Palestine was then under Roman occupation. When King Herod the Great dies, his kingdom is divided among his three heirs. Herod Antipas notably inherits Judea. Power is thus in the hands of three authorities:Rome for political power, which is superior to the local political power held by the various kings, while the Jews retain religious power in the person of the high priest. Everyone collects taxes, that's why the people are exhausted and the revolt is not far away...
Also, a new religion was born. Its believers refuse to honor Roman idols because their Messiah, Christ, has arrived. Indeed, a certain preacher named Jesus, a Jew from Palestine, is considered to be the one who will redeem the sins of the world. His life is recounted in the Gospels, written by his apostles. He announces the Good News, heals the sick… He preaches tirelessly and does not respect the law of the Jews. Its popularity continues to grow, which worries both Roman and Jewish authorities. After a stay in the desert, Jesus makes a triumphal entry into Jerusalem and chases the merchants from the temple. Furious, the Jews ask one of his disciples, Judas Iscariot, to hand him over to them.
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Pontius Pilate
Jesus of Nazareth
Judas Iscariot
Procedure
The Last Supper, Leonardo da Vinci, from 1495 to 1498 - Copyright 2006-2007 HAL9000 S.r.l.
According to the Gospels, after sharing a last meal (the Last Supper), Jesus and his disciples go to the Garden of Olives, where the arrest of the preacher by Roman soldiers takes place. After appearing before the court and being questioned by the Jews who think that he deserves death, he is delivered to Pontius Pilate, Roman prefect of Galilee, the only person authorized to pronounce the execution of the death penalty. But he finds that what the Jews accuse him of is not a reason for death, so he seeks to have him released. He offers to let them take care of his fate, but the Jews want this man dead. As the day of the Jewish Passover approaches and as, according to tradition, a prisoner must be freed there, he offers the crowd to choose between Barabbas, accused of murder, and Jesus. The latter cries out for the crucifixion of the second, so much so that Pilate, taking up a Jewish custom, washes his hands, to signify that he declines all responsibility.
Jesus is therefore condemned, flogged by the soldiers who erect a crown of thorns on him and then he is delivered to the Jews to be crucified. According to custom, he must carry his cross to the Calvary called Mount Golgotha (which means "skull"). There he is crucified at the sixth hour; a Roman soldier brings him a vinegar sponge and another, piercing his side, sees water and then blood spurt out. At the ninth hour it expires.
Consequences
The Jews fear that the body of the one who announced his resurrection will be stolen. So they mount guard in front of the tomb, closed by an enormous stone. Despite these precautions, on the third day, the body disappeared. Since then, Christians have believed in his resurrection and his disciples have gone all over the world to evangelize and spread Christianity.