The Corrupting Influence of Power

IT HAS OFTEN BEEN NOTED that Jesus Christ was not unjustly arrested, tried, and tortured to death because of atheism and anarchy. He was the victim of religious presecution by a religious power structure protective of its monopolistic power and determined to preserve it against any perceived threat, and by state power with essentially the same attitude towards the preservation of its own coercive political power. In other words, the establishment. In every society in human history, entrenched political and religious power resists any and all challenges to its authority. Nothing is more fundamental to human nature. Arguably, what happened to Jesus of Nazareth was exactly what he knew was going to happen to him, what he planned to happen to him, and was thereofore a destiny of his own making. That aspect is murky, and clouds the issue.Considered in purely temporal terms, Joshua ben Joseph was an upstart rising star, with a growing cult of followers, whose growing influence and popularity doomed him. Enter Lord Acton, with his famous admonition that "Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely". Somebody has to have power,for the sake of societal organization and stability.Humanity hasnt yet reached the level of mental evolution at which we can trust ourselves to govern ourselves as individuals, absent higher authority,and expect to maintain any semblance of sustainable social stability. Ultimately it may be that anarchy is the best form of government, that no government governs best. There are renowned intellects, such as Noam Chomsky, who advocate precisely that. Chomsky in particular espouses the desirability of what he calls "Social anarchy",or "anarchic socialism",in which the functions of government are performed by loosely knit groups and committees at the local level. Most folks would agree that, desirable or not,we simply aren't ready for this; whether Chomsky himself thinks we are is doubtful at best. The opposite may be true.The best, most efficient, most effective form of government is perhaps an absolute, benevolent dictatorship. You suspect that if Jesus were running for autocrat, he would be elected. One fact remains indisputable; in order for any government to govern effectively, it must have coercive power of some sort. Hence, a body of civil law acting as a foundation supporting, executing, and enforcing the functions of government. Most folks in our modern world would probably agree that democracy is the most desirable form of government. Government of the many, of the few, or of one. We tend to favor popular participation in our own governence.Despite this,it has been observed that in the United States today, there are anti-democratic forces at work. Populism, Hitlerian or Trumpian, puts its faith in the will of the people bypassing democratizing influence of entrencehd institutions and expertise, relying directly on an authorty figure, the leader,to represent and enforce the will of the popular majority masses, or even maybe the plorality minority masses. Despite the fondest hopes and beliefs of millions of votaries,there is no evidence that Jesus Christ is going to descend from heaven in a chariot of fire, wielding a sword not an olive branch,and take over the governence of the world, sooner, or later. But we might be able to agreee on one thing, if nothing else. That there is no form of government in the world today, nor has there ever been,in whose society Jesus could immerse himself, going among the people,teaching what he taught, without expecting to get into trouble with the powers that be and the law, in one form or another.