Reply #174: Well, my usual rant... [View All]

[onager]

...by popular demand. Or at least a couple of PM's...

Some years ago, I noticed that whenever the historicity of Jesus was mentioned, somebody popped right up with a statement like: "Of course he is. Famous historians like Flavius Josephus mentioned him MANY TIMES." (The emphasis is important.)

I saw the same statement when I picked up many "history" books from the Religion section at Borders or B&N.

Hmm. OK. I went and got myself the Collected Writings of Josephus...the volume edited and released by those atheists at Fuller Theological Seminary.

And what do I find when I look up this "irrefutable" proof that Jesus existed?

One paragraph. Yes, ONE! And that is weirdly out of context. It's sandwiched in between a pretty exciting account of Pontius Pilate crushing a riot, and some hot gossip about the Jews of Rome hanging around the Temple Of Isis. No wonder it's out of context--nobody mentioned it before the 4th century, when it was probably inserted by Eusebius.

Rather than go on and on, I urge anyone interested in this to do what I did: don't listen to self-proclaimed experts in print or on the net.

Get the book, read, and draw your own conclusions.

Josephus is not all that trustworthy in some areas. He almost equalled the Bu$h family in generating propaganda about himself.

But is he worth reading? Oh, you bet! His descriptions of Jerusalem under siege are incredible.

Religious fanatics ranting on street corners and urging young men to sacrifice themselves in suicide attacks; the Hebrew defenders luring Roman soldiers into a trap and roasting them to death on a Temple portico; the Romans returning the favor by crucifying 500 prisoners at a time outside the city walls; and then the final apocalyptic Roman attacks on Fortress Antonia and the Temple itself.

BTW, like most Judeans of the time, Josephus had a REAL grudge against King Herod and his entire family. The Herods really get raked over the coals, and Josephus noted every sin of omission or commission, no matter how small.

One thing he doesn't mention, though--the mass slaughter of the infants when Herod was trying to whack Baby Jesus.

You'll only find that yarn told in one place--the Gospel Of Matthew.