Gethsemane? Such a weakness could not be spoken of righteous pupils of
a pious teacher, let alone Disciples of Jesus the Prophet.”
There is no contradiction in Jesus’ request that His Father take away the
cup of suffering. Muslims find it incredible that such words could come
from a believer in God, let alone a Prophet. Jesus was not simply true God,
but also true man. As true God, Jesus could not suffer, yet in his humanity
this was possible. Knowing the future even in His human intellect, Jesus’
humanity naturally recoiled from the sight of the immense suffering He
was about to endure. Yet ultimately there was no disobedience towards His
Father, for Jesus’ human will triumphantly submitted to the Divine:
“nevertheless, not as I will, but as thou wilt” (St. Matt. 26:39).
As for the Disciples, they were not exempt from the deficiencies that
afflicted all men. According to the Scriptures they suffered from pride,
weakness, ignorance as well as cowardice: “And he said to them, ‘Do you
not understand this parable? How then will you understand all the
parables?’” (St. Mark 4:13). These faults manifested themselves on a
number of occasions long before Jesus’ passion and persisted (as in the
case of Judas’ greed) despite having the benefit of Jesus’ intimate teachings
and example for three years. What transformed all of them after the death
and resurrection of Jesus was the descent of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost:
“And I will pray the Father, and he will give you another Counselor, to be
with you for ever, even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive,
because it neither sees him nor knows him; you know him, for he dwells
with you, and will be in you” (St. John 14:17).
After Pentecost, the Apostles preached the resurrected Christ with courage
and conviction: “Let all the house of Israel therefore know assuredly that
God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified …
And fear came upon every soul; and many wonders and signs were done
through the apostles” (Acts 2: 26 & 43). But even if they were now men of
courage, the Apostles had nothing to gain from foisting a huge deception
upon the world. Why would the Apostles compile written Gospels all
speaking of the crucifixion of Christ that also showed themselves to be
ignorant, cowardly, and denying; and why would they continue to preach
the resurrected Christ even unto death? These are facts that testify to their
sincerity.
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