I was confident from the first day I heard about this book that O’Reilly would screw it up.
Jesus was executed by Roman soldiers, not because they had any reason to want him dead, as neither did their immediate Big Boss, Pontius Pilate, but because the Jewish high priests and Sanhedrin insisted that Jesus be put to death and conjured a clever political squeeze play that Pilate dared not refuse for the sake of his own life.
Remember Pilate’s judicial finding: I find no cause of death in this man.
The immediate cause of Jesus’ crucifixion was the Jews, although Christians know the fundamental, existential cause, why He had to die. I know of nothing in O’Reilly’s life experiences that would lead him to understand this.
Elsiejay: “The immediate cause of Jesus’ crucifixion was the Jews, although Christians know the fundamental, existential cause, why He had to die.”
That’s my understanding—based on scripture—too. The most immediate, worldly cause was due to Jewish leaders. They likely wanted Jesus killed because He threatened their leadership, and they claimed Jesus was usurping Caesar’s authority by claiming to be King of the Jews. They did that because the Romans had no reason to execute Jesus on religious grounds. That’s not the reason why the Jews themselves wanted Christ killed.
Of course all of this misses the much more important reason for Christ’s crucification. It was done, as prophesied, as propitiation for our sins.