The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1901-10-06
JUDAS ISCARIOT
LEGENDS AND A~P0CRYPHA REFER
RING TO THE BETRAYER.
Early Writers Fond of P0rtraying His
Agonizing sunerings Both Be-
fore and After Death.

Legends regarding Judas Iscariot spran6
up I'm the Christian church at a very early
date and continued TO be elaborated down
to the middle ages. when they assumed the
most bizarre forms. 1t seemed as II II were
impossible for the early Christian magma
ton to invent stories branding sufficiently
the life of the traitor.
The following paragraph, taken from the
Arabic Gospel of the Infancy furnishes
the Oldest story that 1 ind of the infancy
of Judas. 1t refers to a time when Christ
was apparently about six years old:
Now there dwelt I'm Nazareth a woman
whose son was veXed by Satan. He, JUDAS
by name. whenever Satan seized him, Dlt
all who approached him; and II he 1ouno
nj one near him he bit his own hands and
other members. Therefore, the mother Oh
this unfortunate one, hearing the lame OF
the lady Mary and her son Jesus, arose ana
took her son with her TO the lady Mary.
Meanwhile, James and Joses 1.-THE broth
ers of Jesus) had taken away the Lore
Jesus to play with the other children; ana
after leaving home they sat down. and the
Lord Jesus with them. Then Judas the de-
moniac came nigh and sat down at the
right of Jesus; and then, being assaulted
by Satan, as he was wont to be, he sought
to bite the Lord Jesus, but he could not
yet he struck the right side of Jesus, VINO,
for this cause, began to weep; ForthwIIn
like a mad dog. Now, this boy, who struck
Jesus, and from whom Satan went out In
the form CT a dog. was Judas Iscariot. who
betrayed Him to the Jews, and that side or
Him on which Judas had smitten Him, the
Jews pierced with a spear
Medieval writer's, however, went far be-
yond this in branding the early life of
Judas with infamy. Following is the story
as told by Voragine. in the Golden Legend,
as well as in other middle age sources:
Judas was the son of Reuben or Simeon,
a Jew of the tribe Of Judah, who lived at
Jerusalem with his wife Cyborea, Of the
tribe Of Issachar. Now Cyborea-it is an
evident adaptation Of the classical story of
Oedipus-dreamed that she should bring
forth a child who would murder his father.
marry his mother and be the destruction Of
the race of the Jews. The parents, there
fore, placed their newborn child, whom
they called Judas, in a boat and set him
adrift upon the sea. This, again, is an evil
dent imitation of the story of Moses. for
the little vessel came ashore at Iscarioth,
which some call an island, others a city
upon the coast of Palestine, and was there
found by the childless Queen Of that coun-
try. She took the babe and palmed him off
upon the people as her own son. But after
wards she became the mother of a SON;
Judas quarreled with his little foster broth
er and finally killed him, fleeing TO Jerusa-
lem. There he entered the service of
Pontius PLATE, the Governor.
Now it happened. one day. that PLATE.
passing by the garden of Reuben, who was
the father of Judas, although the fact was
unknown TO him. saw therein a tree loaded
with very beautiful apples. of which he
greatly desired to eat. Going back to the
place he told Judas about them, and said
that he would die if he did not get some.
Judas at once went and made an assault
upon the garden. killing his father in an
encounter. but bringing the apples in tri-
umph to Plate. 1t seems to the medieval
blackener of the character of Judas a hap
Ply idea to have the greatest sins of that
wretched character follow, as the result of
an ofense that is similar to that of Adam
and Eve.
A PROPHESY FULFILLED.
The next thing. plate makes Cyborea,
who was now a very rich widow, marry his
friend Judas. But the latter, soon after,
finding out his relationship to her and re-
alizing the enormity of his crimes, repented
earnestly, and going to Jesus, who was just
at that time in the last year OF His public
minority, secured from Him the pardon of
his sins. Judas became the twelfth disciple,
and in the quaint language of the old
French text, accepted the position Of
maitre-d'hotel or steward of the apostolic
band. As such he always took out for his
own personal use the tenth part of all that
was given them. Some say that the reason
he sold the Lord for thirty pieces of silver
was that he might recoup himself for the
loss Of his commission of one-tenth on the
precious box of ointment which the woman
came and used TO anoint the feet of Jesus.
Judas complains, in the Gospel, that this
might have been sold for more than two
hundred pence and given to the poor. 9th
ers say again hat by the sale of his Mas
ter Judas got back all the price of this box
of ointment, for each of the thirty pieces
of silver was equal to ten of these pieces
or denarii.
These thirty pieces of silver have them
selves been extensively treated by the
| legend bearers. 1t is said that they are the
same pieces of money for which his breth-
rem sold Joseph into Egypt. After this they
came into the hands of Pharaoh for tribute,
and through him reached the Queen of
Sheba. She gave them as a present to Solo
mon. and they remained amongst the royal
treasures i'm Jerusalem until the Babyloni-
an captivity. Being then carried off, I'm the
far East, they fell into the hands of the
Magi. who brought them among their gifts
to the infant Jesus. They were lost during
the flight into Egypt, but a shepherd found
them and offered them i'm the temple, by
which means they came into the hands of
the high priests and were given TO Judas as
the price of his infamy.
\ curious apocryphal document. the
Narrative of Joseph, which dates from
the beginning Of the middle ages. gives a
strange account of the betrayal OF Jesus
by Judas. 1t says that in the days immedi-
ately preceding the passover. at which
Jesus suffered. the law had been stolen
from the temple. and the sacred deposit