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[[File:Meister der Kahriye-Cami-Kirche in Istanbul 005.jpg|thumb|300px| Perawan [[Maria]] dan [[Santo Yusuf|Yusuf]] mendaftarkan diri untuk sensus di hadapan gubernur Kirenius. Mosaik [[Bizantin]] di gereja Chora, Konstantinopel (Istanbul), 1315-1320.]]
'''Kirenius''' atau nama Romawi lengkapnya '''Publius Sulpicius Quirinius''' ({{lang-el|Κυρήνιος}} ''Kyrenios'' atau ''Cyrenius''; {{lang-en|Quirinius}}) (~51 SM - AD 21 M) adalah seorang bangsawan Romawi, yang menduduki sejumlah jabatan di pemerintahan Kekaisaran Romawi di abad pertama sebelum Masehi sampai abad pertama sesudah Masehi. Namanya disebut dalam bagian [[Perjanjian Baru]] di [[Alkitab]] [[Kristen]], khususnya dalam [[Injil Lukas]], menyangkut [[Kelahiran Yesus|waktu kelahiran]] [[Yesus]] [[Kristus]]. Kirenius menjadi gubernur di provinsi Romawi Siria dan memerintahkan sensus penduduk. Menurut Yosefus ini terjadi pada waktu ethnarkh [[Arkhelaus]], putra [[Herodes Agung]], dicopot jabatannya, pada tahun 6 M. <ref>[http://www.ccel.org/j/josephus/works/ant-18.htm Josephus, Antiquities of the Jews - Book XVIII]: "Cyrenius came himself into Judea, which was now added to the province of Syria, to take an account of their substance..."</ref> Namun ada catatan bahwa Kirenius ditugaskan mengurus militer Romawi di Siria, yang wilayahnya meliputi Yudea, pada dua masa jabatan: tahun [[6 SM|6 ]]sampai [[4 SM]], dan tahun [[6]] sampai [[9]] M.<ref name="Asimov">Isaac Asimov. Asimov's Guide to the Bible. The New Testament. New York: Doubleday. 1969.</ref>
==Riwayat==
Lahir di daerah [[Lanuvium]], dekat [[Roma]], dari keluarga biasa, Kirenius meniti karir sebagaimana para pemuda ambisius di kelas statusnya. Sejarawan Romawi [[Florus]] mencatat bahwa Kirenius mengalahkan orang-orang Marmaridae, suku perampok padang pasir di wilayah ''Cyrenaica'', kemungkinan sewaktu menjabat gubernur provinsi ''Creta et Cyrenaica'' (Kreta dan Kirene) sekitar [[14 SM]], tapi menolak diberi gelar kehormatan "Marmaricus".<ref>Erich S. Gruen, 'The Expansion of the Empire under Augustus' in ''The Cambridge Ancient History, Volume X: The Augustan Empire, 43 BC - AD 69'', (Cambridge University Press, 1996) page 168.</ref> Tahun [[12 SM]] ia dijadikan [[konsul]], tanda bahwa ia disukai oleh Kaisar [[Agustus]].
Tahun tahun [[6 SM|6 ]]sampai [[4 SM]], Kirenius ditugaskan mengurus militer Romawi di Siria, yang wilayahnya meliputi Yudea.<ref name="Asimov"/> Dalam masa inilah diperkirakan [[Yesus]] [[Kristus]] lahir, menurut catatan [[Injil Lukas]].<ref name="Asimov"/>
Sekitar tahun [[5 SM|5 ]]sampai [[3 SM]], entah sebagai ''legate'' Galatia atau hanya seorang jenderal, ia memimpin tentara mengalahkan suku Homonadenses, di daerah pegunungan [[Galatia]] dan [[Cilicia]], dengan cara mengurangi benteng-benteng mereka dan membuat mereka kelaparan.<ref>Erich S. Gruen, 'The Expansion of the Empire under Augustus' in ''The Cambridge Ancient History, Volume X: The Augustan Empire, 43 BC - AD 69'', (Cambridge University Press, 1996) pages 153-154; see also [[Ronald Syme]], ''[[The Roman Revolution]]'', (Oxford University Press, 1939, reissued 2002), page 399. Justin K. Hardin, ''Galatians and the Imperial Cult'', (Mohr Siebeck, 2008) page 56, suggests that it is uncertain whether Quirinius actually served as legate; he may have served only as a military general.</ref> Atas kemenangan ini, dia diberi penghargaan ''Roman triumph''.<ref>Justin K. Hardin, ''Galatians and the Imperial Cult'', (Mohr Siebeck, 2008) page 56.</ref>
Tahun 1 M, Kirenius ditunjuk menjadi [[rektor]] untuk cucu Agustus, [[Gaius Caesar]], sampai orang muda ini meninggal akibat luka-luka dari perang.<ref>[http://www.livius.org/su-sz/sulpicius/quirinius.html ''Livius.org:'' "P. Sulpicius Quirinius"]</ref> Ketika Agustus mendukung putra tirinya, [[Tiberius]], Kirenius ikut menjadi pendukungnya. Kirenius menikah dengan Claudia Appia, tapi bercerai pada tahun 3 M dan menikah dengan Aemilia_Lepida, putri [[Marcus Aemilius Lepidus]] (salah satu ''triumvir'')) dan saudara perempuan konsul [Manius Aemilius Lepidus]], yang asalnya bertunangan dengan [[Lucius Caesar]].<ref>Robin Seager, ''Tiberius'' (Blackwell Publishing, 2005), page 129.</ref> Beberapa tahun kemudian, mereka bercerai. Tahun 20 M Kirenius menuduhnya berusaha mengklaim bahwa dia ayah dari putra bekas istrinya itu dan bahwa bekas istrinya itu berusaha meracuninya selama perkawinan mereka. Sejarawan [[Tacitus]] mencatat bahwa bekas istrinya ini terkenal di masyarakat, yang menganggap Kirenius menuntut istrinya itu karena merasa tersaingi.<ref>Francesca Santoro L'Hoir, Tragedy, Rhetoric, and the Historiography of Tacitus' Annales (University of Michigan Press, 2006), page 177.</ref>
Setelah ethnarch [[Arkhelaus|Herodes Arkhelaus]] dicopot jabatannya tahun 6 M, [[Provinsi Iudaea]] (gabungan wilayah [[Samaria]], [[Yudea]] dan [[Idumea]]) ada di bawah pemerintahan langsung Romawi dengan [[Coponius]] sebagai [[prefek]]; saat itu Kirenius ditunjuk menjadi ''legatus'' wilayah Siria, dengan instruksi menilai provinsi Iudaea untuk urusan pajak.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Hayes |first1=John Haralson |last2=Mandell |first2=Sara R. |title=The Jewish people in classical antiquity: from Alexander to Bar Kochba |url=http://books.google.com/?id=er1Ls6bSQNMC&lpg=PP1&pg=PA101#v=onepage&q |accessdate=June 13, 2010 |year=1998 |publisher=Westminster John Knox Press |location=Louisville, Kentucky |isbn=9780664257279 |pages=[http://%5Bhttp://books.google.com/books?id=er1Ls6bSQNMC&lpg=PP1&pg=PA153#v=onepage&q&f=false 153]-154 |chapter=Chapter 3: The Herodian Period. |quote=Thus in 6 or 7 AD, Augustus commissioned the newly appointed Legate of Syria, Quirinius, to carry out the census}}</ref> Salah satu tugas pertamnyapertamanya adalah mengadakan sensus.<ref>Erich S. Gruen, 'The Expansion of the Empire under Augustus' in ''The Cambridge Ancient History, Volume X: The Augustan Empire, 43 BC - AD 69'', (Cambridge University Press, 1996) pages 157</ref> Sensus ini hampir menyebabkan pemberontakan besar, namun dicegah oleh [[Imam Besar Yahudi]] saat itu, Joazar.<ref>[http://jewishencyclopedia.com/view.jsp?artid=9&letter=Q&search=Quirinius Jewish Encyclopedia: QUIRINIUS, P. SULPICIUS]: "The assessment caused great dissatisfaction among the Jews (ib.), and open revolt was prevented only by the efforts of the high priest Joazar (ib. 2, § 1). The levying of this assessment resulted, moreover, in the revolt of Judas the Galilean and in the formation of the party of the Zealots (Josephus, "B. J." vii. 8, § 1; Lucas, in Acts v. 37). Josephus mentions the assessment in another passage also ("Ant." xx. 5, § 2)."</ref> Hanya terjadi kerusuhan yang dipimpin oleh [[Yudas dari Galilea]] dan pembentukan gerakan [[Zelot]], menurut catatan [[Yosefus]].<ref>H.H. Ben-Sasson, A History of the Jewish People, Harvard University Press, 1976, ISBN 0-674-39731-2, page 274: "Josephus connects the beginnings of the extremist movement [called the Zealots by Josephus] with the census held under the supervision of Quirinius, the legate of Syria, soon after Judea had been converted into a Roman province (6 AD)."</ref>
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The Jews already hated their pagan conquerors, and censuses were forbidden under Jewish law. The assessment was greatly resented by the Jews, and open [[revolt]] was prevented only by the efforts of the [[Kohen Gadol|high priest]] Joazar.<ref>[http://jewishencyclopedia.com/view.jsp?artid=9&letter=Q&search=Quirinius Jewish Encyclopedia: QUIRINIUS, P. SULPICIUS]: "The assessment caused great dissatisfaction among the Jews (ib.), and open revolt was prevented only by the efforts of the high priest Joazar (ib. 2, § 1). The levying of this assessment resulted, moreover, in the revolt of Judas the Galilean and in the formation of the party of the Zealots (Josephus, "B. J." vii. 8, § 1; Lucas, in Acts v. 37). Josephus mentions the assessment in another passage also ("Ant." xx. 5, § 2)."</ref> As it was, the census did trigger the revolt of [[Judas of Galilee]] and the formation of the party of the [[Zealots]], according to Josephus.<ref>H.H. Ben-Sasson, A History of the Jewish People, Harvard University Press, 1976, ISBN 0-674-39731-2, page 274: "Josephus connects the beginnings of the extremist movement [called the Zealots by Josephus] with the census held under the supervision of Quirinius, the legate of Syria, soon after Judea had been converted into a Roman province (6 AD)."</ref>
The [[Gospel of Luke]] links the [[nativity of Jesus|birth]] of [[Jesus]] to a "world-wide" census ordered by Augustus carried out while Quirinius was governor of Syria. This is thought to be a reference to the census of Judea in 6/7 AD; however, Luke also, like the [[Gospel of Matthew]], dates the birth to the reign of [[Herod the Great]], who died in 4 BC, ten years before the census of 6 or 7 AD. According to [[Raymond E. Brown]], most modern historians suggest that Luke's account is mistaken.<ref>Raymond Brown, ''Christ in the Gospels of the Liturgical Year'', (Liturgical Press, 2008), page 114. See for example, James Douglas Grant Dunn, Jesus Remembered, (Eerdmans, 2003) p344. Similarly, Erich S. Gruen, 'The expansion of the empire under Augustus', in ''The Cambridge ancient history'' Volume 10, p157, Geza Vermes, ''The Nativity'', Penguin 2006, p.96, [[W. D. Davies]] and [[E. P. Sanders]], 'Jesus from the Jewish point of view', in ''The Cambridge History of Judaism'' ed William Horbury, vol 3: the Early Roman Period, 1984, Anthony Harvey, ''A Companion to the New Testament'' (Cambridge University Press 2004), p221, Meier, John P., [[John P. Meier#A Marginal Jew: Rethinking the Historical Jesus|''A Marginal Jew: Rethinking the Historical Jesus'']]. Doubleday, 1991, v. 1, p. 213, [[Raymond E. Brown|Brown, Raymond E.]] ''The Birth of the Messiah: A Commentary on the Infancy Narratives in Matthew and Luke''. London: G. Chapman, 1977, p. 554, [[A. N. Sherwin-White]], pp. 166, 167, [[Fergus Millar]] {{cite conference | first = Fergus | last = Millar | authorlink = Fergus Millar | title = Reflections on the trials of Jesus | booktitle = A Tribute to Geza Vermes: Essays on Jewish and Christian Literature and History (JSOT Suppl. 100) [eds. P.R. Davies and R.T. White] | pages = 355–81 | publisher = JSOT Press | date = 1990 | location = Sheffield}} repr. in {{cite journal | last = Millar | first = Fergus | authorlink = Fergus Millar | title = The Greek World, the Jews, and the East | journal = Rome, the Greek World and the East | volume = 3 | pages = 139–163 | publisher = University of North Carolina Press | year = 2006}}</ref>
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Kirenius memerintah di Siria dengan otoritas nominal atas Yudea sampai tahun 12. Kemudian dia kembali ke Roma, menjadi teman dekat [[Tiberius]]. Dia meninggal 9 tahun kemudian dan mendapat penguburan penghormatan.
==Referensi==
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