Recognizing the danger of the crowds: Peter's denial -- Mimetic Theory and Literary Study

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Date Posted: 05:31:42 02/19/08 Tue
Author: Betsy Peters
Subject: Recognizing the danger of the crowds: Peter's denial

Peter�s three denials at Caiaphas� house proceed from harmless to exceedingly dangerous; every time Peter speaks, he compounds the severity and danger of his denial as his audience changes. He first denies that he knows Jesus to a slave girl from the humblest rung of society. Peter has little to fear from the lowly girl, but still Peter refuses to identify with Christ. When the situation repeats itself only a few moments later, Peter has the opportunity to repent of his first denial by confessing Christ before a more dangerous audience. This time a male slave, likely one of Caiaphas� servants present in the garden at Jesus� arrest, questions Peter. But Peter chooses to compound his denial. Peter still retains the opportunity to repent when a third visitor comes: �another someone� �� (Luke 22.59) asks Peter the same question. Luke uses the intentionally ambiguous word, �another someone� to denote a nameless Jewish male from the riling crowd. Under the threat that the rising mob might pin-point a scapegoat, Peter recognizes his now extreme danger. Instead of using his final response as the opportunity to go with Jesus to prison and to death, he pretends that he does not even know what has caused the stir at Caiaphas� house. Luke will remember this hierarchy of danger in Peter�s denials when he presents Peter�s repentance in a hierarchy of confessions.

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