by Chase Storey

Created on: May 25, 2007

While there are many people I'd love to interview, the single most intriguing interview would be with Jesus Christ. First, I realize this is a controversial choice, for many would interpret my selection as diminution of Jesus' God qualities. I disagree. The stories of Jesus' life as a human and subsequent transfiguration are written by men, and in most cases, years after the events occurred. Each book should be considered the authors' version of the events. What I want is a first person account of Jesus' crucifixion, death, and resurrection and his commentary on the quality of his disciples and others accounts of his life.

I imagine this to be the easiest of interviews as well as the most difficult. Easy, as Christ is all knowing and seeing, preliminary crafting of questions is both difficult and useless. Christ can only be a difficult interview as each answer spurs other more intricate questions. I am first struck by how bald, short and androgynous he is when we meet and shake hands. He remarks that artists somehow confused the stature of his teachings with his physical attributes, which he finds humorous. Answers to my initial three questions are concise, leading me to believe the time lapse between the events and the erosion of memory was pivotal in the failure to properly recount the stark nature of Christ's life and death by his followers. He states clearly the brutality and violence of his arrest, crucifixion and death. He reminds me weapons of his day were crudely dull and heavy, the effects of their use closer to the imprecise tearing of papyrus and the bludgeoning of sacrificial animals.

When asked about his opinion of Judas, he portrays a follower paralyzed by the dichotomy of Jesus' teachings and his perceived allegiance to the Pharisees and the Roman provincial government. From his statements I discerned Judas' view construed Christ's teachings as extolling an earthly kingdom-a seemingly treasonous act.

An hour is clearly not nearly enough time to interview Christ, so I finish with questions about the touchstone issues of the day: Gay marriage, abortion, and the influence of the church. His remarks are stunning-his disappointment in men and women enriching themselves in his name and his church are etched in his face and emotion of his words. Likewise he states that abortion and gay marriage are choices, following his teachings are the his most important legacy, allowing men to judge and punish others for those choices in his name is as antithetical to his teachings as becoming wealthy in his name. He ends by reminding me sins are not individually ranked, or weighted, all are judged similarly.

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