I believe that Jesus was killed by the Empire for political reasons. Herod and his Empire loyalists were going after him since his birth in Bethlehem. Other religious political parties were also threatening him, soon after he began his ministry near his hometown of Nazareth. The Empire was interested.
What was it in Jesus’ message that got the politicians and the military so angry ? Jesus announced that new kingdom had arrived. The Caesar of the day might have thought of that as a threat to his rule of power. Some of the Caesars thought of themselves as the sons of God, so they would not have taken kindly to Jesus’ proclamation for himself as a new leader. Jesus called himself the Son of God. The Empire took notice.
And Jesus’ message was intended for the “ least of these “ or the “ the last will be first “ , or “ master will become the servant and the servant to become the master “ He sounds like he wants to bring down the powerful from their thrones, and have an equality for all. His mom had this poem come from the depths of her soul that talks about everything being turned upside down . Is Mary a political activist because she knew her son would change the world ? And Jesus’ disciples gave up everything, to follow this guy who said that a new kingdom was coming. His sermon that he delivered in front of a large crowd was all about changing the way the world should live. The Empire would have taken notice.
The Empire from Rome had been in power for a long time. They did not want to give it up. They controlled all things through the power of the sword. Their motto was “Pax Romana “ that meant the Peace of Rome. But, that peace was maintained by the power of its military might . The Empire was large and powerful, extending itself from Rome to Ephesus ( Turkey today ) to Germany ( Gaul) to north Africa. They were brutal to any movement that would decrease their power. They crucified many criminals and non-criminals that put the fear of fear in everyone who saw them happen. The Empire noticed everything .
So, the authorities put Jesus on a cross , and he died. The Empire thought it was done with him. While on the cross, Jesus did not say anything overtly political. His conversation with Pilate, the representative of the Empire in Jerusalem, is very interesting. Pilate tries to get Jesus to be political, but Jesus deflects with words and questions . Pilate cannot understand why others want him killed, but he is frustrated by Jesus. In the end, he sentenced Jesus to death, but tried to wash his hands of the death sentence. I think because he did not understand, it was better to just kill Jesus, and be done with it. The Empire took notice of Jesus when he had come to Jerusalem at the Passover festival, and they had him killed.
The women celebrated the resurrection after three days, and the community of Jesus continued as a dangerous movement towards the Empire. After about three hundred years , the Empire realized the power of Jesus’ Church, and it co-opted the Church. The Emperor became a Christian, and the Church became part of the Empire . Christians began to serve in the military. The church leaders became part of the Empire’s religion. The Empire was always taking notice.
If Jesus’ death was political, as I believe, does it change the way we see salvation, and how we act in our world ? And the Empire is still watching.
Fred Redekop
Ponder Anew 