An emeritus professor of the University of Utrecht in the Netherlands is claiming in his newly-released book that a 1,200-year-old Egyptian text depicts Jesus as a shape-shifter and Pontius Pilate as a compassionate person.
The author also claims that the text describes the reason behind Judas' kissing of Jesus, as well as offers a different timeline for the Easter season, stating that Jesus was arrested on a Tuesday rather than a Thursday.
Roelof van den Broek makes these claims in Pseudo-Cyril of Jerusalem on the Life and the Passion of Christ.
Van den Broek told LiveScience in a recent interview that the statements made in this text do not mean that these events actually occurred, but rather that at one point in Egyptian history, people believed in them.
According to the author's translation of the Egyptian text, which is written in the Coptic language, Judas, one of Jesus' apostles who ultimately betrayed him, revealed Jesus to the Roman authorities by kissing him because Jesus was a shape-shifter, and therefore Judas sought to kiss him to identify him before he changed his appearance.
"The Jews said to Judas: How shall we arrest him (Jesus), for he does not have a single shape but his appearance changes. Sometimes he is ruddy, sometimes he is white, sometimes he is red, sometimes he is wheat coloured, sometimes he is pallid like ascetics, sometimes he is a youth, sometimes an old man," the text reportedly reads, according to LiveScience.
Also according to the book, the text indicates that Pontius Pilate shared dinner with Jesus in his home prior to his crucifixion, and he reportedly offered for his only son to be crucified in Jesus' place, an offer which Jesus denied.
According to The Daily Mail, the ancient text is written in the name of St. Cyril of Jerusalem, although van den Broek argues that this is probably a pseudonym.
In the past, there have been numerous texts which offer an altered account to the traditional teachings of the Bible.
For example, in September 2012, Professor Karen King of Harvard Divinity School revealed what she believes to be a fourth century fragment of papyrus with Coptic text that describes Jesus as having a wife.
In a similar way to the Netherlands professor, King asserted that the so-called Gospel of Jesus' Wife does not prove that Jesus in fact had a wife, but rather that at one point in history, some Christians believed he did.
The Gospel of Jesus' Wife proved controversial as some critics claimed it to be a forgery, and it is currently being tested for authenticity.
Two copies of the St. Cyril of Jerusalem text reportedly exist – one in the Morgan Library and Museum in New York City and one in the Museum of the University of Pennsylvania.