Although under the general supervision by the legates of Syria, the procurators of Judea operated with considerable independence. Of all those who held this office, Pilate is probably the best known— not only because of his mention in the New Testament but because he is the only Roman governor discussed by the famous historians of his day. Philo describes him as a "...man of inflexible disposition, hard and obdurate." He is further characterized as a person of cruel, selfish and malicious intent.

Pilate’s behavior toward the Jewish community exhibited a contempt which engendered protest, unrest and resentment. The force with which he quelled riots often resulted in the loss of life. It was his brutal disposition of a crowd of Samaritan pilgrims at Mt. Gerizim that brought about his downfall.

Vetellius, legate in Syria, ordered him to return to Rome to answer for his conduct. The emperor Caligula banished Pilate to Vienne in what is now France, where he died— probably at his own hand— in 41 A.D. (Information here is based on an article in the Illustrated Dictionary and Concordance of the Bible, © 1986, The Jerusalem Publishing House, Jerusalem). Much of the material for tonight’s presentation is drawn from the book Profiles of the Passion by O.P. Kretzmann and A.C. Oldsen, © 1944 by Augsburg Publishing House, Minneapolis, MN. Pilate’s costume was created by Marilyn Hahn