What could have prompted the myth of betrayal by a follower of Jesus?
As the Jesus Movement grew after his death, Jesus began to be thought of in increasingly exalted terms—approaching and eventually becoming a deific being. In this light, it would have been difficult to imagine that Jesus would have fallen prey so easily to mere mortals. Hence, the surmise may have arisen that the captors must have had inside help, even from “one of the twelve.” This kind of reasoning might in fact have contributed to the misunderstanding of Paul’s Last Supper reference as the night when Jesus “was betrayed.” What most likely helped the betrayal story coalesce was the need, in the 60s C.E., to shame Christians who were betraying one another, to comfort families of loved ones who were so victimized, and to calm the Christian community that was witnessing such betrayals. What caused betrayal and fear among Christians? In 64C.E., a large area of Rome was engulfed by fire. The emperor Nero was suspected of having had the fire set so as to facilitate enlargement of his palac
