Judas Iscariot: Victim or villain?
SINCE time immemorial, Judas Iscariot, one of the 12 Apostles of Jesus Christ has been a controversial figure. His role in the betrayal of Jesus and his subsequent fate have been a subject of varying theories.
By Stephen Ssenkaaba
SINCE time immemorial, Judas Iscariot, one of the 12 Apostles of Jesus Christ has been a controversial figure. His role in the betrayal of Jesus and his subsequent fate have been a subject of varying theories.
According to the Gospel, Judas helped the chief priests to identify Jesus before Jesus was crucified. In return, the chief priests gave him 30Â pieces of silver.
The Bible says Judas betrayed Jesus out of greed.
Matthew 26:14-16 says: “Then, one of the twelve — the one called Judas Iscariot — went to the chief priests and asked: “What are you willing to give me if I hand him over to you?†so they counted out for him thirty silver coins.â€
Other biblical accounts blame the devil. Luke 22:3-4 says: “Then Satan entered Judas.
And Judas went to the chief priests and the officers of the temple guard and discussed with them how they might betray Jesus.â€
WWW.gospelmysteries.net argues that Jesus was aware of the coming betrayal. “He talked about it several times and, although he never mentioned Judas by name, He identified him indirectly,†says the website.
This fore-knowledge has led some people to argue that the betrayal was not an act of free will, but was imposed on Judas as part of a divine plan for the atonement between God and man.
More so, an ancient manuscript of a Gospel of Judas written around 300 A.D. contends that Jesus showed special favour to Judas and gave him secret revelations. Later Jesus told him about the need for betrayal and asked him to take the blame for it.
However, this “gospel†was probably not written by Judas. Many scholars also doubt that it is a reliable source of information.
Another book called the Gospel of Barnabas claims that Judas, not Jesus, was the person who actually died on the cross. The book alleges that Judas was miraculously transformed to look like Jesus shortly after the betrayal. As a result, he was mistaken for Jesus and crucified.
The early Gnostic writings suggest that Judas was enlightened and acted as he did in order that mankind might be redeemed by the death of Christ. “For this reason, they regarded him as worthy of gratitude and veneration,†writes W.H. Kent in Volume III of The Catholic Encyclopedia.
In the modern version of this theory, it is suggested that Judas who, like the other disciples, looked for a temporal kingdom of the Messiah, did not anticipate the death of Christ.
He wished to precipitate a crisis and hasten the hour of triumph, thinking that the arrest would provoke a rising of the people who would set Him free and place Him on the throne.
These theories are however disputed by mainstream Christians because they divert from the scripture which present Judas as a culprit for his actions.
“Judas had a weakness with honesty.
He was the treasurer and used to help himself to public funds. He succumbed to this weakness by making a deal with the persecutors of Jesus,†argues the Rev. Dr. Lawrence Kanyike, the Chaplain of Makerere University St. Augustine’s Catholic Community.
“We all have the freedom given to us by God to distinguish between what is right and do it and what is wrong and avoid it,†he says.
Dr. Paddy Musana from the Department of Religious Studies at Makerere university agrees. “The Bible says that man is a moral being created with an independent will and ability to make choices.
This aspect rules out the possibility of Judas’ actions having been predestined or imposed upon him.â€
But Prof. Simeon Kayiwa, the chairperson of the National Fellowship of Born Again Churches of Uganda defends Judas, saying: “It is not indicated in the Bible that Judas was the one who betrayed Jesus. It was the work of the devil.â€
Kayiwa says Judas’ association with Jesus’ persecutors and his involvement into unscrupulous deals enabled Satan to use him.
However, for all the theories about Judas, it is clear that he played a role in the death of Jesus and in our lives.
When we betray others, when we take bribes and when we express greed we become Judas.
And yet we continue to judge Judas and lament about his guilt.
SINCE time immemorial, Judas Iscariot, one of the 12 Apostles of Jesus Christ has been a controversial figure. His role in the betrayal of Jesus and his subsequent fate have been a subject of varying theories.
According to the Gospel, Judas helped the chief priests to identify Jesus before Jesus was crucified. In return, the chief priests gave him 30Â pieces of silver.
The Bible says Judas betrayed Jesus out of greed.
Matthew 26:14-16 says: “Then, one of the twelve — the one called Judas Iscariot — went to the chief priests and asked: “What are you willing to give me if I hand him over to you?†so they counted out for him thirty silver coins.â€
Other biblical accounts blame the devil. Luke 22:3-4 says: “Then Satan entered Judas.
And Judas went to the chief priests and the officers of the temple guard and discussed with them how they might betray Jesus.â€
WWW.gospelmysteries.net argues that Jesus was aware of the coming betrayal. “He talked about it several times and, although he never mentioned Judas by name, He identified him indirectly,†says the website.
This fore-knowledge has led some people to argue that the betrayal was not an act of free will, but was imposed on Judas as part of a divine plan for the atonement between God and man.
More so, an ancient manuscript of a Gospel of Judas written around 300 A.D. contends that Jesus showed special favour to Judas and gave him secret revelations. Later Jesus told him about the need for betrayal and asked him to take the blame for it.
However, this “gospel†was probably not written by Judas. Many scholars also doubt that it is a reliable source of information.
Another book called the Gospel of Barnabas claims that Judas, not Jesus, was the person who actually died on the cross. The book alleges that Judas was miraculously transformed to look like Jesus shortly after the betrayal. As a result, he was mistaken for Jesus and crucified.
The early Gnostic writings suggest that Judas was enlightened and acted as he did in order that mankind might be redeemed by the death of Christ. “For this reason, they regarded him as worthy of gratitude and veneration,†writes W.H. Kent in Volume III of The Catholic Encyclopedia.
In the modern version of this theory, it is suggested that Judas who, like the other disciples, looked for a temporal kingdom of the Messiah, did not anticipate the death of Christ.
He wished to precipitate a crisis and hasten the hour of triumph, thinking that the arrest would provoke a rising of the people who would set Him free and place Him on the throne.
These theories are however disputed by mainstream Christians because they divert from the scripture which present Judas as a culprit for his actions.
“Judas had a weakness with honesty.
He was the treasurer and used to help himself to public funds. He succumbed to this weakness by making a deal with the persecutors of Jesus,†argues the Rev. Dr. Lawrence Kanyike, the Chaplain of Makerere University St. Augustine’s Catholic Community.
“We all have the freedom given to us by God to distinguish between what is right and do it and what is wrong and avoid it,†he says.
Dr. Paddy Musana from the Department of Religious Studies at Makerere university agrees. “The Bible says that man is a moral being created with an independent will and ability to make choices.
This aspect rules out the possibility of Judas’ actions having been predestined or imposed upon him.â€
But Prof. Simeon Kayiwa, the chairperson of the National Fellowship of Born Again Churches of Uganda defends Judas, saying: “It is not indicated in the Bible that Judas was the one who betrayed Jesus. It was the work of the devil.â€
Kayiwa says Judas’ association with Jesus’ persecutors and his involvement into unscrupulous deals enabled Satan to use him.
However, for all the theories about Judas, it is clear that he played a role in the death of Jesus and in our lives.
When we betray others, when we take bribes and when we express greed we become Judas.
And yet we continue to judge Judas and lament about his guilt.