The Wandering Jew is a mysterious man who, legend has it, is doomed to walk the earth until Judgement Day. He is said to still be roaming, tormented by his fate and has, apparently, been sighted many times over the last 2,000 years.
The medieval English historian Roger of Wendover wrote in his book Flores Historiarum (1228) that the man’s name was Cartaphilus and he was said to be a Roman soldier who struck Jesus Christ. Jesus was carrying the cross on the way to his execution, and Cartaphilus, it is claimed, punched the exhausted Jesus and told him to move faster. Jesus looked at him and replied: ‘I go, and you will wait till I return.’
In a slightly different version, he is said to be the guard at the trial of Jesus, who struck him in front of the high priest: ‘When Jesus said this, one of the officials near by struck him in the face…’ (John 18:22).
Jesus had also suggested that one of his own disciples would await his return: ‘Jesus answered, “If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you. You must follow me.” Because of this, the rumour spread among the brothers that this disciple would not die’ (John 21:21–22).
Cartaphilus, it appears, still wanders the earth, awaiting Christ’s return. In his anguish, Cartaphilus was baptised into the Christian faith and has lived a holy life ever since — and still he waits.
The story of the Wandering Jew became notorious throughout medieval Europe and many sightings of him were reported —a very old man, dressed in rags, mumbling prayers and longing for death. Often villagers fled in panic if they heard that the Wandering Jew was heading in their direction.
In 1542, Paulus van Eitzen, a Lutheran bishop, claimed to have met an old Jew who told him that he was the man who struck Jesus and was condemned to live until Christ’s return. Since then, others claimed to have encountered the Wandering Jew all over Europe and in 1868 he was reputedly encountered in Salt Lake City and at Harts Corners in New York in the USA.
Believers say that the Wandering Jew is still walking the earth, awaiting Judgement Day. What do you think?