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The Gospels agree that Judas Iscariot betrayed Jesus, even if they don't agree on why he did it. But is their view about *what* he did plausible? That he told the authorities where they could find Jesus without any crowds around? There are, in fact, reasons for thinking that Judas did something far more sinister, that he revealed a key teaching of Jesus given to his closest followers but he did not proclaim in public. Did Judas reveal a secret teaching that led to Jesus' crucifixion?
Megan asks Bart:
- What career path would you have chosen if you hadn't pursued academia?
- Can you briefly tell us who Judas Iscariot was and what his name means?
- Why is it important to talk about Judas and his role in the New Testament?
- Do the four canonical gospels have significant differences in what they say about Judas?
- Could you give an example of one of the contradictions?
- Some scholars argue that there never was a Judas Iscariot, that he is a figure invented by the Christians. Do you agree with that view?
- The gospels describe how Judas identified Jesus for the Roman authorities, which has always been a point of confusion for me. It doesn’t seem that Jesus was particularly quiet, or interested in avoiding attention, so why did the authorities need Judas to point him out to them?
- If Judas wasn’t actually employed to simply point Jesus out to the authorities, then what information could he actually have provided that led to Jesus’ arrest?
- Would just the use of the term messiah have been enough to trigger an arrest?
- Why do you think Judas betrayed that Jesus was calling himself the messiah, not his location?
- What are your reasons for thinking that Jesus is teaching this information privately?
- The million dollar question: why would Judas turn on his leader, especially if Judas is being promised a throne in the future kingdom? Obviously, we can’t know for certain, but what are some of the motives that have been ascribed to him over the years?
- Which motive do you find most compelling?
- Do you think Judas was expecting the crucifixion as the outcome?
