefs in immortality, angels and evil spirits, grounding their faith in tangible, earthly concepts. During Jesus' era, they controlled two pivotal institutions: the Temple of Jerusalem (also known as Herod's Temple) and the Sanhedrin, the governing body overseeing Jewish religious and legal matters.

The question posed by the Sadducees in today's reading was not a genuine inquiry but an attempt to entrap Jesus and sow discord. In His response, Jesus elevates their limited, earthly perspective to a transcendent vision, encompassing not only Moses, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob but also our own departed loved ones and all who have existed since Creation.

Our featured artwork is a page from the Holkham Bible Picture Book, created in the early 14th century. This manuscript contains over 230 illustrations depicting scenes from the Old and New Testaments. Named after Holkham Hall in Norfolk, where it resided in the collection of the Earls of Leicester until 1952, it is now housed in the British Library in London. The opening page suggests it was commissioned by a Dominican friar for a literate, select audience. The illustrated page portrays three attempts to entrap Christ:

Top left: Three men question whether tribute should be paid to Caesar.
Centre: Two Sadducees present the riddle of a woman married to seven brothers, questioning her marital status..
Bottom: Two Pharisees ask Jesus which commandment is the greatest.
On the right, five Pharisaic doctors of the law deliberate over Jesus' challenging question and His response. One holds the tablets of the law; two wear phylacteries on their foreheads; another holds a thorn twig before his face, alluding to the Passion; and one points to a thorn on the hem of his robe. The accompanying text is in Anglo-Norman French. This page beautifully illustrates the various ways the Sadducees and Pharisees sought to challenge Jesus.

LINKS

Gospel in Art: https://christian.art/
Today's Reflection: https://christian.art/daily-gospel-reading/luke-20-27-40-2024/