M
ost people who made it into the history books probably had some sense that it was a possibility. Some were geniuses, some great generals, or leaders of state; and while obviously the vast majority of Great Men and Women disappear into the cloud of time, those that have survived probably wouldn't be too terribly surprised to learn that their names are still being spoken generations after their death.
There is one man, however, who would be extremely surprised to hear just how famous is his name is; the provincial Roman governor, Pontius Pilate. Imagine speaking to this man during his life; who was the officer in charge of a backwater, rebellious province in the far-flung reaches of the Empite. Imagine telling him that because of a judgement which he was called to make upon a homeless Jew, his name would be spoken in every corner of the Earth, two millennia after his death. Pilate is probably better known than Julius or Augustus Ceasar, considering that his name appears in both the Apostle's and Nicene Creeds, spoken by Christian in every country on Earth.
It's easy to imagine that Pilate's life was frustrating and relatively mundane, and despite having a relatively high rank, that he might have considered himself a mediocrity or a failure, dealing with repetitive insurrections far from the seat of Roman rule. And yet here he is, perhaps one of the hundred most well-known humans ever to walk the Earth -- brought, permanently, into the light of history by simple association with He who changed the course of the world; I think he would have been very taken aback indeed. And I wonder how often he thought of the executed Jew afterwards; any dreams or intimations of what was to come.