Pontius Pilate

[[File:Strängnäs Dom - Hochaltar - Pontius Pilatus.jpg|thumb|right|165px|Argh, me hearties. It be Pontius Pirate.]]
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'''Pontius Pilate''' was the [[Roman]] Prefect of Judaea (approx. 26 to 36 [[CE]]), most known for his part in the trial of [[Jesus]], and for having a [[Fun:Monty Python|vewy gweat fwiend]] [[Life of Brian|in Wome called]] [[Fun:Biggus Dickus|Biggus Dickus]].

==Pilate of history vs the one in the Gospels==
Pilate is portrayed in the [[Gospels]] as a somewhat [[skeptical]] man of {{wpl|Honesty|firm conviction}} but lackluster {{wpl|courage}} who is deeply uncomfortable with being asked to execute Jesus on the Sanhedrin's [[Kangaroo court|trumped-up charges]], only having him put to death after the high priests rile up the public to the point of nearly causing a riot. The secular records on Pilate portray a ''very'' different man from the aforementioned portrayal. [[Philo of Alexandria]] and [[Josephus]] portray a ruler who cared little for the wishes of his [[Jewish]] subjects and was not above using violence against peaceful demonstrations.<ref>Josephus, Titus Flavius (c. 94). ''Antiquities of the Jews'' 18.3.2</ref> Josephus's account of how Pilate brutally dealt with the [[Samaritan]] [[prophet]] of 36 CE indicates the style of his unusually long prefecture (note that although Pilate was recalled to Rome, there is no evidence that he was convicted of any wrongdoing):<ref>[http://www.historytoday.com/kevin-butcher/strange-afterlife-pontius-pilate The Strange Afterlife of Pontius Pilate], Kevin Butcher, History Today, 25 March 2016</ref>

{{cquote|For a man who made light of [[Deceit|mendacity]] and in all his designs catered to the [[mob]], rallied them, bidding them go in a body with him to Mount Gerizim, which in their belief is the most sacred of mountains. He assured them that on their arrival he would show them the [[sacred]] vessels which were buried there, where [[Moses]] had deposited them. His hearers, viewing this tale as plausible, appeared in arms. They posted themselves in a certain village named Tirathana, and, as they planned to climb the mountain in a great multitude, they welcomed to their ranks the new arrivals who kept coming. But before they could ascend, Pilate blocked their projected route up the mountain with a detachment of cavalry and heavily armed infantry, who in an encounter with the first comers in the village slew some in a pitched battle and put the others to flight. Many prisoners were taken, of whom Pilate put to death the principal leaders and those who were most influential among the fugitives.

When the uprising had been quelled, the council of the Samaritans went to Vitellius, a man of consular rank who was governor of Syria, and charged Pilate with the slaughter of the victims. For, they said, it was not as rebels against the Romans '''but as refugees from the persecution of Pilate''' that they had met in Tirathana. Vitellius thereupon dispatched Marcellus, one of his friends, to take charge of the administration of Judaea, and ordered Pilate to return to Rome to give the emperor his account of the matters with which he was charged by the Samaritans. And so Pilate, after having spent ten years in Judaea, hurried to Rome in obedience to the orders of Vitellius, since he could not refuse. But before he reached Rome Tiberius had already passed away.
|||Flavius Josephus, (c. 94) ''Jewish Antiquities'' 18.85-89}} 

The idea that such a man would brush off someone claiming to be "King of the Jews" (i.e., King of Judea) as a Jewish matter is insane. First, such a claim could be considered sedition, which would have resulted in Pilate executing him. Second, Pilate was quite willing to have his soldiers hide among the Jewish people so that if they did something he didn't like (such as protest against using Temple money to build an aqueduct), he could promptly use his soldiers to randomly attack, beat, and kill people.<ref>Josephus, Titus Flavius (c. 94). ''Antiquities of the Jews'' 18.3.2</ref> Third, as the Samaritan prophet debacle shows, Pilate tended to react negatively to large groups of Jews, so the large crowds that Jesus supposedly attracted (and that the Sanhedrin later supposedly used to threaten Pilate with an outbreak of public disorder) would have been enough to set Pilate off. Finally, the disturbance in the Temple area would have also resulted in immediate action by the 600-some Temple guards, or if they weren't enough to deal with the problem, the whole Roman legion (about 5,000 strong) from Fort Antonia to be called in,<ref>[http://freethoughtblogs.com/carrier/archives/3838 Richard Carrier. (June 14, 2013) "Brown Out: A Christian Reviews Proving History"]</ref> so Pilate most likely would only be deciding the fate of the survivors (if there were any) of such an act.

==Pilate in popular culture==
Pontius Pilate has been depicted and referenced many times in literature and popular culture. In [[Monty Python]]'s ''[[Life of Brian]]'', he was played by Michael Palin and accompanied by Graham Chapman as [[Fun:Biggus Dickus|Biggus Dickus]].
In a Russian novel ''The Master and Margarita'' he's a character of in-universe novel. He's depicted as old and tired, suffering from migraines and hating Jerusalem and all the associated bullshit he has to deal with. He's impressed with Jesus, because he treats him him as a human, with respect and dignity, unlike everyone else around. Also, after the Crucifixion it's Pilate who orders his security to covertly kill Judas, out of disgust for such a petty betrayal of the only pleasant person he met in years.

During the [[2008 U.S. presidential election|2008 United States Presidential campaign]], [[Tennessee]] Representative Steve Cohen riled [[Republicans]] with a dig at [[Alaska]] Governor [[Sarah Palin]] when he gave a one-minute speech on the House floor on September 10, saying that "[[Barack Obama]] was a community organizer like Jesus … Pontius Pilate was a governor."<ref>[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tp_2Cw4RH1c YouTube — Steve Cohen Campaigns for Obama on House Floor]</ref>

James Mills wrote a fictional, but fairly plausible, account of the [[Crucifixion]] from the point of view of Pilate, a governor facing a (to him) mundane political problem.<ref>''Gospel According to Pontius Pilate'' by James R. Mills (1978) Fleming H. Revell Company. ISBN 0800709535.</ref>

==Letters==
There is a double myth that Pontius Pilate wrote letters to Seneca in Rome that mention Jesus and his reported [[miracles]].<ref name="nobeliefs">Jim Walker, 2001-01-30. [http://www.nobeliefs.com/exist.htm "Did a historical Jesus exist?"] NoBeliefs.com.</ref>

It is a double myth because it is claimed that apologists often quote letters from a 1928 book ''Letters of Pontius Pilate: Written During His Governorship of Judea to His Friend Seneca in Rome''<ref>[http://members.tripod.com/~owen_eir/pilate.html Complete text]</ref> written by {{wpl|William Percival Crozier||,}} an Oxford-educated ''[[Guardian]]'' journalist (and later the paper's editor) with an interest in Greek, [[Latin]], the Bible, and [[Zionism]].

The [[reality]] is far more interesting:

''The Acts of Pilate'' (Gospel of Pilate), thought to have been written in the middle of the 4<sup>th</sup> century CE as the ''Acts of Peter and Paul'',<ref>Reid, George (1913). "Acta Pilati". ''Catholic Encyclopedia''. New York: Robert Appleton Company.</ref> contains a supposed letter from Pilate to Caesar. There seems to be two versions of this: one where the letter is addressed to Tiberius (d. 37 CE)<ref>''New Testament Apocrypha'', Vol. 1 by Wilhelm Schneemelcher and R. Mcl. Wilson (Dec 1, 1990) ISBN 066422721X pages 501-502</ref><ref>[http://www.newadvent.org/fathers/0810.htm Letter of Pilate to Tiberius" New Advent]</ref> and another where it is addressed to Claudius (41 CE).<ref>Houston, George (1827) ''The Correspondent'' Vol 1 pg 354-355.</ref><ref>Clough, William Overton; (1880) ''Gesta Pilati'' University of Michigan ASIN: B0038QONFQ pgs 97-98</ref><ref>Huidekoper, Frederic (1883) Indirect testimony of history of the genuineness of the Gospels. 4<sup>th</sup> ed. pp. 143-144</ref><ref>[http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/text/reportpilate.html M. R. James as given in ''Quasten's Patrology'', vol. 1, p. 117]</ref>

Eusebius comments on "Letters of Pilate" being referred to by Justin and Tertullian while also noting an anti-[[Christian]] text called Acts of Pilate.<ref>Edgar Hennecke, New Testament Apocrypha (1963 ed.) vol. 1 p. 445.</ref>

The often quoted letter of Pontius Pilate to Claudius is '''not''' from Crozier's book, but from the far older ''The Acts of Pilate'', as proven by its citation in works from 1827, 1880, and 1883, so the claim the letter comes from there is false. However, ''The Acts of Pilate'' is not considered genuine, so the part about [[apologists]] [[lying for Jesus|using a known fiction]] ''is'' true.<ref>New Testament Apocrypha, Vol. 1 by Wilhelm Schneemelcher and R. Mcl. Wilson (Dec 1, 1990) ISBN 066422721X pages 501-502</ref>

==Other lies==
One particularly ridiculous tradition holds that Pilate was born in [[Scotland]], at Fortingall north of Loch Tay, the son of a Roman envoy sent north to do diplomacy with Caledonian chieftains, and as a boy played under a [[yew]] tree still standing at Fortingall, which is plausibly over 2000 years old.<ref>{{wpa|Fortingall Yew}}</ref> This is despite the Roman armies not going anywhere near Scotland until around 71 CE. The story appears to have been made up in the late 19<sup>th</sup> or early 20<sup>th</sup> century by shipping magnate and local landowner Donald Currie.<ref>[http://www.scotlandmag.com/magazine/issue48/12009545.html A curious tale], Heidi Soholt, Scotland Magazine, Issue 48, Dec 2009, p 22</ref>

Some apologists, arguing against the Jesus myth theory, either state or try to imply that people at one time thought that Pontius Pilate didn't exist. In reality, no evidence could be found of anyone having ever stated that Pontius Pilate didn't exist.<ref>[http://www.internationalskeptics.com/forums/showpost.php?p=7249374&postcount=3 Kapyong (2011) Pontius Pilate's Personal Log]s</ref> This claim is further discredited by the fact that known contemporary [[Philo]] does mention Pontius Pilate in what survives of ''Embassy to Gaius'' (c. 40 CE) and it is known that Philo's work once contained an entire volume describing Pontius Pilate's rule.<ref>Emil Schürer, ''The Literature of the Jewish People in the Time of Jesus'', pp. 349-354, reproduced on [http://www.earlyjewishwritings.com/text/philo/book40.html Early Jewish Writings]</ref> Then there is near contemporary [[Josephus]] describing in detail several conflicts that Pilate had with his Jewish subjects.

==See also==
*[[Evidence for the historical existence of Jesus Christ]]
*[[Surviving crucifixion]]
*[[Herod]]

==External links==
*[http://www.thebricktestament.com/the_life_of_jesus/trial_of_the_century/jn18_13p19.html Trial of the Century] at The Brick Testament

==References==
{{reflist|2|90%}}

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Categories: Biblical figures, Jesus-related hoaxes, New Testament, Romans