SYNOPSIS

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SIMON OF CYRENE
A Historical Fiction
A Script by
Nabil ZIani

nabziani@gmail.com
https://nabziani.wixsite.com/ziani

August 2019

Introduction
One of the most mysterious characters in the New Testament is a certain Simon of Cyrene, father of Alexander and Rufus. He makes a furtive appearance, being forced to carry the cross of Jesus on the way to Calvary. We do not hear about him in the Bible neither before nor after this event and he does not say a single word in the biblical text. Yet, the fact that he was quoted by the Gospels gives him an importance that needs to be enlightened, visiting his life, that of his family, his environment and the consequences of his act.

o Who is Simon of Cyrene, and who are his two sons also mentioned, Alexander and Rufus? Who are the biblical characters around them?
o What roles did they play in the story of nascent faith, based on the person and work of Jesus of Nazareth?
o What were the implications of their work in the history of Christianity, and what remains of it today?
 

Origins:
Simon and his sons are from Cyrenaica in North Africa, in what is now Libya. Their names reveal four cultural and ethnic dimensions. While Simon is a Jewish name, that of Alexander is Greek, while that of Rufus is Roman. They are all three of North Africa, country of the Berber people.

Where is this region, and what is its history?
Throughout the Bible, and the New Testament in particular, there are several charcters from this part of the world which is North Africa that have been mentioned. Kings, governors, priests, prophets, doctors, evangelists. Later, Carthage in present-day Tunisia, will take over from Cyrene, becoming the world center of Christianity, giving the Church, its greatest writers, doctors and fathers.

It is the story of these early Christians that we tell, based on biblical data, those of the Christian tradition and historical sources.
 

Objective of this script :
This script was written to tell the story of the first century church and its first believers, starting with these three foreigners from Cyrene whose story begins at the very moment when Jesus was taken to Golgotha. It will take us from Cyrene to France, from Carthage to Rome, via Cyprus, Antioch, Greece, Italy, Alexandria, Spain, and Catalonia.
 

We will also find in this story, famous biblical characters and others less known : John Mark - the author of the first Gospel - and his mother Mary, Simon Peter, Barnabas, Saul-Paul, Silas, Timothy, Epnaetus, the Samaritan, and of course, Simon of Cyrene, his wife and their two sons, Alexander and Rufus.

Rufus and Mark
Indeed, native Cyrene, Rufus and John Mark who will take over from Simon of Cyrene, will be the main characters in this scenario, alongside many others, such as Peter, Barnabas and Paul, based on biblical and historical sources, augmented by a fictional contribution to better articulate the events between them and allow the viewer to understand the history of early Christianity, its development, and its impact on the spreading of the Gospel in the world, especially in the West.
 

This script thus tells, in an unprecedented way, the story of Simon of Cyrene and his children. And also, in a special way, the life of Saint Mark, spiritual heir to the work of Simon of Cyrene.
 

Documentary sources :
The story told, although partly fictional, is entirely based on the data of the Bible and those of the Christian tradition of the early centuries and historical documentary sources.
o The Acts of the Apostles
o The Gospels
o The Epistles of Paul and Peter
o Muratori's Cannon
o Letter from Clement of Rome
o Christian literature
o Secular literature.
 

Traditionaly, Church history as told and taught is based on Paul’s Missionary Journeys. This script is a reconstruction of the story of Simon of Cyrene and his immediate lineage, related to the birth and expansion of the first century church in Africa, and its extension to the evangelization of the West.
 

Characters of the story :
o Jesus ;
o Mary, his mother ;
o Simon of Cyrene ;
o Alexander and Rufus, his two sons ;
o Dinah, their mother ;
o John Mark ;
o Mary his mother ;
o Barnabas his cousin ;
o Simon Peter, called Cephas "his father" ;
o Lucius of Cyrene ;
o Epnaetus of Carthage ;
o Saint Paul ;
o Pétronilla and Filicula, the two sisters, of whom Petronilla is considered to be Peter’s adopted daughter.
o Saint Photina, the Samaritan woman ...

Places where the story takes place.
o Alexandria, Egypt ;
o Antioch, Syria, currently in Turkey ;
o Avignon, south of France ;
o Babylon, Egypt ;
o Cana in Galilee ;
o Carthage, Tunisia ;
o Caesarea, in Israel ;
o Cyprus ;
o Cyrene and Pentapolis in North Africa;
o Jerusalem ;
o Lecuza (Spain) ;
o Perga, in Turkey
o Rome ;
o Tortosa (Catalonia);