8: Non-Christian historical accounts.
There is actually quite a bit of evidence about the existence of Jesus in such ancient sources as Tacitus, Pliny the Younger, Josephus, the Babylonian Talmud, and the Greek satirist Lucian of Samosata. They all mention various aspects of Jesus’ life.
Josephus, the Jewish historian, wrote a history in the year 93 that mentions that Jesus was crucified and appeared alive afterwards to his followers. Though the text is questioned by some scholars, there are multiple versions that retain the essential fact of Jesus dying and then somehow resurfacing, alive.
Tacitus mentions Jesus also, citing his crucifixion as having proved unable to stop the “superstition” of Christianity.
However the debate about the various texts turns out, Tacitus’ point is a good one. Why wouldn’t Jesus’ crucifixion end his religious movement? Because he rose from the dead.
