While the general story of Jesus Christ is universally known, the chronicle of Christ's ministry, pilgrimage, and martyrdom is filled with gaps and ambiguities. Filmmaker Peter Oxley's PBS-aired documentary looks at the last days of Jesus, and the birth of Christianity. The film suggests that Jesus's family was middle class, not poor, with Jesus perhaps employed early as a skilled stonemason, not a carpenter. Always in the background lay the conflict with Judea's Roman conquerors. The Jew Herod Antipas yearned to be recognized as "king of the Jews," and he was willing to wheel and deal with the Romans to accomplish this goal. The martyrdom of Jesus's cousin John the Baptist at the hands of Herod accelerated Jesus's ministry. Experts describe the Roman system of oppressive taxation, the gulf between ordinary Jews and the high priests in Jerusalem, and the unspeakably cruel, lingering death of Rome's enemies by crucifixion. Jesus's legendary challenge to temple moneychangers threatened the established order for both Rome and the Jewish religious establishment. The argument is made that Pontius Pilate was a brutal, murderous occupying governor, rather than the relatively benign figure depicted in the New Testament. The most startling claims advanced here concern the possible reasons for Judas's betrayal of Christ, and the belief that the trial, imprisonment, and execution of Jesus spanned weeks or months, rather than the single week depicted in the Bible, with intrigue and power plays between Rome and Jerusalem being a deciding factor (the Resurrection of Jesus is not covered here). Combining dramatic re-enactments with insightful interviews, this is highly recommended. Aud: H, C, P. (S. Rees)
The Last Days of Jesus
(2017) 120 min. DVD: $24.99 ($54.99 w/PPR). PBS Video. SDH captioned. ISBN: 978-1-5317-0034-8. Volume 33, Issue 1
The Last Days of Jesus
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