Ancient manuscripts detailing the events during the Roman Empire may contain ‘historical evidence’ about Jesus Christ.
Around 91 AD, the Roman historian Tacitus wrote The Annals, which covers the period from the death of Emperor Augustus in 14 AD to Nero’s suicide 54 years later.
In Book 15 of The Annals, Tacitus discusses the Great Fire of Rome in 64 AD, a significant event that occurred shortly before Nero’s death. Nero famously blamed this devastating fire on a group he referred to as ‘Christians.’
A well-known passage in The Annals states, ‘Christus, from whom the name had its origin, suffered the extreme penalty during the reign of Tiberius at the hands of one of our procurators, Pontius Pilatus.’
‘Christus,’ the Latin version of ‘Christ,’ means ‘the Anointed One’ or ‘the Messiah,’ and comes from the Hebrew word Mashiach (Messiah).
The Bible’s New Testament states that Pontius Pilate, the Roman governor of Judea, sentenced Jesus to death by crucifixion.
Tacitus discusses the persecution of Christ’s followers, who were spreading into Rome from Judaea, writing how ‘an arrest was made of all who pleaded guilty to being Christian.’
”Covered with the skins of wild beasts, they were torn by dogs and perished, or were nailed to crosses, or were doomed to the flames and burnt, to serve as a nightly illumination, when daylight had expired,’ the passage reads.
A book featuring ancient Rome’s history includes a passage that discusses the death of Jesus
The Annals, written by the Roman historian Tacitus around 91AD, begins with the death of Emperor Augustus in 14AD and finishes with Nero’s suicide 54 years later
As the Bible tells it, 2,021 years years ago a child named Jesus was born in a little-known town on the edge of the Roman Empire and was killed 33 years later.
While most scholars agree he was a real person, there is significant debate about his divinity.
They suggest Jesus’ teachings about love and forgiveness and his brutal death led his followers to form a new faith that became Christianity.
While the manuscripts have long been known, the details in them recently surfaced online and have been welcomed by those of Christian faith.
Tacitus, whose full name was Publius Cornelius Tacitus, lived from around 56AD to 120AD and was widely regarded to have been among the most important Roman historians.
While the manuscripts have long been known, the details in them recently surfaced online and have been welcomed by those of
He relied on official records, Senate proceedings and firsthand accounts to compile The Annals, which is known for its critical and sometimes cynical perspective on Roman politics as he did not shy away from deemed emperors as corrupt and tyrants.
The Bible states that Jesus was arrested by Roman soldiers following the Last Supper and taken before Annas, the former high priest.
He was then tried by the current high priest, Caiaphas, in front of the Jewish supreme governing council and court where he was condemned for blasphemy.
Because the court and high priest did not the power to order a death sentence, Jesus was taken to Pilate.
Tacitus, whose full name was Publius Cornelius Tacitus, lived from around 56AD to 120AD and was widely regarded to have been among the most important Roman historians
Luke 23:16-24 states that Pilate was hesitant to sentence Jesus to death, saying ‘nothing this man has done to deserve death. So I will have him whipped and let him go.’
However, the crowd erupted in anger, screaming ‘Kill him.’
After shouting Jesus had not committed a crime three times, Pilate gave into the crowd’s request and ‘passed the sentence on Jesus that they were asking for.’
And Tacitus shared some of these details in The Annals.
The passage, however, focused more on the events that had followed, specifically Christ’s followers moving into Rome .
The first persecution of Christians organized by the Roman government was under Nero who ruled about 21 to 24 years after Jesus’ crucifixion.
Nero used the Great Fire of Rome as part of his plan to stop the faith from spreading.
The Great Fire of Rome began on July 19, 64 AD, likely started in shops near the Circus Maximus, filled with flammable goods, and spread rapidly due to strong winds and the city’s flammable, densely packed construction.
The fire raged for six days and seven nights, destroying or damaging 10 of Rome’s 14 districts, according to researchers at Ohio State University.
And the blaze killed hundreds, left thousands homeless and devastated two-thirds of Rome.
At the time, the Roman Empire was worshiping gods and adding more foreign deities into its religious system and some historians have speculated that the influx of Christians appeared as a threat.
Tacitus wrote how Nero falsely blamed Christians, setting his plan in motion.
‘Nero fastened the guilt and inflicted the most exquisite tortures on a class hated for their abominations, called Christians by the populace,’ the passage reads.
Those arrested were crucified in Nero’s lavish gardens as to ‘exhibit as as show in the circus.’
‘He mingled with the people in the dress of a charioteer, or stood in a chariot, or as if he were a performer, or as a spectator of the cruel games,’ Tacitus described.
‘Hence, even for the present time, though the superstition had been checked for a while, it had broken out once more and gained ground, not only in Judea, the first source of the evil, but even in Rome itself.’
Another historian, Flavius Josephus, wrote a book about Jewish history, featuring a passage that reads: ‘Now there was about this time Jesus, a wise man, if it be lawful to call him a man. For he was a doer of wonderful works, a teacher of such men as receive the truth with pleasure.’
Flavius was a Jewish historian who later became a Roman citizen. He lived from 37 to around 100 AD.
Testimonium Flavianum is part of The Antiquities of the Jews, which features 20 books detailing the history of the region and Jews, starting with the Old Testament up to the Jewish War.
In Testimonium Flavianum, he writes: ‘Pilate condemned him to be crucified and to die. But those who had become his disciples did not abandon his discipleship.
‘They reported that he had appeared to them three days after his crucifixion and that he was alive.
‘Accordingly, he was perhaps the Messiah, concerning whom the prophets have recounted wonders.’
However, some scholars have dismissed the writings, saying it is a late Christian forgery.
