Lest I forget Gethsemane
Conclusion

There is one final word, other than the word cup and nevertheless. The word is rise. After all Jesus' struggle in that garden, he calls to his disciples: "Rise, let us go."

Celsus, in the ancient world, argued the validity of the Christian faith by distorting this word of Jesus. Celsus twisted the truth by claiming that when Jesus said "arise, let us go," it was a signal to his disciples that they would escape. But of course Celsus was wrong again as he was wrong in all his attacks against Christianity. For what Jesus meant was this: The time for struggling with God in prayer has come to an end. We must now rise and be where the action is. Let us face life at its harshest, and men at their worst.

William Zuckerman wrote a novel, The Refugee from Judea. It was an imaginary story of Jesus escape from Gethsemane. For as Zuckerman puts it, Jesus :might have easily slipped into neighboring Alexandria and become a refugee in Egypt, instead of a martyr in Judea."

Had this imaginary scenario been true, Jesus would have run away from the most decisive moment when evil was to do its worst; He would have run away at the time when mankind needed him most; of course he would have run away from God and there would have been no cross on Calvary, and no crown on resurrection morning.

But then Jesus said, "Rise, let us be going," he meant to give his life, his all for the salvation of mankind. Rise, let us be going: these are the words than can effect change. This was true with the liberation of slaves, the downfall of communism around the world, the evangelization of millions of people in much of the Third World, indeed the liberation of our people from dictatorship.

Rise, let us be going-if we do this, we may yet find the economic prosperity that has eluded us, the lasting peace that we fervently seek, the unity of our people we sorely need, the cleansing of the dagdag-bawas conduct of our elections, the redemption of the youth from terrible drug menace.

Are we able to drink the cup of Jesus? Are we able to say nevertheless? Are we able to rise and go?

These are the questions we are faced with. For you see, Gethsemane leads to the Calvary of our lives. It means, as someone has put it, taking a burden upon ourselves we do not need to take; to keep on loving when we are hated; it means to let loose in the world the mightiest force that ever gripped the human race-vicarious sacrifice; it means a loyalty that though the heavens fall, would not give in.

If it be possible, let this cup pass from me, nevertheless…Rise, let us be going.*

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