Judas and the Criminal Mind

Why did Jesus choose Judas? Did he repent? Did he have a choice?

Everyone has been face-to-face with a Judas-type persona. Recognizing them could spare us considerable suffering. And like Judas, one in 25 individuals can be labeled a sociopath. This is an epidemic. These people have no conscience, or a severely damaged one at best. They commit crimes without guilt and leave shattered relationships in their wake. Antisocial individuals―such as Judas―lack any regard for the moral or legal standards of society. Charm and deception are their skills. The epidemic of crime in our culture cries out for help to identify and deal with the antisocial personalities that move among us. They have fooled most of us. As dean of students and chair of a Christian University discipline committee for more than 30 years, author and professor Tom Ewald experienced the necessity of identifying the deviant antisocial students like Judas.

In Judas and the Criminal Mind, Dr. Ewald explains how the Bible gives three reasons for Judas’s betrayal. All biblical passages referring to Judas Iscariot are examined and tools of social science are applied. These accounts show how Judas could hide among Jesus’ closest associates yet emerge to betray his master and commit high treason. The words of Jesus, other New Testament passages, and contemporary psychiatry provide ample support for an antisocial criminal diagnosis of Judas Iscariot. Ancient and contemporary works which treat Judas as a hero or as a well-intentioned but mistaken victim are also examined. His deception contributed to the death of Christ, but God’s redemptive plan was unimpeded.

 

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Author Bio

For more than 40 years, Tom Ewald was a college and seminary professor of psychology, pastoral counseling, theology, and Bible survey. He was dean of students and chairman of the disciplinary committee of Lincoln Christian University for more than 30 years. There he dealt with students fitting the description of antisocial personality but functioning in the Christian community. He has an M.A. in New Testament, an M.S. in educational and clinical psychology, an M.Div., and a D.Div. He has taught classes in Canada, Austria, Bradley University, Lincoln Correctional Center, Lincoln Christian University, and Christian colleges in several states. He is a university adjunct professor and a teaching elder at his local church. His hobbies include hiking, fishing, running (5 marathons), gardening, mountain climbing, photography, and carpentry.