Thursday Jesus had a final meal with his friends. Later, on return to the Mount of Olives, as he was praying in an olive grove (called Gethsemane) across the valley from the temple, a posse of temple guards (with the connivance and perhaps the presence of Roman soldiers) surrounded him. They had never seen Jesus before. They did not know which one was he, until he was identified by one of Jesus’ men. He was ambushed. He was arrested. A Jewish ‘trial’ as dramatised in the gospels is unlikely, even perhaps impossible. It would be like having a Supreme Court meeting twice between Christmas evening and the morning of Christmas. Was there a scaled down proceeding? A hearing? There does seem to have been lack of agreement among his captors about what to do with him, and as a result some discussion, possibly in his presence. Beat him, and throw him out of town? Jail him till after Passover? Hand him over to the Romans? Caiaphas (who did not have the right of capital punishment or did not want to appeal to it) seems to have been looking for evidence that would convince Pilate to order the man’s execution. It seems likely that Caiaphas thought this was the best expedient to keep trouble down. Did he find that evidence? Jesus had said things that were high treason in terms of the kingdom of Rome, but he was hardly an actual threat to its legions. Caiaphas is taking the option of a precautionary first strike. In any case, as dawn broke on Friday, Jesus was handed over to Pilate. . . . |
|
