Antiochus Epiphanes
June 9th, 2004, 10:22 AM
There is a relic of great fame called the Spear of Longinus. I find its history fascinating and it intersects with many questions often discussed here. It has been coveted and possessed by the greatest warlords and Emperors of the West: Constantine, Charles the Hammer (Martel), Charles the Great, (Charlemagne), and Hitler. Napoleon wanted it but did not succeed.
Take a look at a passage on this item from a page I dug up on the net linked here: http://www.sxws.com/charis/relics8.htm
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In John's account of Jesus' final moments on the cross, we are reminded of several prophesies, among them that Messiah's side shall be pierced (Zechariah 12:10)
28 After this, Jesus knowing that all things were now accomplished, that the scripture might be fulfilled, saith, I thirst.
29 Now there was set a vessel full of vinegar: and they filled a spunge with vinegar, and put it upon hyssop, and put it to his mouth.
30 When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, he said, It is finished: and he bowed his head, and gave up the ghost.
31 The Jews therefore, because it was the preparation, that the bodies should not remain upon the cross on the sabbath day, (for that sabbath day was an high day) besought Pilate that their legs might be broken, and that they might be taken away.
32 Then came the soldiers, and brake the legs of the first, and of the other which was crucified with him.
33 But when they came to Jesus, and saw that he was dead already, they brake not his legs:
34 But one of the soldiers with a spear pierced his side, and forthwith came there out blood and water.
35 And he that saw it bare record, and his record is true: and he knoweth that he saith true, that ye might believe.
36 For these things were done, that the scripture should be fulfilled, A bone of him shall not be broken.
37 And again another scripture saith, They shall look on him whom they pierced.--John 19-28-37
"One of the soldiers with a spear pierced his side." That is all we know from the biblical account, but that is not the end of the story of either the soldier or the spear he used. At the time of the Crucifixion, Jews had been fighting against Roman oppression for centuries. To say there was no love lost between the people of Israel and Rome's legionnaires would certainly be to understate the enmity that existed between the two parties. Yet, for some reason and by some means both of which are not related to Scripture, Roman hagiography has come up not only with the soldier's name, but even his post-crucifixion biography.
The soldier, we are told, was called Longinus. Now I was unable to learn how long Longinus had served in the Legion, but I do know the "enlistment" period for a common man was 12 years, after which, assuming they survived, various compensations were sometimes offered. Now this is significant, since Rome's accounts tell us that Longinus was nearly blind – a condition which, I should imagine, would surely have affected his usefulness as a soldier. In any case, the legend assures us that Longinus was not long blind, for after he thrust his spear into the side of Christ, some of the blood and lymph (water) from Jesus fell into his eyes. It was then he exclaimed, "Indeed, this was the Son of God!" as recorded in Mark 15:39.
According to the hagiography, Longinus, now converted, left the army and studied under the Apostles, and ultimately became a monk (and this at a time when there not yet were monasteries) at Caesarea in Cappodocia. There, poor Longinus ran afoul of the law because of his new faith and, we are told, was involved with yet another miraculous cure. The authorities tormented him by forcing all his teeth from his mouth and cutting off his tongue. Despite these tortures, it is said that Longinus continued to speak clearly, then picked up a handy axe and smashed several idols as the governor watched.
When Longinus broke the idols, the demons that had resided in them attacked the governor, depriving him of his sight and driving him mad. This was the occasion for another miraculous healing involving Longinus. The centurion-turned-monk told the governor he would regain his sight when Longinus was dead, so the governor ordered him killed. When he was beheaded, some of his blood splashed into the governor's eyes, restoring his sight. At this miracle, the governor, we are told, was converted to the Christian faith.
We are told that the relics of who now is known as "St. Longinus" are located in the church of St. Augustine in Rome. His lance, the very weapon said to have pierced the sinless and holy body of Jesus Christ, is said to be contained in one of the four pillars which surmount the altar in St. Peter's Basilica in Rome. How the lance made the trip to Rome is something I have yet to discover. The various versions of Catholic history and hagiography, like most other teachings of the RCC, are not always in agreement.
According to other legends, the spear came into the hands of Herod the Great. Constantine had it for a while, even claiming he was guided by Providence, by way of the spear, in his victory at Milvian bridge, which resulted in Christianity becoming the official religion of the Holy Roman Empire. Constantine used the spear while surveying the site for his new city, Constantinople. After him, we are informed that Theodosius, the Spanish-born Emperor of the Eastern Empire had possession of it a while, as did Alaric, the Goth who sacked Rome. Theodoric, who turned back Attila's hordes, owned it for a while, as did Justinian. We are told it passed into the hands of Charles Martel, who defeated the Moslems in the Battle at Poitiers. Legend claims the lance led Charlemagne to victory in 47 battles, but the Emporper died when he accidentally dropped it. Five Saxon emperors who came after Charlemagne possessed the lance, as did seven Hohenstauffen emperors, among them Barbarossa, Frederick II and Kaiser Wilhelm. There were other owners as well.
Napoleon tried to claim the lance as spoils of war after the battle of Austerlitz, but the relic had been sneaked out of Vienna before he got there. Some time after the threat from Napolean ceased, the lance was restored to Vienna, where it resided in the Hoffburg Museum until 1938.
The Spear of Longinus, also known as the Spear of Destiny, the Holy Spear and other names, was of surpassing importance to the leaders of the infamous Third Reich. According to the legends surrounding this "sacred" relic, whoever owned the spear would be the controlling force in world power politics. Gestapo head Heinrich Himmler made a study of the spear and its history. Adolph Hitler, who was something of a nut concerning religious relics, lusted for the spear from the moment he first saw it in the Vienna museum in 1912.
"I knew with immediacy that this was an important moment in my life . . . I stood there quietly gazing upon it for several minutes quite oblivious to the scene around me. It seemed to carry some hidden inner meaning which evaded me, a meaning which I felt inwardly knew yet could not bring to consciousness . . . I felt as though I myself had held it in my hands before in some earlier century of history – that I muself had once claimed it as my talisman of power and held the destiny of the world in my hands. What sort of madness was this that was invading my mind and creating such turmoil in my breast."--Adolph Hitler upon first viewing the Lance of Longinus, quoted by Trevor Ravenscroft, in "The Spear of Destiny," pp. 8,9
And Hitler never forgot the lance. On that day in 1938 when Germany declared Austria to be a part of the Third Reich, he was in Vienna to personally take charge of the lance and had it put on an armored SS train which took to Nuremburg, the spiritual capital of the regime. There, it was kept in St. Catherine's church for six years before being moved to an underground vault to keep it safe from the Allied bombing raids.
From that point on, the history of this lance becomes quite specific. An Army officer took possession of the lance in the name of the U.S. Government on April 30, 1945. With the exception of General George Patton, Commander of the U.S. Third Army, American generals and political leaders showed little interest in the spear. Patton, on the other hand, was terribly interested in it and had its history traced and its authenticity confirmed. After a time, General Eisenhower had the spear returned to the Hofburg Treasure House, where it remains.
Take a look at a passage on this item from a page I dug up on the net linked here: http://www.sxws.com/charis/relics8.htm
-----------------------
In John's account of Jesus' final moments on the cross, we are reminded of several prophesies, among them that Messiah's side shall be pierced (Zechariah 12:10)
28 After this, Jesus knowing that all things were now accomplished, that the scripture might be fulfilled, saith, I thirst.
29 Now there was set a vessel full of vinegar: and they filled a spunge with vinegar, and put it upon hyssop, and put it to his mouth.
30 When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, he said, It is finished: and he bowed his head, and gave up the ghost.
31 The Jews therefore, because it was the preparation, that the bodies should not remain upon the cross on the sabbath day, (for that sabbath day was an high day) besought Pilate that their legs might be broken, and that they might be taken away.
32 Then came the soldiers, and brake the legs of the first, and of the other which was crucified with him.
33 But when they came to Jesus, and saw that he was dead already, they brake not his legs:
34 But one of the soldiers with a spear pierced his side, and forthwith came there out blood and water.
35 And he that saw it bare record, and his record is true: and he knoweth that he saith true, that ye might believe.
36 For these things were done, that the scripture should be fulfilled, A bone of him shall not be broken.
37 And again another scripture saith, They shall look on him whom they pierced.--John 19-28-37
"One of the soldiers with a spear pierced his side." That is all we know from the biblical account, but that is not the end of the story of either the soldier or the spear he used. At the time of the Crucifixion, Jews had been fighting against Roman oppression for centuries. To say there was no love lost between the people of Israel and Rome's legionnaires would certainly be to understate the enmity that existed between the two parties. Yet, for some reason and by some means both of which are not related to Scripture, Roman hagiography has come up not only with the soldier's name, but even his post-crucifixion biography.
The soldier, we are told, was called Longinus. Now I was unable to learn how long Longinus had served in the Legion, but I do know the "enlistment" period for a common man was 12 years, after which, assuming they survived, various compensations were sometimes offered. Now this is significant, since Rome's accounts tell us that Longinus was nearly blind – a condition which, I should imagine, would surely have affected his usefulness as a soldier. In any case, the legend assures us that Longinus was not long blind, for after he thrust his spear into the side of Christ, some of the blood and lymph (water) from Jesus fell into his eyes. It was then he exclaimed, "Indeed, this was the Son of God!" as recorded in Mark 15:39.
According to the hagiography, Longinus, now converted, left the army and studied under the Apostles, and ultimately became a monk (and this at a time when there not yet were monasteries) at Caesarea in Cappodocia. There, poor Longinus ran afoul of the law because of his new faith and, we are told, was involved with yet another miraculous cure. The authorities tormented him by forcing all his teeth from his mouth and cutting off his tongue. Despite these tortures, it is said that Longinus continued to speak clearly, then picked up a handy axe and smashed several idols as the governor watched.
When Longinus broke the idols, the demons that had resided in them attacked the governor, depriving him of his sight and driving him mad. This was the occasion for another miraculous healing involving Longinus. The centurion-turned-monk told the governor he would regain his sight when Longinus was dead, so the governor ordered him killed. When he was beheaded, some of his blood splashed into the governor's eyes, restoring his sight. At this miracle, the governor, we are told, was converted to the Christian faith.
We are told that the relics of who now is known as "St. Longinus" are located in the church of St. Augustine in Rome. His lance, the very weapon said to have pierced the sinless and holy body of Jesus Christ, is said to be contained in one of the four pillars which surmount the altar in St. Peter's Basilica in Rome. How the lance made the trip to Rome is something I have yet to discover. The various versions of Catholic history and hagiography, like most other teachings of the RCC, are not always in agreement.
According to other legends, the spear came into the hands of Herod the Great. Constantine had it for a while, even claiming he was guided by Providence, by way of the spear, in his victory at Milvian bridge, which resulted in Christianity becoming the official religion of the Holy Roman Empire. Constantine used the spear while surveying the site for his new city, Constantinople. After him, we are informed that Theodosius, the Spanish-born Emperor of the Eastern Empire had possession of it a while, as did Alaric, the Goth who sacked Rome. Theodoric, who turned back Attila's hordes, owned it for a while, as did Justinian. We are told it passed into the hands of Charles Martel, who defeated the Moslems in the Battle at Poitiers. Legend claims the lance led Charlemagne to victory in 47 battles, but the Emporper died when he accidentally dropped it. Five Saxon emperors who came after Charlemagne possessed the lance, as did seven Hohenstauffen emperors, among them Barbarossa, Frederick II and Kaiser Wilhelm. There were other owners as well.
Napoleon tried to claim the lance as spoils of war after the battle of Austerlitz, but the relic had been sneaked out of Vienna before he got there. Some time after the threat from Napolean ceased, the lance was restored to Vienna, where it resided in the Hoffburg Museum until 1938.
The Spear of Longinus, also known as the Spear of Destiny, the Holy Spear and other names, was of surpassing importance to the leaders of the infamous Third Reich. According to the legends surrounding this "sacred" relic, whoever owned the spear would be the controlling force in world power politics. Gestapo head Heinrich Himmler made a study of the spear and its history. Adolph Hitler, who was something of a nut concerning religious relics, lusted for the spear from the moment he first saw it in the Vienna museum in 1912.
"I knew with immediacy that this was an important moment in my life . . . I stood there quietly gazing upon it for several minutes quite oblivious to the scene around me. It seemed to carry some hidden inner meaning which evaded me, a meaning which I felt inwardly knew yet could not bring to consciousness . . . I felt as though I myself had held it in my hands before in some earlier century of history – that I muself had once claimed it as my talisman of power and held the destiny of the world in my hands. What sort of madness was this that was invading my mind and creating such turmoil in my breast."--Adolph Hitler upon first viewing the Lance of Longinus, quoted by Trevor Ravenscroft, in "The Spear of Destiny," pp. 8,9
And Hitler never forgot the lance. On that day in 1938 when Germany declared Austria to be a part of the Third Reich, he was in Vienna to personally take charge of the lance and had it put on an armored SS train which took to Nuremburg, the spiritual capital of the regime. There, it was kept in St. Catherine's church for six years before being moved to an underground vault to keep it safe from the Allied bombing raids.
From that point on, the history of this lance becomes quite specific. An Army officer took possession of the lance in the name of the U.S. Government on April 30, 1945. With the exception of General George Patton, Commander of the U.S. Third Army, American generals and political leaders showed little interest in the spear. Patton, on the other hand, was terribly interested in it and had its history traced and its authenticity confirmed. After a time, General Eisenhower had the spear returned to the Hofburg Treasure House, where it remains.