Question:
Why do Roman records never mention Jesus Christ?
anonymous
2017-04-30 21:26:08 UTC
When I say "Roman records", I mean records concerning the time when Jesus was supposed to have been alive. This rabble-rouser would certainly have come to the attention of the Roman "secret police", yet NOT ONE SINGLE MENTION of "Jesus Christ" exists. Why? Because Jesus Christ was the product of rumor, just like the UFOs in New Mexico. Sixty years after the event, lots of people believe aliens walked the earth. Lots of people believe that Jesus did, too.
27 answers:
?
2017-07-17 04:20:59 UTC
Why haven't you found them?



The pagan Roman historian Tacitus makes mention of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ at the hand of Pontius Pilate in Book XV, Chapter 44 of his Annals.



There's about as much evidence of Jesus existing as there is for Buddha or Muhammad. Even if, for the sake of argument, the person Jesus did not actually exist, there is very good reason to believe someone matching his description did. The religion did not simply spawn in a vacuum; they all drew their beliefs from someone.



The Pavement

The place where Jesus was tried before Pilate.

Once considered a myth because there was no record of it in Jewish or secular maps or history.



When Titus destroyed Jerusalem, he built barracks there. When these were abandoned and had crumbled, other buildings were built on top. Archaeologists had dug down to the barracks, but no further until recently. When they did go underneath, they found The Pavement.



People who hold your belief have been called “Jesus Mythers,” but this notion is widely rejected by scholarly historians.



Here is the opinion of several critical scholars who have rejected the miraculous elements of Christ's life:



"Of course the doubt as to whether Jesus really existed is unfounded and not worth refutation. No sane person can doubt that Jesus stands as founder behind the historical movement whose first distinct stage is represented by the oldest Palestinian community." (Rudolf Bultmann)



"To doubt the historical existence of Jesus at all … was reserved for an unrestrained, tendentious criticism of modern times into which it is not worthwhile to enter here." (Günther Bornkamm)



"I am of the opinion (and it is an opinion shared by every serious historian) that the theory [“that Jesus never lived, that he was a purely mythical figure”] is historically untenable." (Willi Marxsen)





Addendum

Saturating all of Scripture, there is a gospel theme that showcases the suffering, Resurrection, and glory of the promised Savior, Jesus Christ. He is the central object of our faith and the fulfillment of all that the faithful who have preceded us down through the ages had believed in.



Of course, the atheist wants to destroy, subjugate and cast doubt on any mention of Jesus. Some skeptics claim that the idea of the Resurrection was simply a legend that grew for several decades before being written down. 1 Corinthians 15:1–9 smashes this objection. Not only is five years much too short a time for such a legend to develop, but Paul cites a bunch of eyewitnesses “most of whom [were] still alive” (1 Corinthians 15:6, ESV). Essentially, he told the Corinthians, “Hey, if you don’t believe me, then go ask one of these guys.”



So are the appearances by Jesus truly “infallible proofs” of the Resurrection? According to Luke they were, and he wasn’t alone. Paul told the Greek philosophers who gathered in the Areopagus in Athens that God had “furnished proof to all men by raising [Jesus] from the dead” (Acts 17:31). “Proof” is from the Greek πίστιν (pistin) and refers to “a token offered as a guarantee of something promised.” It is a “proof” or “pledge.” Another lexicon defines it as “that which causes something to be known as verified or confirmed—‘evidence, proof, convincing proof.’” Johannes P. Louw and Eugene Albert Nida, vol. 1, Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament: Based on Semantic Domains, electronic ed. of the 2nd edition. It carried similar meanings in other ancient Greek writings, such as a “sure sign or token,” a “proof,” or in the logic of Aristotle, a “demonstrative proof.” Henry George Liddell and Robert Scott, A Greek-English Lexicon, with a revised supplement 1996 (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1843, 1996), 1768.



In one of His debates with the Pharisees, Jesus said, “It is also written in your law that the testimony of two men is true” (John 8:17). This oft-repeated concept refers back to Deuteronomy 19:15—“by the mouth of two or three witnesses the matter shall be established.” This same idea is at the heart of the American judicial system. Witnesses appear in trials to help establish the truth of the matter. Prior to the use of modern forensic experts and recording devices, reliable eyewitnesses were essential. People believe in the historicity of many past events because of eyewitness testimony without ever seeing photographic evidence for those events.



This willful rejection of the truth is well illustrated by a series of quotations from atheist philosopher Michael Martin concerning the evidence for Christ’s Resurrection.



In an effort to escape the implications of the Resurrection, Martin is willing to reject one of the fundamental principles of scientific methodology: cause and effect. Instead of bowing the knee to His Creator, Martin would rather believe in a causeless effect by which, out of all the people who have ever lived, the one who just happened to come back to life for no reason at all was Jesus, the Man who had fulfilled numerous Old Testament prophecies, lived a sinless life, performed countless miracles, and predicted His own Resurrection (Matthew 20:18–19). This is special pleading at its worst.



Martin’s statement provides a great example of how a person usually interprets the data according to his worldview. As an atheist, Martin is prepared to believe just about anything on this matter except that God raised Jesus from the dead. When a person desires to remain in his skepticism, he will develop excuses to disbelieve the obvious. Although the Resurrection of Jesus Christ was proven by “many infallible proofs” and has been recorded in God’s Word, atheists like Michael Martin will continue to reject the free gift of God’s grace and cling to their irrational humanistic worldview.



While some people reject the infallible proofs, a study of the historical evidences for the Resurrection of Jesus has been a major factor in some people coming to faith in Christ, including apologists like C.S. Lewis, Josh McDowell, Lee Strobel, and Sir William Ramsay.
anonymous
2017-05-01 14:11:18 UTC
Pilate said I never expected Jesus to die so quickly



ince according to the rules of the Roman Empire, calling oneself king was grounds for treason, Pontius Pilate ordered that the initials INRI be inscribed on Jesus's tomb after the crucifixion. In Latin, INRI stood for Jesus's name and his title of King of the Jews. Some believe the title was meant derisively, to mock Jesus for his lofty claim.



Mysterious Death



The circumstances surrounding Pontius Pilate’s death in circa 39 A.D. are something of a mystery and a source of contention. According to some traditions, the Roman emperor Caligula ordered Pontius Pilate to death by execution or suicide. By other accounts, Pontius Pilate was sent into exile and committed suicide of his own accord.



Some traditions assert that after he committed suicide, his body was thrown into the Tiber River. Still others believe Pontius Pilate’s fate involved his conversion to Christianity and subsequent canonization. Pontius Pilate is in fact considered a saint by the Ethiopian Orthodox Church.



Regardless of what truly became of Pontius Pilate, one thing has been made certain—that Pontius Pilate actually existed. During a 1961 dig in Caesarea Maritima, Italian archeologist Dr. Antonio Frova uncovered a piece of limestone inscribed with Pontius Pilate’s name in Latin, linking Pilate to Emperor Tiberius’s reign.
?
2017-04-30 22:42:35 UTC
Roman records never mention Jesus Christ for the same reason that Egyptian historians don't mention Moses.



True, no Egyptian record of this event has been found. But the Egyptians were not above altering historical records when the truth proved to be embarrassing or went against their political interests. When Thutmose III came to power, he tried to obliterate the memory of his predecessor, Hatshepsut. Says Egyptologist John Ray: “Her inscriptions were erased, her obelisks surrounded by a wall, and her monuments forgotten. Her name does not appear in later annals.”

Because of the chaotic state of Egyptian chronology, it is not possible to determine with any certainty who the Pharaoh was at the time of the Exodus.

Similar attempts to alter or conceal embarrassing facts have even taken place in modern times.



Historians played down the Nazi genocide and exalted ‘German’ resistance to Hitler—it was part of a national survival strategy.



There are many suppressed histories. Especially the richness and complexity of women’s history: the artist-philosophers who created magnificent scriptures of signs in neolithic ceramics, the python-oracles of southeast African rain shrines, the female clan heads of the Mosuo in Yunnan. Legends tell of women who invented agriculture, who founded peoples, cities, or religions. Rebel priestesses like Muhumusa in Uganda or Veleda in the Batavian uprising against Rome or the Tongva shaman Toypurina where Los Angeles now stands. Nonconformist poets like Walada bint-al-Mustakfi in Spain or Akka Mahadevi in south India: women who defied the rules of patriarchy and empire, courageous clan mothers, women who dared to love women, feminist and labor organizers, indigenous sovereignty activists, freethinkers and mystics.
Tim
2017-04-30 22:10:56 UTC
What Roman records? Where are the records of all the other crucifixions? Can you supply,from the Roman records about every detail of life, information concerning “olive production” in Palestine for the year 4 B.C.?



https://answersrip.com/question/index?qid=20080304201228AAh5WOZ



https://www.christiancourier.com/articles/1061-jesus-christ-myth-or-genuine-history
imacatholic2
2017-04-30 22:04:40 UTC
But they do.



There is no evidence for almost all of the 240 million people alive in the year 33 CE but there is evidence of the historical person of Jesus Christ. http://www.scottmanning.com/archives/World%20Population%20Estimates%20Interpolated%20and%20Averaged.pdf



Call them short-sighted but historians write about history and not current events. Unless someone was royalty (and sometimes not even then) almost no one received "contemporary attestation." If this standard was used with Alexander the Great, Socrates, and Cleopatra then it would be determined that they did not exist.



Why is it that:

+ People accept what Greeks and pro-Greeks wrote about Greeks (Writers who feared death if they offended the Greeks in power by telling the truth), and

+ People accept what Romans and pro-Romans wrote about Romans (Writers who feared death if they offended the Romans in power by telling the truth), but

+ People refuse to accept what Christians wrote about Christians (Writers who only feared God if they bore false witness by lying)??



Luckily there is an abundance of anti-Christians who wrote about Christ. For example:



The (Pagan) Roman historian and senator Tacitus referred to Jesus Christ, His execution by Pontius Pilate and the persecution of early Christians in Rome in his 109 AD work, "The Annals,"



"Consequently, to get rid of the report (that Nero started the great fire of Rome), Nero fastened the guilt and inflicted the most exquisite tortures on a class hated for their abominations, called Christians by the populace. 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, and a most mischievous superstition, thus checked for the moment, again broke out not only in Judaea, the first source of the evil, but even in Rome, where all things hideous and shameful from every part of the world find their centre and become popular. Accordingly, an arrest was first made of all who pleaded guilty; then, upon their information, an immense multitude was convicted, not so much of the crime of firing the city, as of hatred against mankind. Mockery of every sort was added to their deaths. Covered with the skins of 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."



Book 15, chapter 44 of "The Annals" by Tacitus, translated by Alfred John Church and William Jackson Brodribb http://classics.mit.edu/Tacitus/annals.11.xv.html



A final few words: The noted historian Will Durant wrote: “That a few simple men should in one generation have invented so powerful and appealing a personality, so lofty an ethic and so inspiring a vision of human brotherhood, would be a miracle far more incredible than any recorded in the Gospels.”



See also Magis Online Encyclopedia of Reason and Faith (Why Believe in Jesus?) http://magischristwiki.org/index.php?title=Why_Believe_in_Jesus%3F#Is_There_Historical_Evidence_for_Jesus.3F



With love in Christ
Donut Tim
2017-04-30 21:50:23 UTC
Could it possibly be that… ᴳᵒᵈ ᶥˢ ⁿᵒᵗ ʳᵉᵃˡˀ ᵒᵒᵒʰ
anonymous
2017-04-30 21:43:35 UTC
Ask Jesus face to face in the afterlife..



You can also ask him why the mighty Roman Empire converted to Christianity,& declared Jesus (your so called "RUMOR") King of Kings.
anonymous
2017-04-30 21:33:38 UTC
Jesus got rid of them so we can have faith he exists
anonymous
2017-04-30 21:27:40 UTC
because he was one death out of thousands in a little backwater no where land



As a big of a problem as He was for the Jews, he wasn't a blip on the roman radar screen



little did they know He would take over their empire



However we have found physical evidence of people in the mentioned in the Gospels. Caiaphas, the high priest and James, the brother of Jesus



btw you do realize that very few roman records remain....right?





perhaps you take more time considering your questions before you ask them



you will look less stupid that way
anonymous
2017-04-30 21:27:38 UTC
lies about God are still lies

and plenty records exist

roman and otherwise
DP.
2019-01-08 23:26:35 UTC
FIrstly, you have to ask why would it be significant if Christ wasn't mentioned in the Roman records. Israel was consider a back water less small contributor to the Empire and the reality is that there are very few records of anyone in Israel at that time. Why would we expect to see Christ being recorded?



Secondly, just because we haven't found any record doesn't mean there isn't any. For a long time, the same argument was used for Pontius Pilate, the ROMAN governor. Why is there no record of Pontius Pilate in the Roman records, after all he was ROMAN? The argument was that the bible made him up until, of course, they found archeological evidence.... but that still leaves the question as to why Pilate isn't recorded in Roman records.



Thirdly, although Rome control Israel in the first century, there were not that many Romans in Israel... a fact evidence by the ease at which the Jews revolting in 70ad. In other words, the Jews themselves didn't really come across Romans, except perhaps when they made pilgrimage to Jerusalem.



Fourthly, there's lots of evidence for Christ in the first century, more than any person alive from that time. They were formally written and documented before being incorporated into a book you might have heard of "The Bible"
Gomakawitnessofjesus
2018-11-14 17:09:01 UTC
This is such a false question, there were no less than three historians and there are at least two records I have read that discuss Jesus, even Bart Erham born again atheist concludes Jesus did exist ,he just doesn't believe the Bible testimony
anonymous
2017-05-02 19:17:25 UTC
yea well i would have to say probably because jesus is just made up?

i mean who decided there would be a bible? and all the rules and stories?

isn't it just someone over imagination going nuts?

well all whats in there may be true but its not something i agree to believe in
Enrique
2017-05-01 10:12:49 UTC
jesus was written by men to maintain peace in the world. it was made to believe that if we screw we will go to hell
Kazoo M
2017-05-01 03:42:37 UTC
The Roman Government was very accurate concerning recorded events.

Reference the Syriac Manuscript for authentic proof as noted below:



http://theancientbridge.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/his_letter.pdf



Remember, the Roman Governor (Pilate) did not view himself as the individulal responsible for the execution of Jesus, he performed the Jewish ritiual of washing his hands in the exact same manner that the jews would perform under a similar condition; Luke 23:4.

Furthermore, since Pilate did not believe he was accountable - the recorded event (execution) was placed on the opposition of Palestinian Jews in particular.

The above scripture that will outline the execution confirming the latter via the Apostles as noted below:



1 Thessalonians 2:14-16



For you, brothers, have become imitators of the churches of God that are in Judea in Christ Jesus. For you suffer the same things from your compatriots as they did from the Jews,



who killed both the Lord Jesus and the prophets and persecuted us; they do not please God, and are opposed to everyone,



trying to prevent us from speaking to the Gentiles that they may be saved, thus constantly filling up the measure of their sins. But the wrath of God has finally begun to come upon them.



Peace'
?
2017-04-30 23:22:08 UTC
becuase they worshiped worldly kings and the such
User
2017-04-30 23:03:34 UTC
Question: how many of the records of the Roman "secret police" in first century Judaea do we possess?

If the answer is anything other than "none", I'd love to see even one such record.



One reason the "Roman records" never mention Jesus is because we simply do not possess any of "the Roman records" from first century Judaea - not those of the secret police nor anything else except (as far as I know) for one thing: the Pilate Column, discovered less than 100 years ago.



So: ***we don't have ANY*** of the "Roman records" that you assume we possess. Not about Jesus and **also not about anyone else** in first-century Judaea.
Moondoggy
2017-04-30 22:37:01 UTC
The Romans didn't mention the country of Judea, it's various kings, its high priests, its governing councils, or the Roman prefect who was dispatched to the country to quell a growing rebelling in the early first century. What on earth makes you think that they would mention a Jewish peasant who was not historically significant in his own lifetime?



Here's the thing. In academic circles, there is no debate over the existence of the historical Jesus. However, there are plenty of non-scholars on the internet who would love to convince you that he did not exist. One of the less scrupulous tactics that they use is to claim that "the Romans kept detailed records, and yet there is no record of Jesus."



That is unscrupulous because all of the official records maintained by the Roman state are now lost, most of them having been destroyed during the sack of Rome by Aleric in 410 AD. We know that the Romans kept detailed records because ancient sources tell us that the Romans kept detailed records. But very, very few of those official records have survived.



Outside of official records, the Romans were pathologically unconcerned with the far-flung provinces of the empire. Their historians typically focus exclusively on Rome and the actual Romans, and ignore everything else. We know about the history of the Levant in the first century because of Josephus, who was a Jew lucky enough to fall under the patronage of Vespasian before he became the Emperor. That gave Josephus a unique platform to publish a record of the Jewish people. But the only reason that the writings of Josephus survived is because Christians scribes considered him to be an important source of information on the world of Jesus.



Outside of Josephus and the New Testament, no other contemporary authors mention Judea and Galilee, the Sanhedrin, etc. Most conspicuous is the complete absence of any reference to Pontius Pilate, a Roman senator who was sent to Judea a few years before the crucifixion of Jesus in order to quell a rebellion.



You call Jesus a "rabble-rouser." According to the synoptic Gospels, Jesus only had a few followers at any given time, only preached in Galilee for about 9 months, and was unceremoniously executed within a week of arriving in Jerusalem. He was not a "rabble-rouser" by any means. Compare Jesus to the rabble-rousers who rioted against Herod over the use of the Roman eagle on the Temple Mount, leading to a rebellion that required Pontius Pilate to personally relocate to Judea and take direct control of the government from Herod in an event that, according to Josephus, resulted in the deaths of more than 10,000 Jewish males in a single day.



None of that was mentioned by Roman sources. We know that Pilate existed and that he was the Prefect of Judea because they found his name and title inscribed on his seat at the Roman Senate. All other information is gleaned from Josephus.



Similarly, (non-official) Roman records do not mention Herod or his sons. They do not mention the Sanhedrin or the High Priest. Most of them don't even mention the countries of Judea, Galilee, or Samaria. So, when you see people invoke Roman records, be aware that they are either intentionally or unintentionally misleading you.
?
2017-04-30 22:32:59 UTC
Most records are destroyed over time. There are several trusted surviving sources of Roman history - one of which are the records of Tacitus - a Roman senator and historian who was born within the lifetime of Christ's Apostles and presumably had access to documentation no longer available to us. Tacitus briefly refers to Jesus and His crucifixion by Pontius Pilot in the context of Nero trying to pin the Great Roman Fire on Christians.



This record is highly critical of Christianity; describing it as an "evil" "mischievous superstition", "hideous and shameful". This negative characterisation discounts any overt possibility that the author was sympathetic to Christianity (a claim often used to undermine some other sources of information).
romans116
2017-04-30 21:53:42 UTC
They did......
anonymous
2017-04-30 21:39:46 UTC
contemporary annals from :cough mumble cough: AD mention a well known Chrestos, king of the toothpastes
?
2017-04-30 21:38:03 UTC
They did. You are listening to too much gobbledygook from atheists......
Nick the Greek
2017-04-30 21:35:59 UTC
One of the more accurate historians of that time, Roman Tacitus, recorded a man of the first century named Chrestus, which translates "Christ", who suffered under Pontius Pilate during the reign of Tiberius. And the chief secretary to Emperor Hadrian, Suetonius, wrote of a man who lived during the first century named Chrestus, or, Christ, as well (Annals 15.44). Not getting into a debate as there are plenty of historical manuscripts/records..best wishes
?
2017-04-30 21:30:36 UTC
when you say 'roman records' what exactly do you mean ?
anonymous
2017-04-30 21:30:10 UTC
Jews a fly in the ointment.

Pilate died a horrible death.



Notice media black outs today!! All our videos, much is hidden.

Faje news.

Ppl hide embarrassment.

They FAILED.



This ALWAYS HAPPENS, you deny truth, block it out.

But Jesus existed.



But 'they' are working to GET RID of youtube if it's TRUTH,

so not long now.



Josephus recorded.

What's AMAZING? There ARE records!!



Lots of fires, whole libraries burnt.

Jesus is historical.



Note that the recent...very recent trend is REMOVE Jesus, say/'Prove!'...

did not exist.



Very LITTLE evidence comparatively for others around Jesus' time?

Yet I have never read they did not exist?

A lot of accounts, people, places, disciples killed for Jesus.

Maybe work on Paul not existing?



https://youtu.be/E97DOGZ6Jvk
anonymous
2017-04-30 21:27:54 UTC
because jesus christ never existed.
anonymous
2017-04-30 21:27:52 UTC
because Jesus was made up in the 4th century


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