He tiptoes past saying it was the religious leaders that feared Jesus’ message. Too P.C. I guess.
The religious leaders WERE the "rich and powerful" of the time in Judea. The Jewish political system of the time was much like that of Muslim countries today. Religion and politics were intertwined, not separate as Jesus said they should be.
The gospels make it pretty clear that the religious/political leaders of the day wanted to kill Christ for essentially political reasons. They believed he threatened their cozy collaboration with the Romans that left them in power over their fellow Jews and from which they drew their wealth. They used religious justifications for this murder to the Jews and political ones before Pilate.
Good points! thanks.