Annas, son of Seth, was appointed by the Roman legateQuirinius as the first High Priest of the newly formed Roman province of Iudaea in AD 6; just after the Romans had deposed Archelaus, Ethnarch of Judaea, thereby putting Judaea directly under Roman rule. Annas officially served as High Priest for ten years, when at the age of 36 he was deposed by the procurator Valerius Gratus. Yet while having been officially removed from office, he remained as one of the nation's most influential political and social individuals, aided greatly by the use of his five sons and his son-in-law Caiaphas as puppet High Priests. His death is unrecorded. His son Annas the Younger, also known as Ananus the son of Ananus, was assassinated in AD 66 for advocating peace with Rome. Annas appears in the Gospels and Passion plays as a high priest before whom Jesus is brought for judgment, prior to being brought before Pontius Pilate.
The sacerdotal family
The terms of Annas, Caiaphas, and the five brothers are:
References in the Mosaic Law to "the death of the high priest" suggest that the high-priesthood was ordinarily held for life. Perhaps for this reason, Annas was still called "high priest" even after his dismissal, along with Caiaphas. He also may have been acting as president of the Sanhedrin, or a coadjutor of the high priest.
The involvement of the family of Annas may be implied in the plot to kill Lazarus of Bethany in. Although Annas is not mentioned by name in the plot to kill Lazarus, several 19th-century writers such as Johann Nepomuk Sepp and the Abbé Drioux, considered that there may be a concealed reference to Annas in the parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus which points at a "rich man" with five brothers. If it is considered that the rich man dressed in purple and fine linen represents Caiaphas, as figurehead of the Sadducees, then Annas is intended by the "father" in, and the "five brothers" are Annas' five sons. In support of this is the coincidence that the father and five brothers who will not be convinced even if the parable Lazarus is raised from the dead predict that Caiaphas, Annas, and the five sons of Annas would not believe and plotted to have the real Lazarus killed when he was raised.
The trial of Jesus
According to the Gospel of John, Jesus was first brought before Annas, and after a brief questioning of him was sent to the home of Caiaphas, where some members of the Sanhedrin had met, and where in Matthew's account the first trial of Jesus took place.
Annas has an important role in Jesus Christ Superstar, as one of the two main antagonists of the show spurring Pontius Pilate to take action against Jesus. In almost all versions, Annas has a very high voice to contrast against Caiaphas' bass. Despite being Caiaphas' father-in-law, Annas is generally played by a younger actor.
