368 ÉTIENNE NODET because from the time of Coponius, the first praefectus of Judea (around 6 CE), all the power was concentrated in the hands of the Roman ruler; the Jewish authorities were reduced to a council around the high priest, whose authority concerned only Temple matters 46. Even the priestly garments and ornaments for the festivals were controlled by the Romans (Ant. 18 :93). As for the chronology of the fourth Gospel, the crucifixion occurs on the eve of the Sabbath, on which Passover fell that year, at precisely the time of the slaughtering of the Passover lambs, a fact which developed into the full-scale symbol of Jesus as a slain lamb (John 1,29 ; Rev 5,6.9-10). In 1 Cor 5,7, Paul speaks of the sacrificed “ Christ, our Passover lamb”. Justin Martyr (Dial. 40 :3) gives a precise description: “When the lamb is roasted (see Exod 12,9), it is arranged in such a way as to represent the cross: A spit goes right through it from the lower limbs to the head, another spit is at the shoulder, to which the paws are fastened” 47. This custom is attested by Rabbinic sources, for we read in m.Pes 7 :1 that the lamb is to be roasted on a spit of dry wood. (Damp wood would give off steam, with an effect similar to that of boiling, whereas a metal spit, heated up in the fire, would play a part in cooking the meat.) The entrails and internal organs would be cooked in a pot and not roasted directly over the fire. For this reason, R. Aqiba requires them to be fastened on another branch fixed to the paws. In other words, there has to be a second, transverse spit forming a cross with the first. Thus, it was a very simple step to identify Jesus with the Paschal lamb. Regarding the Synoptics, taken together, the position is more complicated. Even if Jesus had eaten his last Passover meal on a Tuesday evening, one must explain why it was then transferred to Thursday, in spite of the persistence of some traditions connected with the original date. Besides this calendrical problem, the Synoptic accounts are filled with features that are, for the most part, at odds 48 with historical reality and Jewish legal prescriptions: According to b.Sanh 41a, the high priest Annas (Ananus, –nj) had been 46 settled into a shop (twnj), a scornful wordplay. He was the first high priest appointed by a Roman ruler (Quirinius), in 6 CE (Ant. 18 :34). Melito of Sardis, fr. 9, seems to refer to this when he writes: “As a lamb 47 he was crucified (or spitted, estaytwuh). ß ¥ To date, the attempts to solve these difficulties, while maintaining the 48