LONGINUS THE CENTURION

“One of the soldiers pierced His side with a spear, and immediately there came out blood and water” (John 10:34). Like Pontius Pilate, to whose name “Pontius” was added the nickname “Pilate”, which in the Roman army, meant something like “dart”, the name of the centurion who, according to the Gospel, pierced the side of the Lord - already dead, on the Cross - with a spear,, means “long”, “lengthy”, “prolonged”, and indicates the length of this weapon. This name, “Longinus”, is used to call the centurion in the apocryphal Acts of Pilate (8:8), which preserved some information from ancient sources.

“Now the centurion and those who were with him, guarding Jesus, when they saw the earthquake and all that was done, were greatly afraid, saying, ‘Truly this was the Son of God,’” - the centurion’s confession that Jesus was the Son of God, upon seeing His suffering and death, is mentioned in the Gospels of Matthew and Mark (Matt. 27:54, Mark 15:39). The Gospel of Luke testifies that the centurion called Jesus “the Righteous One” (Luke 23:47). In the language of Scripture, such a name for the Crucified meant a confession of his messiahship.

According to Tradition, after the Crucifixion, Longinus left his service and retired to Caesarea in Cappadocia, to his father’s estate, from where he had once joined the Roman Army in his youth. He was a professional warrior, his whole life, his material support, and, most importantly for the Romans, his reputation depended on his service. This outcome was a sign of a profound change of meaning, which is repentance. According to a denunciation, the author of which was most likely Pilate himself, Longinus was found, accused of desertion and beheaded. He had already preached Jesus to those around him, and therefore his death was not just a punishment from the authorities, but a martyr’s suffering.

Longinus’ head was sent to Palestine, where it was left without burial in an inappropriate place for the edification of all the disobedient. After some time, it was found by a widow suffering from impending blindness. The woman was healed. Thus, Pilate, who did not want to share the guilt for the murder of the Righteous One alone, found even greater condemnation, and the Centurion, who by the power of grace saw the Savior of the World in the Crucified One, received spiritual sight and granted help to the one seeking healing of her bodily sight.

The story of Longinus the Centurion eloquently testifies to the fact that every story in Scripture had a continuation in Tradition, but not all of them have reached us. The study of this heritage is a true virtue. It will be a revelation to those who seek how many biblical and gospel characters are venerated by the Church in the liturgical calendar, with a request for heavenly intercession.

The word about Longinus teaches believers to pray for those who do not yet believe, just as the Lord prayed for those who crucified Him: “Forgive them, Father, for they know not what they do” (Luke 23:34). Through the prayer of the Lord on the Cross, faith was born in the heart of Longinus the Centurion.