By the Rev. David Hernes
retired Lutheran pastor

I have been thinking a lot about Unforgettable Friday of so long ago. I have been thinking about the three men who were executed that day. One I will call the Left Man. One I will call the Center Man. And the other the Right Man.

The Left Man and the Right Man had been in court. They had been assessed, judged and condemned as criminals. They apparently had lived in such violation of the second-highest guideline for human living that the court judged that the world would be better off without them.

The Center Man was judged and condemned as well, but as an imposter. He was charged with ego problems (making himself equal with God.) That charge did not hold much water with the secular authorities. So his accusers added a charge of treason (that he made himself a king, who thus was a threat to the Roman establishment.) That charge made the judge nervous. In the end, the Center Man, too, was condemned as an enemy of our human family.

The executioners set about their task. They hanged all three on Roman crosses. And waited for the crosses to do their work.

Now, the Center Man was actually the center of attention. The religious leaders worked the crowd, fanning the flames of taunt and scorn, saying things like:

“He made himself equal with God. Where is his God now? And why can’t he do anything about his own situation? And what kind of king is he? Hey, king! Is that the best you can do for a crown?”

Their hate filled them with a vicious and cruel energy.

The Left Man joined in the verbal abuse. But his appeal had a self-serving dimension. “Save yourself — and us.” Meaning, of course, me!

The Right Man had a different spirit from his co-criminal. No matter the kind of rogue he had been, he sensed the truth that the Center Man was innocent. And he defended the Center Man to his fellow criminal, and thus to the world. And he owned his own wrongs as bringing him to his fate that day. If what we as Christians say about the Center Man is true, it is easy to see why we love him.

And it is easy to see why we might love the Right Man. He had courage and was honest. And his humble request of the Center Man was granted.

But what about the Left Man? Is there any reason we should love him too? Was he not the spokesman for all of our human family who have railed in anger at God for the miserable state of our world? And all of us who have called on God to bail us out of the troubles of our own making, and been angry when he didn’t? The Left Man, there on his cross, is unvarnished human nature. And we all have more or less of that within us. Isn’t his very neediness reason for us to love him as well? Is he not our brother? And didn’t Jesus die for him, too?

I have found my spirit blessed in thinking about these three. I hope you do, too.