A pivotal figure in the Christian myth of the Jesus revolution is Judas Iscariot, the disciple who betrayed Jesus to his enemies. His treacherous kiss in the garden of Gethsemane is often pointed to as the quintessential act of disloyalty. Historically, Judas has symbolized the evil forces that oppose Christ, which are assumed to be the enemies of the Christian church as well. But are these forces and enemies the same? Ironically, or perhaps fortuitously, the figure of Judas is a potentially revolutionary force against what many understand, or fear, to be the biggest enemy of a vibrant Christianity in the twenty-first century—the institution of the Christian church itself.
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