Responsibility for the death of Jesus

For the death metal band, see Deicide (band)

Deicide is an English word meaning "the killing of (a) god" or "the killing of a divine being". It is ultimately derived from dei-, the combining forms of the Latin noun deus ("god"), and the stem -cida, from the verb caedere ("to cut down"). Often the word is used to refer particularly to the historical execution of Jesus by crucifixion. Like its counterparts suicide, homicide, patricide, etc., the word can refer either to the act or to the person who commits the act.

Historical and theological dimensions

The question of who is responsible for the execution of Jesus has both historical and theological components. The primary sources for both the historical and theological inquiries include the Gospel accounts of the events leading up to Jesus' death. The theological question is understood in light of other New Testament writings such as the Letters of Paul. The historical inquiry is aided by other sources from antiquity which explain the cultural and political environment in which Jesus lived.

Historical analyses of Jesus' death have generally assigned responsibility to either

1. the Jewish leadership in Palestine at the time
2. The Roman government in Palestine

Theological analyses of who is responsible for Jesus' death have included:

1. All humanity through their sinfulness,
2. God, for the benefit of people in general,
3. God, for the benefit of the Elect in particular.

The Jewish authorities and Roman government

According to the New Testament accounts, the Jewish authorities in Palestine charged Jesus with blasphemy and sought his execution, see Sanhedrin Trial of Jesus. However, the Jewish authorities lacked the authority to have Jesus put to death. They brought Jesus to Pontius Pilate, the Roman Governor of Iudaea Province, who "consented" to Jesus' execution.

Pilate is portrayed in the Gospel accounts as a relucant accomplice to Jesus' death. Some modern scholars have questioned the historical accuracy of such a portrayal. These historians suggest that a Roman Governor such as Pilate would not have hesitated to execute any leader whose followers posed a potential threat to Roman rule. These scholars suggest that the Gospel accounts may have downplayed the role of the Romans in Jesus' death during a time when Christianity was struggling to gain acceptance in the Roman world.

Theological elements

Until the middle of the 20th century most Christian churches included references to deicide in their hymns and liturgy. Some still do. The following, for example, is a verse from a hymn used in Protestant churches to call upon God to convert the Jews to Christianity:

Though the Blood betrayed and spilt, 
On the race entailed a doom, 
Let its virtue cleanse the guilt, 
Melt the hardness, chase the gloom; 
Lift the veil from off their heart, 
Make them Israelites indeed, 
Meet once more for lot and part 
With Thy household's genuine seed.[1]

("Thou, the Christ Forever One", words by William Bright, from Supplemental Hymns to Hymns Ancient and Modern, 1889)

Other theological explanations

Various Christian denominations have taught that God is ultimately responsible for the death of Jesus, as part of the divine plan of salvation. The Catholic church's dogma suggests that Jesus' death was necessary to take away the effects of sin, since Catholics believe that all of humanity bears some responsibility for Jesus' death. Thus, the crucifixion is seen as an example of Jesus' eternal love for mankind and his divine ability to forgive.

Alternatively, the recently-discovered Gnostic Gospel of Judas contends that Jesus commanded Judas to set in motion the chain of events that would lead to his death.

Other Christian theologians (among others) argue that God cannot be killed. Thus it would be inappropriate to apply charges of deicide to anyone. The following is a verse from the New Testament used in some Protestant churches to support this position:

"No man taketh it [my life] from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, 
and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received of my Father" (John 10:18)

Deicide in fiction

• Deicide (and its theoretical impossibility with an immortal god) plays a very large role in the television series Stargate SG-1. In Stargate an alien race of parasites (the Goa'uld) control human beings both literally (by digging into their neck and completely controlling that person's actions) and through religion (by posing as a god). Because the Goa'uld are thought of as gods by the people they rule over, SG-1 repeatedly has trouble convincing those local populaces that the local Goa'uld is dead ("Gods cannot be killed" is an oft-repeated sentiment by various locals).
• Homer Simpson commits a form of deicide in an episode of The Simpsons when he eats a waffle off the ceiling he had worshipped as a God. When he is done, Homer declares it was "sacrelicious".
• In the Star Trek universe, the Klingon religion held that when the gods created Kortar, the first Klingon, he killed his gods and burned their paradise to ashes. (See Klingon religion for more details)
• In the RTS/RPG hybrid video game, Sacrifice you are forced to commit multiple acts of deicide against the many gods in the game.
• In the popular book series His Dark Materials, one of the main charecters, Lord Arseil, attempts to destroy God to free mankind from his oppressive rule.
• The Hayao Miyazaki film Princess Mononoke contains two instances of deicide: Ashitaka kills a cursed boar-god to save his village and Lady Eboshi hunting down the Deer God of the forest, to which she brags to her men, "Now watch closely, everyone. I'm going to show you how to kill a god."
• In the video game Star Ocean: Till the End of Time, the final boss battle is against "The Creator" of our universe (or at least the game's universe), Luther.
• In the popular comic series Preacher, the major plotline involved tracking God down and making him account for his actions. In the end God is killed by the Saint of Killers
• In the japanese animation Saint Seiya, Athena's saints kills Poseidon and Apollo.
• In the MMORPG Everquest it is possible for players to form into large groups and defeat the Gods of their world Norrath, doing so resulted in the anger of the Gods and the shattering of the Moon of Luclin above Norrath, pertaining to the storyline of Everquest 2
• In the PS2 game God of War, the main character's objective is to slay the Greek god Ares
• An MMORPG named Deicide-The War Against Evil, created by korea is based upon the war against evil and prevention of the daily deicide of good.
• In Clive Barker's novel Imajica, the god Hapexamendios is murdered.

See also

• Supersessionism
• Good Friday Prayer
• Christian anti-Semitism

External links

• Jesus's death now debated by Jews