Acts 5:27–32
Testimony has a central function within the Christian faith. One of the more curious aspects of Christianization in the Late Ancient period was moving from stories of heroes to stories of martyrs. Instead of tales about Theseus or Achilles, stories of Perpetua & Felicitas and others were shared and spread. A martyr is a witness. Someone who testifies about an event. This legal language of witness and testimony was present in the use of martyr in the ancient world as it is today. The book of acts will show Stephen the Protomartyr and his death in Acts 7, but in Acts 5 we have Peter giving a testimony in front of the Sanhedrin. Peter declares clearly, “We must obey God rather than any human authority.”
There is a tricky balance to be had between obedience to God and human authority. Many claim to speak for God, even if they say opposite things. Just because someone claims to speak for God, doesn’t make what they say true. How we can discern this is found a few verses later in the words of Gamaliel: “Therefore, in the present case I advise you: Leave these men alone! Let them go! For if their purpose or activity is of human origin, it will fail. But if it is from God, you will not be able to stop these men; you will only find yourselves fighting against God.”
Or, in the words of Jesus, a good tree bears good fruit. What is the fruit of the claims people make? We have seen the fruit of the Prison Industrial Complex. We have seen an inability to step down from the carceral state. We have seen families continued to be torn apart and generations ravaged by the ill-effects of this system. Peter stands to speak of Jesus and the power of God. In speaking up, in testifying for prison abolition, we can speak with the full breadth of Scripture as well as the claim of Jesus. A good tree will bear good fruit. Society has let bad trees grow for too long. We need to plant more of the good trees of dignity, reconciliation, and hope.
Rev. Wilson Pruitt is a Methodist pastor and translator in Spicewood, TX.