Jesus - the Historical Jesus

The term Historical Jesus is the person, Jesus of Nazareth, whom we can study using historical sources rather than religious ones. The majority of historians who study this period argue strongly that Jesus was a real person who lived in Judea (now part of Palestine and Israel) in the 1st century CE, and his life and teachings form the basis for the religion of Christianity.

There is, as we would expect from historians studying a period of time approximately 2,000 years ago, disagreement over many of the details of Jesus’ life.

There are, however two events that are agreed upon.

Baptism

There is good historical evidence of Jesus’ baptism. The 1st century Roman-Jewish historian Josephus wrote about John the Baptist in his book The Antiquities of the Jews in around 95 CE (only sixty years after Jesus’ death). Josephus described both John’s preaching, his work of baptising people, and his execution by King Herod. Historians argue that as there was no reason for the Gospel writers to make-up the story of the baptism of Jesus by John, and there is independent evidence that John was baptising people at the time of Jesus, that the Biblical account of Jesus’ baptism is true.

Crucifixion

Historians agree upon the Crucifixion of Jesus. In his book Annals (written in around 116 CE), the Roman historian Tacitus wrote:

• Christus … suffered the extreme penalty during the reign of Tiberius at the hands of one of our procurators, Pontius Pilatus.

Tacitus went on to describe the rise of Christianity following the death of Jesus, calling it a “superstition”. Nonetheless, the Crucifixion is counted as historical event, not superstition.

Josephus also referred to the Crucifixion. However, historians are unsure of the authenticity of this part of his work. Many historians believe that there is a core of historical truth, but that the text has been added to later in order to lend further support to the belief that Jesus was the Messiah. Here is the text:

• About this time there lived Jesus, a wise man, if indeed one ought to call him a man. For he was one who performed surprising deeds and was a teacher of such people as accept the truth gladly. He won over many Jews and many of the Greeks. He was the Christ. And when, upon the accusation of the principal men among us, Pilate had condemned him to a cross, those who had first come to love him did not cease. He appeared to them spending a third day restored to life, for the prophets of God had foretold these things and a thousand other marvels about him. And the tribe of the Christians, so called after him, has still to this day not disappeared.

Summary

Studying the Historical Jesus helps distinguish between historical facts and religious belief. Historians generally accept that Jesus lived in 1st-century Judea, was baptised by John the Baptist, and was crucified under Pontius Pilate. Other details of his life and teachings are debated, but these events provide a foundation for understanding the development of Christianity.