In the eyes of many Jews, in fact, the Roman presence in Palestine, that is to say the pagan domination of the sacred land, is above all the manifest sign of the impurity of the chosen people before God. Just as the members of the sect of Qumran retreated into the desert to wash away this impurity, John the Baptist proposed far from Jerusalem a rite of immersion which aimed to replace the sacrifices of the Temple, the rites practiced by the high priests. The beginning of each Gospel emphasizes the central role of the Baptist. Was Jesus one of his disciples? How does its action extend, even compete with the Baptist movement? Didn't the Christians monopolize John the Baptist to make him a posteriori the character of the "precursor"?

The Serie : A historical and scientific enquiry into the origins of the New Testament and the life of Jesus Christ involving specialists from all over the world.