Jesus Lies

Pilate fear that the people would consider him a traitor to Caesar, instead of a friend. Moreover, Pilate could not ignore the charges brought against Jesus. The Jewish council did not only charge him with blasphemy, besides, the political charges brought against him (misleading the people saying that he was Christ, the king). Such charge that was consider treason, Pilate could not ignore. Which lead to Pilate reacting in such manner. However, after finding no fault against Jesus Pilate refused the verdict. Nonetheless, they sought more charges against Jesus. Leaving Pilate with no choice but to hand him over to them.

Pontius Pilate is one of the most scrutinized characters in the bible. He, on one hand, sentenced Jesus to death on the cross and on the other hand, desired not to kill Jesus, washing his hands as a sign of dissociation. So that raises the question, is Pilate a benevolent character because of his faith in Jesus, a negative character because he allowed him to be crucified, or a mixture of the two? Biblical scholars have written numerous essays and articles offering proof on all sides. It is to a point where there seems to be enough evidence for all three opinions to support any of them. However, Christian author and biblical scholar Callie Callon states the claim in her entry into the Biblical Theology Bulletin that “attributing to Matthew a depiction of Pilate that is in any way positive is incongruent with Matthew's historical context, his view of Jewish Law, as well as numerous internal aspects of his gospel.” while tilting the entry Pilate the villain: an alternative reading of Matthew's portrayal of Pilate. In the entry, she gives details of why many authors today claim that Matthew’s depiction of Pilate is unrealistically favorable and that facts of the day show that Pilate was just as villainous as the priests and elders who persecuted Jesus. Callon offers examples of this when highlighting the key differences in Matthew's translation/choice of words compared to the priests and elders’ speech.

Jesus is alive, for he continued to work in the lives of his disciples. The change of the lives of his followers demonstrate the work of Christ in them. Our historical knowledge relies on testimonies. The testimonies of the disciples are valid because eleven of them dies for their belief in the claims that Jesus made (McDowell 89-90). The power of Jesus is shown through them. Initially, they were cowards in their faith. Peter denied Jesus three time, and Thomas doubted Jesus’ resurrection. The disciples’ weak faith in Jesus and doubt in his resurrection suddenly transformed into an undeniable belief that led them to give up their lives for this Jesus. What could have changed the disciples’ minds so suddenly besides the witnessing of the resurrection of Jesus. They all personally had an encounter with the resurrected body of Jesus. Peter, one of the disciples of Jesus, proclaimed that

Even though Pilate is seen as very powerful, she cannot always protect everything that is precious to her. She attempts to help Hagar and prevent her from killing Milkman (129). Pilate loves both Hagar and Milkman and tries to protect them both. Despite her efforts Hagar cannot be controlled. She tries numerous times to hurt Milkman and does not stop until her death. Pilate knows that Hagar is slowly hurting herself and can only be stopped by Milkman, but she cannot make Hagar understand (130). Hagar is so demented that she kills herself because of her obsession. In the bible, Pilate is also ambiguous about what to do. He knows that Jesus is innocent, but he also knows that it will bring him trouble if he disobeys the people ( John 19:12).

Pontius Pilate, as Roman Governor, had a position to fulfill to the Roman population along with the Jewish community. During a time of Jewish Passover, along with the chaos Jesus had created, Pilate was under great influence from many outside factors. “The stir created by Jesus' preaching and the size of his following perturbed both the Roman and the Jewish authorities, fearful of any wind that might fan the smoldering discontent in Palestine into a raging flame of revolt.” (Hexter 62) In the Roman trial, Pilate was chosen to judge Jesus on the act of sedition, however counter to Hexter's perspective, repeatedly stated that he saw no case against him. In the Gospel of John, it is apparent that Pilate not only doesn't want to be involved but is puzzled at the situation at hand. “Your own nation and the chief of priests have handed you over to me; what have you done?” (John 18:33) Pilate is attempting to keep order in his city and rather not involve

Pontius Pilate held the power and was obligated to the authority of the position to make the final ruling. We see him exemplifying this power by questioning Jesus and probing for a response multiple times. As his attempts failed, Pontius Pilate begins to questions the crowd, slowly giving this authority to the crowd as the final decision maker. The crowd then seizes the power from Pontius Pilate dictating the course of action to

The resurrection of Christ is an event that if true provides good evidence that Jesus is truly the son of God. Christ 's resurrection is an event which only God himself could perform. This resurrection is far different from the everyday resurrection by medical equipment. This resurrection is an eternal

Pilate’s life as a whole may be a mystery to many, but as seen today there are historical writings that help us understand who Pilate was. Also seen today was the rocky relationship between the Jews and Pilate. This gives un an interesting insight into the crucifixion. We know Pilate tried to please the Jews, and we know that the religious leaders were not fond of him. Next week we will take a look at the crucifixion, and the trial of Jesus. As noted earlier Pilate played a role in this, but how does his role compare to Passover? Next week we will look into that, and I will show that Pilate’s role is an important one.

Like Sixtus, instead of choosing the morally upright decision, Pilate chose the socially and politically convenient choice and gave into the demands of the Jews and his

Pontius Pilate did not want to sentence Jesus’s death and even tried saving him couple of times. For example, when Pilate was reminded that it was customary to free a prisoner during the festival, he tried to use this as an excuse to release Jesus. However, the people chose another person, Barabbas. Barabbas was a criminal who committed robbery and murder. People chose to save this criminal over someone who did not commit any sin. Pontius Pilate must have been really frustrated with this decision and how stubborn these people

Pontius Pilate was a Roman governor who overlooked Judea. To me, he was made out to seem like a weak leader in the gospels, however in all actuality, he was a harsh and strong governor. He could arguably be considered the single man who changed history as we know it. The gospels do not explain much about Pilate and his background. The only time he was really introduced was during the trial of Jesus. He was acknowledged a few times to show he was the one who followed through with the crucifixion, and then he ceased to be brought back up again. However, the book Pontius Pilate by Paul L. Maier thoroughly and adequately illustrates Pilate’s life before and after the life-changing verdict. This was a fascinating read that really captivated my interest. It was long and at times hard to follow, but I was extremely intrigued with the eccentric details that Maier provided.

This is the first step in the relationship between Pontius Pilate and Jesus. It is interesting that when Pilate asks Jesus if he is the King of the Jews, Jesus replies with an answer that demonstrates what Pilate believes. Jesus’ response to Pilate shows that Pilate does believe that Jesus is King of the Jews because Jesus is all knowing. Also Jesus’ mannerisms and lack of rebuttal to the hackling amazes Pilate and puts him at a loss for words. Since Pilate appears to already believe Jesus’ title this puts him in an uncomfortable position later in the

The purpose of this unit was to illuminate the affair between politics and justice. The charge the high priests brought against Jesus before Pontius Pilate displays that political expediency takes precedence over justice. This unit is less about Jesus, partly due to his refusal to respond, and

So I understand the reaction of Pilate. Especially because the idea of a king could not be the initiative of one man with some followers, but there was a political mechanism in those days and protocols to follow. For instance, Caesar was the emperor and he was the one who appointed the king of a region in the Empire. So a kingship, like the one of Jesus, sounded ironically and funny to Pilate. He, indeed, ordered to place a plaque on the cross saying that Jesus was the king of the Jews. It was a game, a game that became true, and without wanting it, Pilate helped us all to know Jesus as the true

“Pilate? Oh, I see. You’re able to believe in the lesser myths because you’ve already accepted the big one. Once you accept the big myth, the lie of Christ, it’s easy to accept the smaller ones. All right, Tollers. I’ll play the role of Pilate. I’ll wash my hands of the whole nonsense.”