The Trials and Passion of Christ

Book excerpt: The Passion of Christ is observed by people all around the world as one of the more significant days on the Christian calendar. In certain parts of the world, such as the Philippines, the re-enactments of the crucifixion can go so far as to include actual nails driven through the hands of participants as they wail in pain. Is this the way we are to learn about the crucifixion? Will a re-enactment teach us the truth of the cross? The text of John 18 and 19 teaches us clearly the facts of the crucifixion and is surrounded by intrigue and mystery. For too long, Protestant Christianity has neglected the years of scholarship in pre-reformation and post-reformation Roman research. In The Trials and Passion of Christ, Michael Cannon brings together the best of Protestant and Roman scholasticism to uncover significant details surrounding the trials and the drama of the crucifixion on Golgotha. This book is a journey, reading nearly like an eye-witness report, through the trials, the suffering, and the passion of Christ.