Background:

This is a clip from the movie “Risen”(2016) a Biblical drama of a Roman soldier's search for the body of Jesus which went missing 3 days after his death and burial. Pilate, the Roman governor, ordered the tribune, Clavius, to locate the missing body and put an end to the idea that Jesus had been dead and was alive again. In this scene Clavius finds Polybius, one of his soldiers who had been given the duty to guard the tomb where Jesus had been buried.

Listening Practice:

(Time: 54:54 - 47: 26) - Watch the video clip again and fill in the missing words from the dropdown box:

Polybius: Sing it! That's the one. Sing the song. Sing... No, don't stop. Don't stop. Sing it again! Sing it again, please! Come on. That was good. They're good, aren't they? Oh, yes, it's a nice song. it's a song.

Tribune: wine for a legionary. You've been hiding. Where did you gain silver like this?

Polybius: Off a man.

Tribune: Of course.

Polybius: So what? I was by the prefect. Pardoned. Nothing can be done to me now. I said what they... what was proclaimed.

Tribune: Say it again.

Polybius: Why?

Tribune: To see how your tale your mate's.

Polybius: We were attacked in the night while sleeping by the disciples.

Tribune: The priests paid you to say this.

Polybius: They his body and bade us say that he is risen.

Tribune: How did the stone fall ten from the tomb? It took seven men, myself included, just to roll it closed. And the ropes weren't cut. They were torn as if thread. The seals . Like butter. Shall we go there?

Polybius: No!

Tribune: Why does it bother you so? No more .

Polybius: You forgot us. Forgot! We'd had no supper. That's why the wine made us . Yeah, yeah, we slept. We'd been up two days since the Crucifixion. What could happen guarding the body of a dead man? So we closed our eyes in turns for a bit until...

Tribune: Until what?

Polybius: Until we was wakened by this terrible ... this terrible flash. The night was gone. The air smelled burned, and the ropes, they just ...they just exploded. And the stone flew like a . And all of a sudden, the sun rose in the tomb. It was the sun. It was everything. And then a appeared that I could not gaze upon because of the terrible light, and it wasn't a man. It wasn't. And there was this voice all around I could not .

Tribune: And Caiaphas you for a different story.

Polybius: Tribune, I have seen much in the service of the Emperor. Cannibals and the Blue Celts in Gaul and, uh ... I've seen a man taken by a at sea. But never I witnessed a moment so...so.. Explain it to me.

Tribune: You were drunk. You saw the dawn burst. The wine you drank was .

Polybius: Truly? Do you suppose? Maybe it was, uh, opium or frankincense? Maybe the disciples stole the Nazarene's body with magic, as the priests said or ... maybe our story is true.

Tribune: What else could it be?

Polybius: I don't know, so I drink

Matching exercise: Match the words on the left with the definitions on the right:

(Definitions and examples from: Heinle’s Newbury House Dictionary of American English. http://nhd.heinle.com/Home.aspx)

Completion exercise: Complete these sentences with words from the exercise above: (Hint: you may need to change the form of the word.)

1. Ice to water quickly in warm weather.
2. He slowly took five toward the edge of the bridge.
3. A mob smashed windows and overturned cars after their team lost the championship.
4. I cannot why he would leave such a good job.
5. After he drank a glass of warm milk, he went into a deep that lasted all night.
6. The food has spoiled and is with mold.
7. The clothes in that store are ; I can’t afford to shop there.
8. There is a nice between the color of his suit and his tie.

Comprehension and discussion questions: Discuss these questions in your group or with a partner.

1. Why had Polybius been drinking so much? Give two reasons.
2. Why was Polybius no longer in the Roman army?
3. Who had paid Polybius to say the disciples had stolen Jesus’s body?
4. What was the explanation the priests had given to Polybius about how the body was stolen?
5. What was the tribune, Clavius’s, explanation for what Polybius had witnessed?
6. The resurrection of Jesus is a foundational truth of Christianity. Which of the following facts do you find most convincing for the resurrection of Jesus from the dead?
   A) the tomb was empty
   B) Over 500 people saw Him alive after the resurrection
   C) Roman historians wrote about the resurrection of Jesus
   D) All but one of His disciples were killed for their belief in Christ as the resurrected saviour of the world.
   E) Today, 2000 years later, Christianity continues to grow and spread in every country.