Longinus. The Greatest Story Ever Told
In the Gospels telling of the Crucifixion, the last of the five wounds received by Christ during his execution on the cross was from a lance, thrust into his side by a Roman Centurion who witnessed the event. The centurion is not named in the Gospels. His name first appeared in a document known as the Gospel of Nicodemus. The lance became known as the Holy Lance, and it, or something which represented it, was a revered relic by the Christian community in Jerusalem during the sixth century. By the eighth century Longinus was said to have been cured of eye problems by the touch of Christ’s blood on his eyes.
Another version of the tale of Longinus has it that he was punished for the rest of his life for the act of piercing the side of Christ with the lance. In the Letter of Herod to Pilate, which is another document not officially recognized by religious authorities in Rome, Longinus is described as having been confined to a cave, where he was nightly attacked by a lion. The next day his wounds would heal, that night the lion would return, and the process would continue for eternity. In many ways it was similar to the tortures of Prometheus for having given the gift of fire to humanity.
Another legend arose which had Longinus helping to lower Christ’s dead body from the cross, and helping to clean it prior to burial in the tomb. From this act a sponge, allegedly used by Longinus and stained with Christ’s blood became a relic in Mantua, where the body of Longinus was discovered along with the lance and the sponge. Longinus and the relics were separated into several different items, and are claimed to be in several churches in Europe, including the Chapel of the Holy Blood in a Benedictine Monastery in Bologna. Others are claimed to be in Prague. His body is claimed to have been buried in several different locations.
Longinus is venerated in the Eastern Orthodox Church (Feast Day October 16), the Armenian Apostolic Church (October 22) and the Roman Catholic Church (October 16). A statue entitled Saint Longinus stands beneath the dome of St Peter’s Basilica in Rome. The Basilica is said to have a portion of the lance used by Longinus at the Crucifixion. He appears in frescoes, paintings, stained glass windows, and tapestries, and in works of literature and fiction. He has also appeared in film, including in George Stevens’s epic The Greatest Story Ever Told.
In that film, during the Crucifixion, the Roman Centurion standing beneath the cross is given the line, “Truly this man was the Son of God”, attributed to Longinus. Longinus was portrayed by John Wayne. The role was a cameo, the line his only in the film, and the existence of the character being portrayed is highly questionable, but it was the one time in his long career that John Wayne played a Saint of the early Christian church. Despite the shortness of his role, Wayne appeared in much of the preproduction advertising for the film, indicating that his involvement was more than just a whim.