ESUS OF NAZARETH lived in a time of politicul turmoil Beiween the lines Gospels, which are our main source of information, this comes through loud and clear. But it is never brought to the surface. The last thing that the writers of the This which could apply to anybody. Above all. they did not want to tie Jesus in with the fate of the Jewish people who, at the time of writing, had just been crushed by the Roman legions after a hitter resistunce war.
However, the actual situation in which Jesus lived is plain enough. In 63BC Palestine was conquered by a Roman army, led by Pompey. and made part of the Roman province of Syria. Pompey, accompanied by his military stalt. strode into the Holy of Holies of been defended by its priests after the reigning king had opened the gates of the city to the invaders final showdown 133 years later in 70AD, the history of Palestine is mainly a story of Jewish resistance which took place during a time which was fundamentally one of Roman CADILBLUE. of Nazareth lived right in the middie of this period and, despite his well-known attachment to tbe other-wordly he could hardly have been blind to what was going on.
It is not certain exactly when Jesus was born. All we can say is that it was during the reign of the Emperor Augustus, who died in 14AD, and that during Jesus adult life Augustus successor Tiberius was on the throne. Jesus may have seen the end of Herod's reign, as an infant. Certainly tbe followed Herod's death must have impressed him, stories which were told him as be HEROD'S DEATH TEROD'S DEATH produceu crisis, Herod had heen servile to the Romans and cruel and extortionate to his owe people. He was loatled and bared. Naturally, when he died there was general rejoicing and the national movenient came to surlace again. There had already been rumblings shortly before the end of his reign.
A student demonscacon, more or less led by two Pharisees, Judas and Matthias, bad culminated in down of the Roman eagle which • Herod had displayed in the Temple to please masters. The ringleaders were burned alive. When Herod tinally died, there was an uprising Jerusalem. The procurator, inus, the top Roman troops into the capital to maintain Herod's treasury. festival of Pentecost, fighting broke out between pilgrims to the Temple and these Roman troops. Sabinus was pinged down in the ARMED UPRISING At the same time, there another armed uprising in Galilee. led by a partisan leader called known as the Gaillean, whose father had etecuted by Herod for insurgency. This was a large-scale uprising in TESTS TOOK HeRS from Nazareth, where Jesus spent his childhood.
About an hour's walk away, in fact. The Romans had to send two legions, that is, twelve thousand troops, down suppress these revolts and rescue Sabinis. During the fighting Temple was badly damaged an Sepphoris was completely destrosed. When the Romans restored order they crucified 2,000 rebels.
Palestine is a comparativel) small country. Herod's kingdom of Judea was not much bigger than Wales, about twice the size of Northern Ireland I did not extend so far south as Israel does coday, but it covered a tringe of what is Syria and Jordan. - about five million probably was not homogenously Jerusalem area — Juden proper and in traillee to the north. whete they were fairly recent settiers.
In hetween was Samaria, where the Samaritans lived. Samaricans had their own religion which was a vacant of Judaism. Fogise the Temple dur had they their own holy mountain in Samaria. In the towns there were a number of Greeks and Hellenized Syrians or Phoenici nas, who bad Tirst come in the wake of Alexander's armies and now identified with the Romans Herod had encouraged immigration of Greeks and had built a number of new towns for tbeat, including a new port and cania Catares which nanonu -istic and pious Jews would not live in because it was dominated by His: TICUMOUS ORCAS SCISS theatre and a racerrack in ational and religious difference TNSOTECELUUALE Sab- had some of the features official in During the guerrilla were often the Roman occupation crystal TT6I5 carber been overlooking the Temple made a obscene gesture to the pilgrims.
the Roman tax appropriations.
Something like a tend Syria to collectors, the and it provoked time, right during the childhood o Jesus. focus of the revolt, The population Jewish. period DIRECT RULE STARTS The did place on a powers, in Judea at least.
turther years, from 27 to 36 AD split by Northern Treland or Cyprus. The Jewish national movement took a religious form; it was religion which bound the nation together.
The leaders of the Zealots, as the partisans were known. ultra-teligious, and religion was one of the main two issues around which opposition to lised. There were uprisings so the late Thirties, only a few years after the crucilision of Jesus, when the was a big riot when a Roman soldier on guard on a root The second issue was economic:
Rome did not cax its own citizens but relled on wringing what it could out of subject peoples. The system was laid down officially and then the actual tax collection vas left to private enterprise, o basis.
Roman troops backed up the tax Naturally tax collectors were regarded as collaborators with the Pharisees, Romans and there were frequen attempts to sabotage the system and boycott it. Quirinius census in 6AD was designed by the Romans to help implement tax collection elernents trol.
widespread struggle, which was not subdued for some Once aain Galilee was the ere was heasy fighting in tt armed struggie.
butte as well, lod by a shephe called Athronges. Thousands were killed by the Romans during thia The census was particularly Techico paine e marked tal beginning of direct rule by Rome.
The puppet regime was abandoned Herod's death. His son was exiled Romans shortly after and the Procurator given full parable!
In Gatilee and in South-East Syria, the Golan Heights area, two ather sons of Herod were allowed to stay on as autonomous rulers.
Generally speaking, the Roman changed Procurators quite rapidly. Pontius Pilate, who lasted nine industries, was an exception to the rule. Pilate was intensely hated and this loathing carpenter shows through all the Jewish source documents which remain He was both harsh and corrupt: When he took money from the Temple treasury there were massive demonstrations against He suppressed them by putting troops into the crowd in plamn clothes, with concealed weapons, whosuddenly capt into action at a iven signal. In the Gospels, thet re references to the killing o Galileaus, always trouble makers and to tors in Jerusalem at th time of Jesus" death, while the word used to describe the two "thieves" crucified with Jesus is the same generally used to describe guerillas, rather like "bandits.
However, the real struggle built a from the forties onward alminating in a full-scale natioar uprising in the sixties. At the same time, the national strugale began to cross-cut with an increasingly overt class strugale. The traditional ruling class in Judaca consisted of an interlocking bloc formed by large landowners and the hereditary high priestly families who contrelled the Temple: THEOLOGY GRADUATES The Sadducees were members of this bloe. They were challenged as religious authorities by th who were rigourists, organised on a stict entry basis incocells, led by scribes, graduates in theology, but also including aadi and even labouring backgrounds. It was the Phariscos abo welded the Jewish nation together into a religiouspolitical force. Many of the Zealot leaders were Pharisoes who bad decided to move into a phase of The mass of Zealots however. came from the people, from small towns and villages. This period was one of an overall movement int the countryside cowards large escates, throwing small peasants many of them in debr, off the land There were a large лилост об slaves in Judies at the time and these made up part of the guerrilla armies. There were also an Increasing number of hired hands who are often mentioned in surplus of labour meant that the were usualle employed on a casual basis. There was naturally a drift Eat the certine a de s an increasing SEICHE employment in small craft Jesus and the apostles came from artisan Tamilies; Jesus was n imported from the Lebanon and HIV ONE SUSSEs Went fishermen, owning their pur boats. We know from other sources that the fishing industr was thriving in Galilee at the tinne and there was investment in pickle for use in exporting fish.
Jesus did nor come from the masses, who were either living of charity there was an efficien dole system in operation - or els were day labourers or slaves Neither, of course, did he cum trom the priestly caste or from t rich business or land-owning background. He was a petty bourgeois KIDNAPPINGS AND ASSASSINATION The ruling class throughout thi period became increasingly com promised with the Romans. I wa the Roman Procuratol appointed the High Priest, usuati a matter for bribery. In return, the High Priest acted as a Quisling maintaining law and orde Jerusalem, a sensitive area for Romans, with his own Templ police and handing over trouble makers for trial.
Yer at the same time, the Templ and its High Priest were the mair symbols of national conscious Dess. In the end. canse out into the open. Zealo kidnapped a Temple official an Like Bander-Meinboff, held him ransomt for the reicaso of politica prisoners. Assassination of colla borators was stepped up, until High Priest was struck down 100 When, in the sixties, resistenc gathered momentum, there wer particularly troubled economit LITCHASE COCAIISES to the Temple had provide Jerusalem these suddenly halted, After riols the programme was set in motior again in the form of paving the cit streets. At the same time, ther were complaints that the bish priestly families who equipped themselves with arme gangs. were marauding countryside extorting Either u which they had no claim Marters carne to a head in 66AD when, after a huge rux haycott, th Roman Procurator locted th Temple treasury to make up d lelicit. There was an immedi Zealor uprising. The Roma main force withdrew and th remnant belt behind was massi red. One of the first acts of t1 Zealot regime was to destroy th records of dehts freciog th masses from the grip of mone lenders and landlords. A new Hig
A detail from the facade of a medieval Romanian monastery, Priest was clocted by lot, which fell • a peasant, an impoverished bember of the priestly caste, an act regarded as outrageous by tiling class opinion.
THE LEFT IS ISOLATED During the four years between 66 ind 70 AD there was all out war. A whole Roman expeditionary force, omprising two legions and several housand auxiliaries, was wiped mut. The Romans lost over 5.000 afantry and 480 cavalry: This detory led to the setting up of a rational Government, represent ag all aspects of religious opinion. ath Sadduccees and Pharisees ind even Essenes, the monastic roup who produced the Dead Sea crolls. The Zealots opposed this overnment, which they regarded a class based and potentially ollaborationist. They were quite The Jewish commander in Josephus, who was a 'harisce. spent time israssing the Zealors than reparing detences acoust Rome Then the Romans arrived, under espasian, he capitulated on the and became ollaborator. Later he wrote a istory of the events to justify his ompletely treacherous role. The backbone of resistance was d throughout by the Zcalots who len in the mountain fortress at lasada, When the Remans took crusalem in MAD, under Titus, undreds o1 thousands were utchered and the city levelled.
recounts how al one oint the Romans ran out of wood if crosses and, when they had saces to put more crosses up in.
context that the rucifixion of Jesus and the riting of the Gospels must be COMAN REPRISALS Where did Jesus stand? It can ardly be believed that he a arable to hat was one around nint as tae Losper riters make out, Roman reprisals int bave struck the families of ws known to him in the area. ne of Jesus's own disciples, one the Twelve, was Simmon the calot who presumably particilled in one of the uprisings. Keading the Gospels, the picture esented in the sait is that of a. essive collaborator Altbough HIS WAS executed by Pontius Pilnte, every effort is made to clear him of any real responsibility. Crucifixion was nos a Jewin mebod elecution, lt was the punishment for political crimes Spartacus was crucifed, for Instance Whereas the Jews had responsibilky for ordinary religious offences. the crimies went to Pilare Yet the Gospels claim that Pilate washed his hands of the affair, protested Jesus's innocence, could see no wrong in bim and was pressured into crucifying him by the High Priest and his lobby.
Jesus himself is represented in a pro-Roman light. For example, he i described as friendly with taxcollectors and collaborationiss. He heals the child of a Roman centurian. He advises, not simply going along with the authority of Kome under duress, And, of course. important incident recounted concerns the payment of tax, "Render unto Caesar that which is Caesar's and unto God that which i God's. In the Gospels, this is presented as a particularly cunning reply which outwitted Pharisees who asked it. In fact, it is not at all equivocal, supports the payment of taxes to Rome The whole question of taxation was the burning issue of the day. Onthis issue, Jesus took a pro-Roman stand and backed the claims of the Imperial power KEEPING JESES CLEAR OF JUDAISM The coulletpati of this Roman artitude of the Gospels is the persistent denigration of the Pharisees. The Zealots, as such. play no part in the Gospel story at all. They are simply suppressed verbally, as the Romans suppress militarily.
Pharisoes are very much in the forefront. They are used as strawmen who food Jesus the straight lines which enable him to score off them. The purpose of this, as far as the Cospels are concerned clearly to distinguish Jesus and the Christian community Jews and the Jewish cause. In LET OST every case disagreenient with Judaism which a brewe so mat Jesus can be distanced from his own people Stones like that of the Samaritan are heavily prompted to the same cud.
A numter of scholars have tried to rescue Jesus from this pro........
Roman presentation, especially in and Belsen, conmentators on the Gospel have at long last become Roman sensitive to its anti-Jewish bias. In particular, the episode of Jesus's and it has been crimes and responsible for his execution — asa polstical politicaloffender.
strator who was likely to allow the High Priest's lobby to pressure has against his betfer judgement. only PACIFIST SENTIMENT claiming that Jesus was actually pro-Zealot and sympathetic lation means discounting the great stabs of pacifist sentiment which but going fill the Gospels as nothiag but post-fall of Jerusalem PR, put in the most by the fawning Evangelists, eager net torub Romeupthe wrong way. the money changers out Temple are stressed and the fact that Jesus armed patrol and one of disciplies drew his sword the resisted arrest. Indeed. Luke describes how Ir plainly instructed his disciplies to buy swords just before the arrest, though he quickly added that two would be enough.
Iris certainly true that there are patches of anti-Roman material in the Gospels which may get closc to the attitude of Jesus, or at leas the carly followers, than the Gospel writers do. For example.
pro- the story of the Cadarene swind Seems to have an anti-imperialist gibe hidden away in it. exorcises an evil demon, who is called Legion', and the demon then enters a herd of pigs who plunge over a cliff. The Roman But the Decupaton troops were known ax pigs by the Jews, so the moral is pretty clear, But conversely, there is a definite strain of anti Temple preachiag. He is MUELICE particularly the financin] instituFrom the tions, it is Much Be vanous ways Temple made money: donations, taxes, commercial transactions and so forth.
Good Above all Jesus did not in any was advocate ciolent resistance to the Romans, but believed that it spuritual change in readiness for recent years when, after Auschwitz trial has been gone over in detail admitted that Rome and not the High Priest was Pilate was not a weak adminiInstitutIon, This line of reasoning has led or pobitically.
writers to go as far as This interpreIn costrast, episodes like driving of lie was arrested by and might be Jesus apnarently execution, Jesus OPPRESSED Jesus's critical of a to the of Temple institutions and more than ance the Maaris, the coming of the Kingdom. He conceived of this change in a was which brought him up against the Pharisees, because he was an antitraditionalist in his attitude to the Jewish religious Law Ethically, he was a purist, but not in any legalistic way. Judging from his nunterous parables abou vineyards, labourersand husband meo, he was fully satisfied with the exiting relations of production. including slavery, and the general conomic set up, though he was disrustfulof the rich. He seens to have felt that the Temple should IcH be in ans was either commercially JESUS NOT SUBVERSIVE In itself, there was little that was subvershe in Jesus' preaching and, in this sense the Gospel writers were right to portray him as a passive collaborator, But his fate was senled when be began to attract crowds, partly because of his fears of healing, partly because he was a compelling orator. The Gospels seversi tunes tel how hr tried to get away from the crowds and pive them the slip, anxious about the outcome well he Pontias Pilate's Fast official act for example, in 36 AD, only two or years after Jesus's crosd of Samaritans a bo expected Holy Mountait. Anybody who gathered large crowds was in danger of being halted in their tracks for political reasons, In Rome the careers of sports and theatre stars were abruptly stopped when they began to acquire supporlers who RELIGIONS OF THE It is quite usual for messianse and prophetic religious movements to spring up in times of political unheaval, Jesus can he compared with the new movements which sprang up as part of the response advance of European imperialise: Peyotism and Ghostdancing among the American Ringa-tu amone the These movements attempt to break out of the confines of an appurently bopeless historical predicament by stressing the glorious other-wordly role for the followers or their prophet In a time of political turmoil, they appear anxious to suppress Amber 1977, page 15 anything which might develop into a threat, usually cynical and ignorant, and inclined toerr on the side of ruthlessness rather mercy. They are por down and, the circumstances are right, a new cult based on the prestige of THE MAN IN THE MIDDLE The real strengel Jesus's preaching lay in his ability respond to conflict without beins sucked into it. He was the man LE the middle. Not only was he in the middle of a class conflict but of a national liberation struggle He was able to find something to say which made sense to all kinds of people without ever coming down on one side or the other, This still is his strength. The discontented, the disaffected, the wretched of the carth could rapood to him. So could lax-collectors and Roman soldiers In part, this was because he chose riddles and parables, to tell stories ratber than make satements, Bur parily too it was because he had a talent for che ring of truth. for wards which sounded right, whicl pushed everyone a liccle bit further He walked a verhal tightrope which he wove as he went along. And he could back il up with a quotation every time, i precisely because he had this ability to reconcile conflicting aspurators, that he some imes seemed subversive. But in the loug run anytling that covers over contradictions by appealing to hoth sides always favour those in power. And Christiansty shildoes
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an exclusive interview SOCIALIST CHALLENGE, 15-31 December 1977, page 17 Wouid ir be four to say that pou are