Jesus

In the name of Jesus Christ!

In the name of Jesus Christ!

Jesus!

Oh, Jesus!

Jesus!

- A dream? - Yes.

I was dreaming of your mother's bread,

still warm from the oven.

Keep dreaming if you wanna eat today.

Nothing to eat and sleeping on stones.

I'm getting too old for this. We must find work.

Let me be the first to welcome you,

Governor Pilate.

You appear to be the only one to welcome me.

Please make note of that, Governor.

I am the only one to welcome you.

A conqueror doesn't expect a warm welcome.

Well, these people don't accept that they've been...

- ...conquered, Governor. - Oh, they will.

Judea is the most troublesome province in the empire!

So I've been told. Why?

It's full of Jews!

- And who are you? - Livio. Roman citizen.

And why are you here?

Well, a kind man would say that I am Caesar's historian.

An unkind man would say that I am Caesar's...

...spy.

- Good morning, Mary. - It's a beautiful morning.

Have Joseph and your son returned?

No.

I'm sure they must have found carpentry work in Jerusalem.

God willing.

God willing.

We have no food here! Go on your way!

We're not beggars! We search for work!

We are carpenters! Very good carpenters!

There's no work left here.

They told me to borrow on my crop for next year,

and the next the next. So, I'd paid my tax to Rome.

But it's cost me everything I have.

I'm Joseph of Nazareth. This is my son, Jesus.

Nazareth, huh?

You've come a long way.

Searching for work.

The crops are not good up north either.

I grow almonds.

They were to be for my son.

You're welcome to them.

May God bless you... and protect you.

God, huh?

I'm losing my land. My son's got no heritage.

- Go on. - And where is God?

Pontius Pilate! Most honored citizen of Rome!

I, Herod Antipas, Tetrarch of Galilee,

welcome you.

I accept your welcome, Herod Antipas.

And Caesar sends his blessings on your land...

...and his kingdom.

May I present my wife, Herodias, my stepdaughter, Salome,

and your fellow Roman citizen, Livio.

- We've met. - Please, come, sit beside me.

I must say...

- This city surprises me. - In what way, Governor?

Well, the structures, they are most impressive.

Built by my father, Herod the Great.

- Beloved of his people. - They hated him.

A vicious man, I'm told.

How distasteful of you to speak of my father this way.

As his son, I'm a hero to the people.

- The butt of all of their jokes. - You misunderstand.

In Rome, we call your father's way of ruling...

..."Statesmanship."

In fact, there was a joke that went about:

"It's safer to be Herod the Great's...

...pig than his son.

Because the Jews don't eat pork."

Perhaps Pontius Pilate would like to see the grandest of all structures in Israel:

The Temple, built by my father, a personal friend of Augustus,

as I am a personal friend of Tiberius!

Strange.

I've never heard him mention you.

I thank you for your welcome!

And I will visit the Temple, as you suggest!

Make sure you'll take your troops!

And show their insignia proudly!

Livio,

what does he mean, "Show their insignia"?

Well, I could tell you, but it would spoil all the fun.

The High Priest of the Temple is Caiaphas,

appointed by Rome.

Which puts him in a very interesting position.

On the one hand, he has to appear to be on the side of his own people,

on the other hand, he owes his position to Rome.

Very narrow path to tread.

Welcome, Pontius Pilate!

I am Caiaphas,

High Priest of this Temple.

We come to wish you well,

as you undertake the post of Governor...

- ...of Judea. - I thank you, priest.

Allow me to get right to the point.

Rome is displeased...

...with the number of legions it has to keep in this barren land...

...in order to maintain peace!

Your taxes...

- ...don't begin to pay back the costs. - You speak of the past.

This disorder erupts directly from your corrupt religion,

which erupts directly from this temple!

That ends today!

My soldiers will be posted here every minute of every day from now on!

This order defiles the Temple!

Our religion forbids graven images in the Temple.

Your soldiers are an abomination to the Temple!

Even their flags break our laws.

We allow no graven images,

and your banners carry the carvings of Caesar!

These shields are symbols of Roman dominion!

No building in Judea, not even the Temple,

is exempt from the display of these symbols!

What your religion forbids,

Rome demands!

We submit...

...to your swords.

Here is my bare neck!

Let Rome cut it!

We will die...

...before we allow the Temple to be defiled.

Governor...

Awful lot of blood for your first day.

Are you sure Rome would be happy...

...if you were to murder every priest in the Temple?

Mary, stop staring at Jesus like that.

He will never finish that door.

We do love it when the carpenters arrive, don't we, Mary?

Because there is nothing worse than a door that squeaks.

Is there anything else that squeaks?

There is one thing that's broken, but...

...it's beyond repair.

I can repair most things.

A broken heart?

Martha, you've embarrassed Mary.

And you've enchanted her.

- She's a beautiful girl. - Woman.

She's a woman, Jesus. And she needs a husband.

Poverty, debt, hunger.

The Romans say... they bring us their world.

What they bring us is misery. It's misery, Lazarus.

At least they let us worship. The Temple still stands.

For now. But now, the day may come...

...when they decide to destroy it, too.

Destroy us all.

But enough gloom.

Let's see if my son has done any work...

...with your sisters distracting him.

So, are we finished?

Yes, "we" are almost finished. Not that you had much to do with it.

I'm the aging supervisor.

It's my job... to sit back and watch.

Yes, well, you do it very well.

Lazarus tells me that we will be paid highly for these repairs.

Lazarus has never paid anyone "highly" for anything.

I heard that snide remark from my sister.

Joseph and Jesus are our blood relatives.

Do you really think that I would let them...

...work without pay?

The truth, Lazarus? You will pay them nothing!

Mary and I have worked all day to pay them,

in food and wine, at dinner.

And so, they shall be paid, highly.

- No, no, no, it... it is enough. - Don't be proud.

You worked, I pay my debts.

- Martha? - Thank you.

- Take care of Mary. - Goodbye.

- You're welcome. - Thank you so much.

Thank you again, Lazarus.

- Jesus? - Yes?

Mary's had an offer of marriage from a boy here in Bethany.

I thought you'd like to know.

She loves you. Surely you must know this.

Why do you treat her as if her feelings mean nothing to you?

- Lazarus, of course they do. - Then tell her!

Mary!

Lazarus just... told me.

It's not my idea.

- You know that... - Mary...

Please.

I wish that...

I wish you could understand.

I feel that... I feel that I...

Have a safe journey, Jesus!

Open the door!

Get out of the way!

Where is your husband?

He's working in Judea.

He's in the hills, hiding,

like the other men, to escape paying their taxes.

Right, you owe one-third of your income for...

...two years. You were deferred last year,

but, uh, no longer.

Take the goat.