Lent thoughts 15

The frightening effects of a mob in action. When I read the story of the woman taken in adultery at the Ash Wednesday service I was reminded of last year's riots, of football crowds and their awful abusive chants, of so many examples of where some sort of mob mentality rules. Did all the people who brought the woman in front of Jesus really want to stone her or were they just swept along, caught up in the moment, swayed by some impressive leaders, or too afraid to stand up and say "no, this is wrong"?

Crowds seemed to mill about Jesus, listening to him, confronting him, cheering him or jeering him. Did the same people who welcomed him into Jerusalem stand round and take a pop when he was carrying his cross? And did their feelings depend largely on those of the folk around them?

And do our feelings/opinions come from within or from the folk around us?