Pontius Pilate

Narrator We don't know much about Pilate, we don't even know his first name (only the middle and last name). But we do know that he was deposed after 10 years of reign. Let's take a closer look...

Pilate O Senator Lucius Vitellius, what an honour.

Vitellius (silently asks him with a wave of his hand to sit down)

Pilate (sits down anxiously )

Vitellius (takes parchment roll, rolls it up) Procurator Pontius Pilate. You know why they are here?

Pilate No, I'm sorry, I wasn't told that.

Vitellius You are charged with numerous offences.

Pilate What offences? It cannot be. I wash my hands of it!

Vitellius So what broke the camel's back was the bloodbath of the Samaritan pilgrims who wanted to go to Mount Garizim.

Pilate There were many armed men there and then it seemed safer to me....

Vitellius (interrupts) To have almost everyone murdered? (turns back to the role) But we have more here:

Enrichment of the temple treasury, bribes, robbery, violence, licentiousness, repeated executions without legal proceedings and repeated exercises of extremely painful cruelty, as we have already seen.

Pilate I only had the good of the country in mind.

Vitellius And that's why they had a water pipe laid in their private house at state expense?

Pilate I only did this so that I could provide all the amenities that they are so accustomed to, O Senator.

Vitellius (shakes his head; continues reading in scroll) In their term of office, this Jesus from Galilee was also executed, as I see here.

Pilate Everything was correct in this trial, I know that for a fact.

Vitellius (looks sceptical) How did that go?

Pilate (looks sentimental) This man! He was accused by Jewish high priests of being an agitator because he called himself a king of the Jews. But I found no fault with him, he seemed harmless to me. Even my wife dreamt about him and asked me not to judge him.

Vitellius What happened next?

Pilate I sent him to Herod Antipas, who apparently could not establish guilt either and sent him back. Then I wanted to release him, but the priests did not give in. Then I asked the people and offered them to release Jesus. But the people were so incited that they demanded his death. And to prevent an uprising, I gave in.

Vitellius Do I understand you correctly? So you actually had an innocent man executed?

Pilate What is truth? I had to keep the big picture in mind

Vitellius Again? You had an innocent man executed?

Pilate Yes, but it almost seemed to me that he wanted to be executed. I asked him again if he was the King of the Jews and he confirmed it, but stressed that his kingdom was not of this world and that he wanted to stand up for the truth. I then wanted to use the custom of releasing a prisoner on Passover to release this Jesus, but the people were so inflamed that they would rather have a robber free.

I tried a few more times later, but the Jews were screaming for his execution. Then I washed my hands of it and gave in.

Vitellius Yes, I know, they're good at that. (looks at the parchment again) It says here that the grave was guarded and the body still disappeared afterwards. Can you explain that to me?

Pilate Öh... the body was stolen, the guards claimed.

Vitellius (looks further into the files) Here is documented a statement by a guard soldier who confessed that they fainted by a frightening apparition and afterwards took money from the Jewish priests to spread the word that the body had been stolen. I have never heard of such a mixture of incompetence and venality. Did you know about it?

Pilate Uh... I thought... öh

Vitellius (interrupting) I think that's enough! Pontius Pilate, you are hereby relieved of your post as prefect of Judea. You will travel to Rome to answer to our Emperor Tiberius.