Passion of Christ. In Christianity, the Passion is the short final period in the life of Jesus Christ. Depending on one's views, the Passion may include, among other events, Jesus' triumphal entry into Jerusalem, his cleansing of the Temple, his anointing, the Last Supper, Jesus' agony in the Garden, his arrest, his Sanhedrin trial, his trial before Pontius Pilate, his crucifixion and his death on Good Friday, his burial, and the resurrection of Jesus. Those parts of the four canonical Gospels that describe these events are known as the Passion narratives. In some Christian communities, commemoration of the Passion also includes remembrance of the sorrow of Mary, the mother of Jesus, on the Friday of Sorrows. The word passion has taken on a more general application and now may also apply to accounts of the suffering and death of Christian martyrs, sometimes using the Latin form passio. Accounts of the Passion are found in the four canonical gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. Three of these, Matthew, Mark, and Luke, known as the Synoptic Gospels, give similar accounts. The Gospel of John account varies significantly. Scholars do not agree on which events surrounding the death of Jesus should be considered part of the Passion narrative, and which ones merely precede and succeed the actual Passion narrative itself. For example, Puskas and Robbins commence the Passion after Jesus' arrest and before his resurrection, thus only including the trials, crucifixion and death of Jesus. In Pope Benedict XVI's Jesus of Nazareth: Holy Week, the term Passion completely coincides with the crucifixion and death of Jesus; it does not include earlier events and specifically excludes the burial and resurrection. Others such as Matson and Richardson take a broader approach and consider the triumphal entry, the last supper, the trial before Pilate, the crucifixion, the burial, and the resurrection collectively as constituting the so-called Passion Week. The Gospel of Luke states that Pilate sends Jesus to be judged by Herod Antipas because as a Galilean he is under his jurisdiction. Herod is excited at first to see Jesus and hopes Jesus will perform a miracle for him; he asks Jesus several questions but Jesus does not answer. Herod then mocks him and sends him back to Pilate after giving him an elegant robe to wear. All the Gospels relate that a man named Barabbas was released by Pilate instead of Jesus. Matthew, Mark and John have Pilate offer a choice between Jesus and Barabbas to the crowd; Luke lists no choice offered by Pilate, but represents the crowd demanding his release. Icon of the Passion, detail showing the Flagellation and Ascent to Golgotha. In all the Gospels, Pilate asks Jesus if he is King of the Jews and Jesus replies So you say. Once condemned by Pilate, he was flogged before execution. The Canonical Gospels, except Luke, record that Jesus is then taken by the soldiers to the Praetorium where, according to Matthew and Mark, the whole contingent of soldiers has been called together. They place a purple robe on him, put a crown of thorns on his head, and according to Matthew, put a rod in his hand. They mock him by hailing him as King of the Jews, paying homage and hitting him on the head with the rod. According to the Gospel of John, Pilate has Jesus brought out a second time, wearing the purple robe and the crown of thorns, in order to appeal his innocence before the crowd, saying Ecce homo. But, John represents, the priests urge the crowd to demand Jesus' death. Pilate resigns himself to the decision, washing his hands before the people as a sign that Jesus' blood will not be upon him. According to the Gospel of Matthew they replied, His blood be on us and on our children! Mark and Matthew record that Jesus is returned his own clothes, prior to being led out for execution. According to the Gospel accounts he is forced, like other victims of crucifixion, to drag his own cross to Golgotha, the location of the execution. The three Synoptic Gospels refer to a man called Simon of Cyrene who is made to carry the cross, while in the Gospel of John, Jesus is made to carry his own cross. The Gospel of Mark gives the names of Simon's children, Alexander and Rufus. However, the Gospel of Luke refers to Simon carrying the cross after Jesus, in that it states: they laid hold upon one Simon, a Cyrenian, coming out of the country, and on him they laid the cross, that he might bear it after Jesus. Luke adds that Jesus' female followers follow, mourning his fate, but that he responds by quoting Hosea 10:8.