Review of an article

¶ … Trial of Jesus Christ and the Last Supper," author Russell Aiuto discusses the trial, conviction, and execution of Jesus Christ, placed against the background of the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, and the historical, political, and religious realities of ancient Judea. Aiuto's goal in examining Jesus' trial is to determine who was guilty in causing the death of Christ. Three separate groups or entities have traditionally been charged with the death of Jesus Christ. The first group that has traditionally been blamed for the death of Jesus has been the Jews. The second group that has traditionally been blamed for the death of Jesus has been the Romans. Finally, Jesus himself has been blamed for his death. Aiuto demonstrates that it is impossible to place blame for Jesus' death solely on any one person or group. All of them combined together to bring about Jesus' conviction and death.

For many people, especially those evangelical Christians who know little about the historical and political conditions in ancient Judea, it seems clear that the Jews killed Jesus. While it is certainly true that some Jews played an important role in bringing about the trial and execution of Jesus, it is a gross oversimplification to suggest that there was a vast Jewish conspiracy to kill Jesus. On the contrary, there were three main groups of Jews competing for power during Jesus' time: the Sanhedrin, the Pharisees, and the Sadducees. Aiuto describes these three groups of Jews as "interchangeable," which is not entirely historically accurate. (Aiuto). In fact, at times these groups competed viciously with one another for control of Jewish civil and religious law. However, they did share a religious and social background that separated them from the Roman population that occupied ancient Judea. Furthermore, all three groups believed that the Old Testament prophecies regarding the Messiah would be fulfilled. (Aiuto). In fact, Jesus was not the first person to be proclaimed the Messiah. Understanding that there was a tremendous amount of strife and competition in the Jewish community is important, because it makes it clear that while some Jews were responsible for the death of Jesus, it can hardly be suggested that all Jews were responsible for Jesus' death. Instead, Jewish involvement in Jesus' death seems explainable by one of the truisms of murder investigation: murders are generally committed by same-sex members of the victims' racial group. Because Jesus was a Jewish male, it should come as no surprise that some Jewish males played a central role in his trial and execution. However, that statement should not be viewed as either anti-Semitic or as an excuse for anti-Semitism. While some Jews played a central role in Jesus' death, his apostles were also widely Jewish, Jesus self-identified as a Jew and had no interest in preaching to Gentiles, and the founders of the Church were Jews who initially preached to a strictly Jewish audience.