Scripture
And after some days, when Felix came with his wife Drusilla, who was Jewish, he sent for Paul and heard him concerning the faith in Christ.
~Acts 24:24, NLT
Quote
Politicians are notoriously immoral: even when they know what is right, they seldom do it.
~Harry Brown
Marcus Antonius Felix was a Greek who used his brother’s influence in the court of Claudius to gain an appointment as the procurator of Samaria which is in the Judean region. He served as the governor of this region from AD 52-58. Felix was not a good governor by Roman standards: he was tyrannical, licentious, and corrupt. His corrupt behavior lead to an increase in crime in the area and that brought disfavor from Rome. He put down riots and revolts with such excessive cruelty and force but the Romans preferred ‘pax romana’ law and order with no riots. There are some interesting things about Felix: first, he gained his appointment through the influence of others. In other words, he did not work his way through the ranks. Secondly, Nero would have most likely had him executed if not for the intercession of Marcus Antonius Pallas, the brother of Felix who was a high-ranking official in Nero’s court.
Luke mentions his second wife Drusilla. Actually, his first wife was also a Drusilla. I reckon he had a thing for Drusillas. If you like history, the first Drusilla was the granddaughter of Marc Anthony and Cleopatra. The second Drusilla was the wife of King Aziz of Emessa and the daughter of Herod Agrippa. Felix met Drusilla at a State function and immediately fell in love with her beauty. According to historians, Drusilla was off the charts, there was not another woman so beautiful. Of course, she had to Divorce Aziz to marry Felix. The divorce created tension between Herod Agrippa and the Arabs. This tension led to Herod’s downfall a decade later. Historians tell us that Drusilla was 19 when she appeared before Paul. Remember, it was no uncommon for girls to be married at age 13-14 in the East.
Since Drusilla was Jewish, Felix was favorable to the Jews. This is why Tertullus the prosecutor for the Sanhedrin began his speech with a note of thanks to Felix for all he had done for Jews. Felix was not stupid. He understood Paul’s innocence. He knew that it was the Jews, not Christians, who start riots. Jews are the most gifted community organizers on the planet. Although he kept Paul in prison for two years, he did allow Paul to have visitors and some creature comforts. When Paul stood before Felix initially, he talked about righteousness, self-control and judgment. Felix was terrified. Some say he shook with fear. Paul hit the nail on the head with his three points. Instead of repenting, Felix sent Paul back to his cell. He did talk with Paul some more but he never repented. I don’t know that he was ever under conviction again. We do know this, Felix continued to be Felix: even though he knew that Paul was innocent and that he had the power to set him free, he left him in prison as a favor to the Jews. Felix was the consummate politician–You do me a favor and I will do you a favor. Doing the right thing never entered into the equation.
- Our internet went out last night during the rain making this post very late.
- There are exceptions to the rule: Guy Hunt was a Primitive Baptist Preacher and an honest man. He was never a viable candidate for governor, he only ran on the Republican Ticket to give conservatives a person to vote for. When the democrats blew it with the Charlie Graddic debachle, Hunt was elected governor by default. He was a country gentleman and was not ready for the good ole boy system that runs Montgomery. From day one, the democrats were looking for a way to oust him and he played right into their hands. They were schrewd politicans and he was a good man: they chewed him up and spit him out and defamed in character in doing it. Another case in point was Earnest Dillard; also a Baptist Preacher {SBC} and a very good man. Honest as the day is long. He lasted one term. He brought no pork back to Lawrence County and they were up in arms. To get your share of the PORK in Montgomery, you have to play politics, which means lie and compromise.
- The only candidate that I am fully endorcing at this time is SCOTT DAWSON for Governer. Folks we need a leader, not a politician. Our public school system needs fixing and if we don’t fix it soon, we are going to lose some good teachers. We also need an advocate in Montgomery for SMALL BUSINESS and it is not Kay Ivy who by the way gave almost 800 thounsand dollars to the gay and lesbians last year. Joe David is much more informed than I am so if you have questions about some of the races, you can asks him. I have such a distaste for politics that I try not to think about it.
- Do you know the difference from a Politician and a Catfish: One is a botton dwelling, scum eater and the other is a fish.
- One more little antedote, they keep popping in my mind. About 15 years ago or maybe longer, Joe David carried Lori’s uncle Hugh to a Richard Shelby town meeting. When Shelby got to the Q&A, Hugh’s first question was about the NOTCH GROUP and why Carter cheated them out of their Social Security. Shelby gave Hugh the old Washington two step, he talked for 15 minutes and didn’t say anything. Hugh’s response was, “That’s bull____. If I had my way, I would blow Washington D.C. off the map.” To which Shelby reacted very quickly saying, “Mr. Fitgerald, you can’t say things like that.” He didn’t know Hugh. I’ve had all these years to think about and Hugh was right, maybe on both counts.