If I was, lets say, MVP at basketball, I surely wouldnt want someone to be better than me and on the

same team. I would fear that he would take over my spot and that all the attention thats on me would
go to him. So I probably would do whatever it takes to get him off the team or speak badly of him to
others. Caiaphas was head of the Pharisees and openly defied Jesus however he can. He feared that the
Son of God would take away his believers. He feared that if people were to believe Jesus was the Son of
God, they would choose Jesus and forsake Judaism. Additionally, the most important holiday of the Jews,
the Passover, was near, and would be attended by a lot of people. And Caiaphas was ordered by Pontius
Pilate, leader of the Romans, not to let the holiday turn into a riot; else, Pilate would close the temple
where Caiaphas resides. And as close to a revolution as the Jews are, Caiaphas could not let Jesus, who
promised the Jews emancipation from the Romans, to come at the holiday. Therefore, Caiaphas was
defiant of Jesus.
Well, Caiaphas instances pushed him to pursue Jesus. Lets say you were threatened by some gang and if
you didnt comply with their wishes, you will lose your home, or even your loved ones. Its like that with
Caiaphas; he needed to defy the Son of God because of a more immediate danger to his home and
religion. However, I cant say Caiaphas is really a good person because if he was, he wouldnt have been
sadistic and swayed the people to give to Jesus probably the most painful death by crucifixion.
However lets not get too ahead, lets backtrack.
Jesus said to a little girl that every stone of the temple will soon fall. The Pharisees take this as a plan to
destroy the temple and decide Jesus must be stopped. Judas, who thought Jesus threats were going to
far, approached the Pharisees and told them of Jesus whereabouts. Later, in the Garden of Gethsemane,
Judas kisses Jesus' cheek, thereby identifying Jesus to the Pharisees and revealing Judas betrayal, and
Jesus is then arrested for blasphemy. Caiaphas later reveals the penalty for blasphemy is death. Judas,
horrified by what he has done, throws the silver at the Pharisees and runs off; he later hangs himself.
When I was young, I thought of Judas being so horrid in betraying Jesus for money. However, now, I
learned that Judas simply thought that Jesus was going too far with threats and someone should knock
some sense into Him. He was just... unknowing of the consequences of his actions. He didnt expect that
he would cause Jesus to die. And comforting to know, he realized he was guilty when he threw the silver
at the Pharisees, showing Jesus life does not equal a few coins. He even hung himself in guilt.
Now, as to Pilates efforts to lessen the suffering of Jesus but fails in doing so, he was kind of in the
protagonist side, meaning probably, in some way, he believed in Jesus being the Son of God. He even
washed his hands when the people were swayed by Caiaphas into shouting that Jesus be crucified. And
he also orders a sign attached to Jesus crown of thorns saying, King of the Jews. However, his
admiration for Jesus remained an admiration because he couldnt betray Rome and side with Jesus who
encourages the people to revolutionize against the Romans.
After several agonizing hours, Jesus dies and was buried in a tomb, sealed with a large rock. Three days
later, Mary Magdalene goes to visit the tomb, but is shocked to see the rock broken into pieces and the
tomb empty. She sees a man by the tomb's entrance and realizes He is Jesus; Jesus has been
resurrected. Mary goes to the disciples' hiding place and tells them the good news, but they don't
believe her. Jesus then appears to them, and they all now believe, except "Doubting" Thomas. Once
Thomas touches Jesus, then he believes. Forty days later, Jesus is speaking to His disciples and tells
them to travel the world to spread His message. He then ascends into Heaven, and the disciples go their
separate ways.
Its not surprising to doubt the unrealistic, like when someone was reported to have come back from the
dead. People would try to make logical explanations of the situation so they would not seem to be crazy.
We would probably relate to Thomas when he doubted the resurrection of Jesus. When we see

mysterious blood tears of Mary, we probably reasoned that there was someone who planted the red
coloring. We would always comment, Such a thing is not possible! However, when we see it in person,
especially if its happening right before our eyes, we will most probably believe, even be passionate
about it; and probably its like that for those who in the first place discovered it. And devotees who would
visit these mysterious occurrences would be commenting of a strong presence near that place. And it
strengthens their faith, even healing some of their sickness because of faith. Sometimes, its better to
just believe and not doubt, because often, it strengthens your faith even more than being rational.