"Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?" (15)

"Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?" (15)

With a loud cry, Jesus breathed his last.(15:37)

The Author of the gospel simply called Jesus’ death as, “Jesus breathed his last.” The Son of God, the Messiah was dead. In other words, this could mean God is dead. However, in this a question can be raised, as to how can God be dead? Death is caused by the separation of one from God. Though there cannot be death in the life of God, the gospel seems to have opened the possibility of this occurrence.

In 1960, theology on the death of God spread throughout the Northern American theological society. There was some underlying truth in their opinion. They said a traditional metaphysical God does not have any place to stand in a secular world today. The God is the absolute, omnipotence and the Almighty one. The modern people dropped the idea that God and man could exist together in this evil world. According to them such role of God disappeared after Auschwitz. The other important point in their claim is their conviction that the entire problem that man is facing today can be solved by man himself.

Of course the theology of the death of God is not an orthodox one. It is not necessary for Christians to repudiate such theology. They only criticized an aspect of Christian faith. Such aspect should be criticized. There is a theistic metaphysics in such aspect. It is the image of God who rules this world with the almighty power sitting on the throne in the highest place regardless of human pain.

However, the author of gospel says another level, different from an orthodox theistic metaphysics. The author says Jesus breathed his last on the cross. God revealed himself from the very place. God is the God who is able to die; God is the God who went down to the place of the dead. Now we are all free from death through Jesus’ death.