Secret Plot To Switch Jesus
(Conspiracy Nation, 04/19/08) – Jesus hung for three hours on the cross. Unless it was not Jesus, but Simon of Cyrene hanging there. This is some of the informed speculation put forward by Michael Baigent in “The Jesus Papers” (HarperCollins, 2006)
Baigent, along with Richard Leigh and Henry Lincoln, authored the blockbuster 1980s book, “Holy Blood, Holy Grail.” This pioneering work eventually led to Dan Brown's bestseller, “The Da Vinci Code.” When a movie, directed by Ron Howard, based on Dan Brown's book premiered, the Vatican put its foot down. A pamphlet, “The Truth About The Da Vinci Code,” was distributed to Catholics. A “healthy Catholic response” to the Ron Howard film was urged. Catholics were advised that “the history of the Church is far more complex, and actually far more interesting, than the conspiracy theory [Dan] Brown's characters propose.” (“The Truth About The Da Vinci Code: Answers For Catholics,” by Daniel Connors. Catholic Digest, 2006)
History is complex, but understanding begins with the simple. From there, nuances eventually can be seen as the student gains further knowledge. Conspiracy Nation, for instance, has speculated that Jesus was a snake handler. Some would automatically dismiss this. Others would see it as widening the perspective on Jesus. (Background: “The Serpent Grail,” http://www.shout.net/~bigred/SerpentGrail.html)
The “switched Jesus” idea is not new. Baigent asserts it is mentioned in the Koran. An international bestseller from 1965, “The Passover Plot,” theorized that Jesus purposefully acted out Old Testament prophecies in order to fit Messiah requirements. A more recent book, “The Jesus Dynasty,” also speculates a witting Jesus who knew the scriptures and tailored some of his acts accordingly. Jesus, a political leader, later got hijacked by Paul, who turned Jesus into a religion. (In a similar manner, Dr. Martin Luther King's memory was hijacked by the federal government to its own purposes.)
Two-thousand years ago, the Holy Land was under the thumb of Rome. The Jews, oppressed by Rome, were divided into factions. Besides the Pharisees, the Sadducees, and the Essenes, Baigent notices a fourth faction: the Zealots. The Zealots had great hopes for a King Jesus. But then, when asked whether taxes should be paid to Caesar, Jesus essentially said, “Yes, pay the tax.” As Baigent explains, “Imagine the problem: the Zealots, whose entire focus was the removal or destruction of Rome's hold over Judaea, had organized a dynastic marriage between Joseph, a man of the royal line of David, and Mary, of the priestly line of Aaron, in order to have a child, Jesus, who was both rightful king and high priest.” The Zealots would have been furious upon hearing Jesus say, “Yes, pay the tax.” It was at this point, speculates Baigent, that Judas, of the Zealot faction, arranged to betray Jesus.
But Pontius Pilate, the Roman administrator, had a problem, in this scenario. Jesus had broken no Roman law. On the other hand, a faction of the Jews, the Zealots, was close to rioting. It was a dilemma for Pilate: “...to keep the peace he had to try, condemn, and execute a Jew who was supporting Rome but whose existence was causing public disorder, the flames of which were being fanned by the disgruntled Zealots.” And so, theorizes Baigent, a deal was worked out.
The “fixer” for the deal was Joseph of Arimathea. The crucifixion of Jesus would be faked. Jesus would be only apparently killed by the Roman government. In one possible method (“heresied” later by Basilides, an Egyptian gnostic), Simon of Cyrene was substituted for Jesus during the journey to Golgotha. As to Jesus, the Koran reportedly states, “They did not crucify him.” A different possibility for the faking of Jesus' death has the “King of the Jews” actually put on the cross. Reportedly, in the 1965 bestseller “The Passover Plot”, it is broached that Jesus may have been drugged so as to appear dead, then revived in Joseph of Arimathea's tomb. Baigent suggests that the “sponge soaked in vinegar” extended to Jesus while on the cross was actually soaked in a mixture of opium and belladonna. It was after the sponge was extended that Jesus lost consciousness. In either case, Jesus was later revived in the tomb (i.e., rose from the dead).
Contacted by a Church of England vicar, Baigent decided he must meet with the man. For the Rev. Dr. Bartlett had sent a tantalizing letter, mentioning “a document containing incontrovertible evidence that Jesus was alive in the year A.D. 45.” The document is traced back to the Abbe Beranger Sauniere, priest, in the late 19th century, of Rennes le Chateau. He had discovered this and other documents, evidence of which has been hushed up. Experts at the Seminary of St. Sulpice examined the documents. A large sum -- “hush money” -- was paid to Sauniere. Clues were nonetheless left behind, such as an image of a woman with a child: the child wears a Scottish tartan robe. Baigent has not perhaps solved the riddle. But intriguing questions arise, for those having an open mind.
Conspiracy Nation
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