Pilate's Wife: So Brazen! So Right! So Ignored!
Faith of Our Mothers 43
Just one verse, from one Gospel, one reference in a letter that may indicate a cognomen, and some later references from Apocryphal literature; yet this nameless woman – Pilate’s wife - was the only person who proffered a plea to try to stop the murder of an innocent man.
Matt 27:19 While he (Pilate) was sitting on the judgment seat, his wife sent word to him, “Have nothing to do with that innocent man, for today I have suffered a great deal because of a dream about him.”
Several biblical scholars believe this text was legendary rather than historical. Maybe it was? Maybe it wasn’t?
Dreams are noticeable features in Matthew’s gospel as ways of making God’s will known to humanity. Joseph had a dream that it was right to marry pregnant Mary, the Wise Men had a dream to avoid meeting Herod again, Joseph had a dream that he had to take Mary and the baby to Egypt, and two dreams to know when to take them home again, and where to go. Why not a dream of impending disaster if certain actions were taken? Why not a woman having a dream? The cataclysmic feature for some commentators, is that this was a woman! And she was a pagan! An unexpected biblical Mother!
Two thousand years have elapsed since then. Many theologians, archaeologists, and scholars have mulled over bits of parchment, written and rewritten portions of scriptures, and studied early developments of the Christian religion, along with the powers of the Church to “keep us on the rails”. Strategically, the second century apologist, Origen, referred to her conversion to Christianity, as did other apocryphal works. This disposed of the pagan element, so sweetening some of the speculations. Mystery plays gave the Devil a role in this episode. There were plays, poems and novels where Pilate’s wife was given various roles. Tim Rice even gave her dream to Pilate himself, in Jesus Christ Superstar! Dorothy Sayers slipped Claudia (One of the speculated cognomen links [2Timothy 4:21]) into several roles in “The Man Born to be King”.
In Western Christian circles, only in Year A, we still have the unnamed ‘Pilate’s wife’, whose actions may have been legendary. But in the Eastern Orthodox Church, the Eastern Catholic Church, the Coptic Church and the Ethiopian Church, Pilate’s wife Claudia Procula, who is sometimes even believed to have converted Pilate, is venerated. St. Procula is celebrated on specific dates (October 27 or June 25).
I think my interest in Claudia or St Procula arose from 89 years of living as a ‘cradle Anglican’ Australian woman who has had the broad opportunity of knowing and loving diverse people from Australia, other overseas countries, and especially First Nations people from PNG, Canada and Australia. I have been trusted to hear so many stories where the voices of women have been constrained within a substrata that was firmly held beneath the dominant, muffling m-nimbostratus1 (my word) that ruled the heavens. Some, like Claudia Procula, have tried opening themselves to offer advice which was ignored ignominiously to support important ‘others’. Many women have accepted the situation, and followed the instruction to “know your place”. Some found ways to subtly slip-stream through the dark m-nimbostratus, to reach for the stars. A few resorted to lightning strikes. Others gained reputations for being wicked, crafty and not to be trusted. There were other ways. I remember watching a village meeting in PNG, where the men importantly sat in the middle with the women surrounding them (reflecting my cloud strata image). But on closer observation, the path of the decisions being made actually vibrated between the two circles before consensus was reached. With traditional Australian First Nations, ‘Women’s Business’ is exactly what it says! Women’s Business! There are a few cracks in the ‘glass ceiling’, or breaks in the cloud.
These days we see many feted ‘Pilate’ figures in the national, political, financial and religious fields. We rarely get a chance to view a ‘Pilates’ wife’ near the decision-making circles. Journalists may quickly comment on the wife’s fashion, or the ‘wife’s’ scandals. And if a ‘Pilate’ does refer to discussions with his wife (as one past Australian politician did), he is ridiculed. ‘Pilate’s wives’, don’t make the news headlines!
So many times I have heard, “But he/she wouldn’t listen to me”, “He/she won’t rock the boat”, “I told him/her!”, “I’ve given up”, “I just get on with my own things”. So many times, I have witnessed this resigned hopelessness, helplessness, and disengagement.
Because Margaret has encouraged contributors to write on the Faith of our Mothers found in Biblical texts, there will be many ‘Mother’ readers whose place in society has been smothered by ‘m-cumulonimbus’ darkness. Many readers will have experienced instances where they have stood in Claudia Procula’s shoes. Some will have acted as she did, and been bypassed and ignored as she was. It may be helpful or even transformational to view the trail through history that has evolved from just one verse, in one Gospel, of the actions of one un-named woman, even though her message fell on deaf ears at the time.
The Christian faith is shared by acts of the faithful, and this incorporates lots of loving and listening. Through my fulfilling and enlightening years of serving as a chaplain for Clergy Spouses, I have developed a deep regard for the partners of clergy, that I have extended to partners of others on my list. My evening prayer list always contains the name of the person I raise to God in prayer, and of their partner (if there is one).
Hence my stimulus to gather Pilate’s wife Claudia Procula, into the Faith of our Mothers.
As Pilate was sitting on the judgment seat, his wife sent word to him …..
So brazen!!!! So right!
So let’s listen!
Rev 13:9 Let anyone who has an ear listen: Listen!
Listen to the negatives - to balance with some positives
Listen to the vengeful - to project forgiveness
Listen to the hatred - to shine through the loving
Listen to the hopelessness - to share the strength
Listen to the forgotten - to hand on friendship
Listen to the discord - and tap with the music
Listen to the pain - and plant the healing
Listen as the leaf strives to surface
Listen as the bud begins to open
Listen as the stream begins to flow
Listen as the shell begins to crack
Let anyone who has an ear listen:
Walk with Christ - listen and love
walk generously through the darkness - and touch new life.
The Reverend Kaye Pitman OAM was ordained to the diaconate in 1990 and was in the first group of women ordained as priests in Australia in 1992. She served her diaconate at Drayton parish and was employed as a lecturer at St Francis College from 1992 until retirement in 2001, primarily in ministry formation for deacons and then for priests. For the next 8 years she ministered in many locum positions, and Easter celebrations in Western communities. Kaye now serves as a retired priest in her parish of Maleny, Montville and Kenilworth. She has served on various diocesan committees and councils, has been a chaplain for Clergy Spouses, and is still chaplain emeritus for GFS.
Her vocation has always been as a teacher; first in Queensland, then as a missionary teacher, and teacher educator in PNG, with one sabbatical tutoring university Canadian First Nations students whilst completing her Masters, and then teacher educator of Australian First Nations students at Batchelor N.T. until her first retirement. An interest in theological studies revealed a latent call to the priesthood that had been placed under the “impossible” file many years before. Membership of MOW (Movement for the Ordination of Women) commenced when serving in Batchelor, and was motivated by a desire to support those who were younger.
It was an honour to be among the first women to be ordained to the priesthood, and an even greater honour to still be living to support and preach at the consecration of our first local woman bishop, the Rt Reverend Sarah Plowman.
Definition of cumulonimbus – a dense, towering, vertical cloud …. m-cumulonimbus – self explanatory
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We will shoot through the fog together. The stars are always there.
God bless you Kaye and for your encouragement to reach for the stars for there is light and hope and joy in all the possibilities of God.