Beshara Shehadi

The Confession of Pontius Pilate Beshara Shehadi

Publisher Marketing: Pilate, upon looking into the shop, saw an elderly woman and a pretty little child. Giving the girl a small golden piece, he accosted the woman and asked if he might take a little rest. The shopkeeper upon entering and beholding Pilate, cried out in alarm, "Pilate! Pilate!" This terrified the woman and child, who, leaving their work, fled to the back yard, pronouncing this awful name, which was mixed with bloodshed and terror. Pilate was much surprised and bewildered to learn how soon on his arrival his name became known in the city. -from The Confession of Pontius Pilate This apocryphal companion to the books of the Bible is as intriguing as it is mysterious. Relating the tale of Pontius Pilate's exile to the city of Vienne, in Roman Gaul, and the last days of his life, before grief and remorse at his execution of Jesus drove him to suicide, it was allegedly composed in Latin by Fabricius Albinus, the childhood friend of Pilate with whom he sought refuge. Was Albinus's document unearthed in the 18th century, translated to Arabic and then into English, supposedly by Beshara Shehadi in 1893? Or are the document and the story it tells entirely invented? Read it and decide for yourself.