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<\/a><\/p>\nSeason 1, Episode 9 \u2014 \u2018Saul\u2019s Return\u2019
\nActs 9:20-27<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n
Editing Acts, redux.<\/b> The ninth episode of A.D. The Bible Continues<\/a><\/i>, like a couple of the episodes that preceded it, dwells on just a few verses from the book of Acts.<\/p>\n A bit of dialogue at the beginning alludes to Saul\u2019s efforts to preach in the synagogues of Damascus (9:20-22), while the episode as a whole depicts his escape from the city (9:23-25) and his efforts to meet and be reconciled to the apostles (9:26-27).<\/p>\n Notably, the episode does not<\/i> make use of the autobiographical information in Paul\u2019s letters that overlaps with this section of Acts.<\/p>\n In his letters, we learn that Saul went to Arabia immediately after his conversion and then returned to Damascus (Galatians 1:17), that he had to escape from Damascus partly because an Arabian governor was trying to arrest him (2 Corinthians 11:32-33),1<\/sup> that he went to Jerusalem three years<\/i> after his conversion and stayed with Peter for fifteen days (Galatians 1:18), and that he did not see any<\/i> of the other apostles on his visit to Jerusalem except for James the brother of Jesus (Galatians 1:19).<\/p>\n A few movies, such as Peter and Paul<\/a><\/i> and Paul the Apostle<\/a><\/i>, have integrated the book of Acts with the letters of Paul by incorporating details like these. But A.D. The Bible Continues<\/i>, like A.D. Anno Domini<\/a><\/i>, relies on Acts alone for its biblical storyline.<\/p>\n This episode also introduces Tabitha, who comes up in a slightly later section of Acts; presumably a future episode will show her dying and being brought back to life by Peter, as per Acts 9:36-42. In this episode, she is introduced as a seamstress working for the Herods, which is a cute nod to the bit in Acts where the widows mourning her death show Peter \u201cthe robes and other clothing\u201d that she had made for them.<\/p>\n Scripture references, redux.<\/b> Caligula declares that he will put a statue of himself in the Jerusalem temple, and both Caiaphas and the apostle John state that this statue could fulfill a prophecy in Daniel about the \u201cabomination of desolation<\/a>\u201d.<\/p>\n This prophecy was already mentioned in episode three<\/a>, when one of Boaz\u2019s friends said Pilate\u2019s visit to the temple at Pentecost was the fulfillment of this prophecy.<\/p>\n The phrase \u201cabomination of desolation\u201d is mentioned three times in Daniel, but Mary Magdalene adds to John\u2019s speculation by saying that \u201cwar will come like a flood,\u201d which indicates that she is probably thinking of Daniel 9<\/a> specifically.2<\/sup><\/p>\n John also states that Jesus himself quoted this prophecy when he spoke about his return to earth. It is true that Jesus quotes this prophecy in Mark 13<\/a> and Matthew 24<\/a>,3<\/sup> and that he also quotes Daniel 7<\/a> to the effect that people will see \u201cthe Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven\u201d \u2014 but it is not clear that he was predicting the Second Coming, per se<\/i>. Some theologians<\/a> have noted that the Son of Man in Daniel, and thus presumably in Jesus\u2019 prophecy, comes to heaven<\/i> and not to earth<\/i>.<\/p>\n Other Bible passages are quoted in this episode too.<\/p>\n Caiaphas quotes Leviticus 19<\/a> and its commandment to \u201clove your neighbour as yourself\u201d when he tries to persuade his wife that Saul should not be killed but should, instead, be won back to the non-Christian form of Judaism that they practice.<\/p>\n Interestingly, Jesus himself said that this is the second-greatest commandment (following the commandment to love God) in Mark 12<\/a>, Matthew 22<\/a> and Luke 10<\/a>, and he also cited it in a list of commandments that need to be kept in Matthew 19<\/a>. It is also cited by Paul in Romans 13<\/a> and Galatians 5<\/a>, and by James in James 2<\/a>.<\/p>\n This episode also refers, directly or indirectly, to specific passages in the gospels.<\/p>\n Joanna gives Mary Magdalene some money \u201cfor the cause\u201d, which reflects how both of these women supported Jesus and his followers \u201cout of their own means\u201d in Luke 8<\/a>.<\/p>\n Barnabas talks to Peter about the time Jesus washed Peter\u2019s feet, as per John 13<\/a>.<\/p>\n And Saul recites the Matthew 6<\/a> version of the Lord\u2019s Prayer in prison. (Jesus taught a slightly different version of this prayer to his followers in Luke 11<\/a>.)<\/p>\n Introducing Saul, redux.<\/b> Saul the Christian has all the zeal of Saul of persecutor of Christians, but now his zeal comes across as joyful enthusiasm rather than pathological obsession. And his joy is, indeed, rather infectious.<\/p>\n There\u2019s something a tad glib about it, though. The Paul of the Bible was still writing, years later<\/a>, that he didn\u2019t deserve<\/i> to be called an apostle because of how he had persecuted the Church, but the Saul of this series seems to expect everyone to accept him with open arms even though he was persecuting them just a few weeks ago \u2014 and at one point he even complains<\/a> that Peter won\u2019t \u201clet go\u201d of the past.<\/p>\n I do like how the apostles are very protective<\/i> of their relationship with Jesus: the way Simon the Zealot tells Saul, \u201cYou don\u2019t get to speak his name!\u201d or the way Peter tells Barnabas, \u201cHe talks like he\u2019s in charge and he never even knew<\/i> Jesus.\u201d<\/p>\n And Saul does, indeed, have a take-charge attitude, not least when he tells the apostles, \u201cI\u2019m worried you\u2019re not fully engaged in Jesus\u2019 message,\u201d or when he pursues Simon the Zealot into the street and says, \u201cSimon! Simon! If you\u2019ll just listen to me, you\u2019ll realize I\u2019m right!\u201d<\/p>\n There\u2019s also some interesting competitiveness in the way Peter, referring to Jesus, tells Saul, \u201cI miss him,\u201d and Saul replies, \u201cI don\u2019t. I feel him,\u201d and Peter has to clarify that Jesus is a living presence for him too by saying, \u201cI feel him too.\u201d<\/p>\n Of course, both<\/i> of these men have encountered the risen Christ and are filled with his Spirit \u2014 but Peter knew Jesus in a way that Saul never did (and never will), and he misses that experience<\/i> of Jesus, which he knows he will never have again.<\/p>\n Historical reference points, redux.<\/b> Caligula, who had just become emperor<\/a> at the end of last week\u2019s episode, returns to Rome \u2014 but not before declaring that he will send a statue of himself to be installed in the Jerusalem temple.<\/p>\n The historical Caligula became emperor in AD 37 but did not try to install a statue of himself in the temple until AD 40, after a string of other incidents<\/a>.<\/p>\n Political friction, redux.<\/b> Even Caligula\u2019s buddy Agrippa is bothered by Caligula\u2019s intention to desecrate the temple. Agrippa \u2014 who is Jewish, after all \u2014 says he hopes Caligula will have forgotten all about this by the time they get back to Rome.<\/p>\n Herodias hopes the turmoil caused by the desecration will lead to Pilate\u2019s downfall, and thus make it possible for Herod Antipas to take Pilate\u2019s place.<\/p>\n Simon the Zealot makes contact with the, uh, Zealots when he learns about the temple\u2019s possible fate. I guess this is supposed to be how he got his name<\/a>? (This is the first time we have seen Boaz\u2019s fianc\u00e9e Eva or her father since the fifth episode<\/a>.)<\/p>\n Violence, redux.<\/b> One of the first things Caligula does, upon becoming emperor, is to get one of the advisors he inherited from Tiberius to commit suicide. The camera lingers on the point of the sword coming through the advisor\u2019s back.<\/p>\n Leah really wants to kill Saul. First she tells her husband Caiaphas to find Saul, shame him, and kill him. Then she tells Herodias and Claudia that they might be able to satisfy Caligula\u2019s bloodlust by making Saul a scapegoat and killing him.<\/p>\n Sexualization, redux.<\/b> For the third episode in a row, Caligula sexually harasses the women he comes across in Pilate\u2019s palace. He apparently does something (we know not what) to Tabitha, and he also expresses an unhealthy interest in Claudia.<\/p>\n Family matters, redux.<\/b> Pilate apologizes to Claudia for the way Caligula looked at her. Claudia tells Cornelius the emperor will use her to punish Pilate. Cornelius says Pilate would never let that happen, but Claudia isn\u2019t entirely convinced.<\/p>\n Tabitha expresses interest in Jesus after Joanna says Jesus gave her the strength to stand up to her husband, instead of just being \u201cquiet and good\u201d around him.<\/p>\n Odds and ends.<\/b> Claudia prays to the Roman gods Mars and Vesta.<\/p>\n Barnabas finds the Christian hideout when he spots a door with a fish carved in the corner. The fish symbol can<\/i> be a sort of Greek code: the word \u201cichthus<\/a>\u201d, meaning \u201cfish\u201d, consists of the initials for the Greek words for \u201cJesus Christ God\u2019s Son Saviour\u201d. But I wonder if the Aramaic-speaking Christians in Jerusalem would have used the symbol this way. Maybe they just use it because some of them are fishermen.<\/p>\n \u2013<\/p>\n 1. Acts 9<\/a> says \u201cthe Jews . . . kept close watch on the city gates in order to kill\u201d Saul, while in 2 Corinthians 11<\/a>, Paul himself writes that \u201cthe governor under King Aretas had the city of the Damascenes guarded in order to arrest me.\u201d Aretas<\/a> was the king of the Nabateans<\/a>, an Arabian kingdom, from about 9 BC to AD 40. (One of Aretas\u2019s daughters was Herod Antipas\u2019s first wife, and the two kings went to war sometime after Antipas left Aretas\u2019s daughter for Herodias. A garbled version of these events forms the back-story to the 1959 film The Big Fisherman<\/a><\/i>, in which Aretas\u2019s granddaughter seeks revenge against Antipas.)<\/span><\/p>\n 2. Daniel 9<\/a> is noteworthy for predicting that an \u201canointed one\u201d \u2014 or \u201cmessiah\u201d \u2014 will be \u201ccut off\u201d about 483 years after the Persian king gives instructions to rebuild the city of Jerusalem. By some calculations, this \u201ccutting off\u201d would coincide with the death of Jesus circa AD 30.<\/span><\/p>\n 3. Luke 21<\/a> is very similar to Mark 13 and Matthew 24, but in this version of the prophecy, Jesus refers to \u201cJerusalem being surrounded by armies\u201d and not<\/i> to an \u201cabomination of desolation\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\n \u2013<\/p>\n CT Movies recaps:<\/b> one<\/a> | two<\/a> | three<\/a> | four<\/a> | five<\/a> | six<\/a> | seven<\/a> | eight<\/a> | nine<\/a> | ten<\/a> | eleven<\/a> | twelve<\/a><\/span> Some brief thoughts on how the series does, and doesn’t, make use of the scriptures that give extra context to the story of Acts.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1116,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1650,4],"tags":[506,1306,860,1610,508,430,925,2613,924,851,511,1608,345,2852,500,428,505,435,184,2646,2786],"class_list":["post-32805","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-bible-movies","category-blog","tag-acts","tag-ad-beyond-the-bible","tag-antipas","tag-aretas","tag-barnabas","tag-caiaphas","tag-caligula","tag-claudia","tag-cornelius","tag-daniel","tag-herod-agrippa-i","tag-herodias","tag-jesus","tag-joanna","tag-john","tag-mary-magdalene","tag-paul","tag-peter","tag-pontius-pilate","tag-simon-the-zealot","tag-tabitha"],"yoast_head":"\n
\nFilmChat recaps:<\/b> one<\/a> | two<\/a> | three<\/a> | four<\/a> | five<\/a> | six<\/a> | seven<\/a> | eight<\/a> | nine<\/b> | ten<\/a> | eleven<\/a> | twelve<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"