Quick Summary ↬ The historicity of Jesus is no cause for debate. Secular and Christian experts agree, without a doubt, that Jesus is NOT a myth; Jesus truly existed.
When debating Christianity, it is common to address the issue of its historicity. Lacking the correct references that cite all the historical texts and the comments of expert historians (both Christian and secular) is a shame. Those citations are the strong points that must be handy to prove that Christianity and Jesus are not fictional stories!
As we shall see, there is no room for debate. Secular and non-secular scholars and historians agree on the historicity of Jesus and Christianity. When a new article, YouTube video, or a person puts into question the historicity or reliability of the WHOLE story of Christians, you will now have one piece to share and use as a reference. We update this article and index almost all quotes and citations that prove Christianity’s historicity.
You may use this article as a handy reference to prove the historicity of Jesus and Christianity instead of relying on saying, “they say that […],” or, “I read it somewhere,” which is usually quickly dismissed.
Historians Agree on the Historicity of Christianity and Jesus
As promised, here are some of the best quotes from SECULAR historians. We will refrain from quoting Christian historians because using secular quotes avoids issues with dismissal due to religious bias and acts as the final nail in the coffin of this issue.
We will start with Bart Ehrman, the author of ’Did Jesus Exist?: The Historical Argument for Jesus of Nazareth. A quick search reveals that he considers himself to be “an agnostic atheist after struggling with the philosophical problems of evil and suffering.”
This is not an issue for scholars of antiquity. There is no scholar in any college or university who teaches classics, ancient history, new testament, early Christianity, who doubts that Jesus existed. He is abundantly attested in early sources. Early and independent sources indicate that Jesus certainly existed. Paul is an eyewitness to both Jesus’ disciple Peter and the brother of Jesus. Like, I’m sorry. Atheists have done themselves a disservice by jumping on the bandwagon of mythicism because it makes you look foolish to the outside world.
And here is his view concerning so-called experts who deny the historicity of Jesus:
There is not a single mythicist who teaches New Testament or Early Christianity or even Classics at any accredited institution of higher learning in the Western world. And it is no wonder why. These views are so extreme and so unconvincing to 99.99 percent of the real experts.“
[…]
Virtually every sane historian on the planet — Christian, Jewish, Muslim, pagan, agnostic, atheist, what have you — has come to conclude based on a range of compelling historical evidence. […] Whether we like it or not, Jesus certainly existed.
Next, we cite some quotes from Raymond Joseph Hoffmann, a historian who describes himself as a religious skeptic.
Embarrassing–really–because these same folk who hold up the scientific method to religionists want to walk past the complex evidence of textual and linguistic studies as though it weren’t there.
[…]
Only in the age of instant misinformation and net-attack is this kind of idiocy possible. Only in the atheist universe where the major premise–“religion is a lie, so the study of religion is a study of lying”—infects everything is this kind of lunacy possible. Unfortunately, we have Richard Dawkins to thank for the original formulation of that premise.
[..]
We know more about Jesus than we know about a great many figures that we think existed, from far fewer sources—often from faint allusions in the work of only one ancient writer. Did Diogenes exist? Cincinnatus? Outside the gospels, Pontius Pilate is virtually unknown except for a reference in Tacitus and mentions in Philo and Josephus, if we discount the so-called Pilate stone.
Notice the tone of the secular historians when discussing the historicity of Jesus:
Frankly, I know of no ancient historian or biblical historian who would have a twinge of doubt about the existence of a Jesus Christ - the documentary evidence is simply overwhelming.
We could include many quotes from Christian historians, but the secular ones are more than enough to prove our point.
Instead, we will focus only on one quote from Paul Maier, a professor of Ancient History at Western Michigan University.
We use this quote because it touches on an essential point that we will further study in a future article: The divine nature of Jesus.
Nothing more is necessary in view of the overpowering evidence that Jesus of Nazareth was no myth, but a totally historical figure who truly lived.
Skeptics should focus instead on whether or not Jesus was more than a man. That, at least, could evoke a reasonable debate among reasonable inquirers, rather than a pointless discussion with sensationalists who struggle to reject the obvious.
Before We Begin
On the Dating System
BC is an abbreviation for “Before Christ,” and AD means “Anno Domino.”
BC 1 means one year before the birth of Christ, which is immediately followed by AD 1, the year Christ was born (there is no 0 BC or AD 0).
Jesus’ crucifixion falls circa AD 30. Therefore, a source dated AD 50 means it existed 20 years after the crucifixion.
The monk Dionysius Exiguus devised this system based on the CLOSEST estimate one can reach of Jesus Christ’s birth date.
Common/Current Era (CE) and Before Common Era (BCE) come from an alternative naming system, replacing AD and BC. This system eliminates religious references from the dating system.
On Forgeries and Insertions
When scribes used to transmit texts by copying or translating, they were susceptible to changing the original works by either inserting or changing some of their contents (Christian Interpolation).
Their intentions may have been pure, but the credibility diminishes the more changes exist.
Experts can infer such changes by studying the writing style of the author and by comparing different copies of the same work.
We have to view the different texts as a whole, which means that it would be absurd to dismiss all the good historical references just because there was a minority that suffered a loss of credibility. It is especially true when many texts are also early and holds on their own.
Out of all the references we discuss from different secular authors, only Josephus’ extracts suffered such a fate. We mention it only to educate the reader about its existence, and we don’t use it as conclusive evidence to support our conclusion.
Early Secular Sources Mentioning Jesus Christ
Roman Historians
We will cite the works of three Roman Historians who chronicled events during the reign of various Roman emperors where Christ or Christians were mentioned.
Their works are regarded as authentic proofs of the historicity of Christianity:
- The chances of interpolations in their works are extremely unlikely (by studying the writing style and words used)
- It is improbable, if not impossible, to have another person named “Jesus” who is also the Christ (or another Christ other than Jesus), whose events align with the timeline of Roman historical events
Pliny the Younger
Gaius Plinius Caecilius Secundus (or Pliny the Younger) was a lawyer, author, and magistrate of Ancient Rome c. AD 61–c. AD 113.
He exchanged letters with the Roman Emperor Trajan between 109 and 111 CE. Most notable is Letter 96 from the preserved Latin collection known as “Epistulae X” (or Book 10), detailing his concerns over the accusations against the Christians.
Having never been present at any trials of the Christians, I am unacquainted with the method and limits to be observed either in examining or punishing them.
[…] the method I have observed towards those who have been denounced to me as Christians is this: I interrogated them whether they were Christians; if they confessed it I repeated the question twice again, adding the threat of capital punishment; if they still persevered, I ordered them to be executed. For whatever the nature of their creed might be, I could at least feel no doubt that contumacy and inflexible obstinacy deserved chastisement. There were others also possessed with the same infatuation, but being citizens of Rome, I directed them to be carried thither. […]“
For an in-depth article on the matter and the emperor’s reply, see Pliny the Younger on Christians.
Tacitus
Publius Cornelius Tacitus (56-120 AD) was a Roman senator regarded as one of modern scholars’ most significant Roman historians c. AD 56–c. 120.
He composed ‘The Annals,’ considered one of the earliest authentic secular historical records to mention Christ.
In his work, Tacitus describes Nero’s persecution of the Christians.
Therefore, to scotch the rumour, Nero substituted as culprits, and punished with the utmost refinements of cruelty, a class of men, loathed for their vices, whom the crowd styled Christians. Christus, the founder of the name, had undergone the death penalty in the reign of Tiberius, by sentence of the procurator Pontius Pilatus, and the pernicious superstition was checked for a moment, only to break out once more, not merely in Judaea, the home of the disease, but in the capital itself, where all things horrible or shameful in the world collect and find a vogue. First, then, the confessed members of the sect were arrested; next, on their disclosures, vast numbers were convicted, not so much on the count of arson as for hatred of the human race. And derision accompanied their end: they were covered with wild beasts’ skins and torn to death by dogs; or they were fastened on crosses, and, when daylight failed were burned to serve as lamps by night. Nero had offered his Gardens for the spectacle, and gave an exhibition in his Circus, mixing with the crowd in the habit of a charioteer, or mounted on his car. Hence, in spite of a guilt which had earned the most exemplary punishment, there arose a sentiment of pity, due to the impression that they were being sacrificed not for the welfare of the state but to the ferocity of a single man.
Notice that Tacitus did not say that Jesus was a fabrication made by his followers. He clearly states that Jesus Christ, the founder of Christianity, received the death penalty in the reign of Tiberius and under Pontius Pilatus.
If we were to lose all texts from all other authors, the above extract from Tacitus alone is enough to prove the historicity of Jesus.
Suetonius
Gaius Suetonius Tranquillus (c. AD 69–after AD 122) was a Roman historian who wrote during the early Imperial era of the Roman Empire.
He is the author of Lives of the Twelve Caesars, a set of biographies of Roman Emperors, of which, two are of importance to Christians: Nero and Claudius.
Writing about Nero’s various punishments, he mentioned how “Punishment was inflicted on the Christians, a class of men given to a new and mischievous superstition.”
His work is also mentioned by Tertullian, one of the early church fathers of Christianity, who wrote: “We read the lives of the Cæsars: At Rome Nero was the first who stained with blood the rising faith.”
Suetonius also mentions Christians in his writing on Claudius, stating that “Since the Jews constantly made disturbances at the instigation of Chrestus, he expelled them from Rome.”
Other Early Secular Writers
Josephus
Titus Flavius Josephus was a first-century Romano-Jewish historian who was born in Jerusalem. He became an interpreter and enslaved person to the Roman Emperor Vespasian in AD 70.
Among other books, Josephus authored the Antiquities of the Jews (c. AD 94). This book serves as early first-century records of Jewish/Roman history, and we will use it for our following quotes.
Here are the passages that prove the historicity of John the Baptist and James the Just, as widely accepted by experts.
The below passage references James, the Brother of Jesus:
[…] Festus was now dead, and Albinus was but upon the road; so he assembled the sanhedrim of judges, and brought before them the brother of Jesus, who was called Christ, whose name was James, and some others, [or, some of his companions]; and when he had formed an accusation against them as breakers of the law, he delivered them to be stoned.
The below passage references John the Baptist:
[…] Now some of the Jews thought that the destruction of Herod’s army came from God, and that very justly, as a punishment of what he did against John, that was called the Baptist: for Herod slew him, who was a good man, and commanded the Jews to exercise virtue, both as to righteousness towards one another, and piety towards God, and so to come to baptism; for that the washing [with water] would be acceptable to him, if they made use of it, not in order to the putting away [or the remission] of some sins [only], but for the purification of the body; supposing still that the soul was thoroughly purified beforehand by righteousness. Now when [many] others came in crowds about him, for they were very greatly moved [or pleased] by hearing his words, Herod, who feared lest the great influence John had over the people might put it into his power and inclination to raise a rebellion, (for they seemed ready to do any thing he should advise,) thought it best, by putting him to death, to prevent any mischief he might cause, and not bring himself into difficulties, by sparing a man who might make him repent of it when it would be too late. Accordingly he was sent a prisoner, out of Herod’s suspicious temper, to Macherus, the castle I before mentioned, and was there put to death. Now the Jews had an opinion that the destruction of this army was sent as a punishment upon Herod, and a mark of God’s displeasure to him.
Below is the text that references Jesus. This text became a huge subject of controversy, receiving the name Testimonium Flavianum (meaning testimony of Flavius).
Notice that we do not mention this passage as proof of the historicity of Jesus because it is most probably an interpolation by the 4th-century apologist and historian Eusebius, as widely believed by critics.
For digging deeper, refer to Paul L. Mai, Josephus: The Essential Writings, and this wiki link.
[…] 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. He drew over to him both many of the Jews and many of the Gentiles. He was [the] Christ. And when Pilate, at the suggestion of the principal men amongst us, had condemned him to the cross, those that loved him at the first did not forsake him; for he appeared to them alive again the third day; as the divine prophets had foretold these and ten thousand other wonderful things concerning him. And the tribe of Christians, so named from him, are not extinct at this day.
Regardless of how one views the authenticity of the Testimonium Flavianum (wholly discarded, partly discarded, or fully authentic), his works are proof of Christianity’s existence in the early first century.
Through his writings, we infer that John the Baptist and James played an essential role in Christianity at the time; the texts mentioning them are accepted as authentic, not by bloggers and YouTubers, but by expert scholars and historians.
Josephus may not have put as much weight on the story of Jesus as one would have hoped, but it is understandable when taking Josephus’ position and role with the Romans.
Phlegon
Phlegon of Tralles is a formerly enslaved Greek who lived during the 2nd century AD and wrote historical books.
Origen of Alexandria mentions the work of Phlegon (in his Chronicles) that testify how Jesus knew about future events, the occurrence of the earthquake in Bithynia, and the great eclipse of the sun.
Lucian
Lucian of Samosata was a Green/Syrian satirist circa 125 AD. He was known to ridicule religions and beliefs in the paranormal.
He is the author of The Passing of Peregrinus, a letter that describes the death of the cynic philosopher Peregrinus Proteus, who willingly immolated himself on a pyre at the Olympic Games circa 165 AD. In it, Lucian ridicules Christians for their ignorance but respects their sense of morality. This letter is of great importance as it serves as an early pagan reference for Christians.
Celsus
Celsus was a 2nd-century Greek philosopher whose work titled The True Word (c. 175 AD) focused on attacking Christian dogmas and the miracles of Jesus (which he believed were performed by sorcery), as well as dealing with specific stories around Jesus.
His book was banned, which led to its extinction. However, Scholars were able to reconstruct it through the extensive work done by Origen of Alexandria to debate it. Origen’s 8-volume refutation, therefore, served as a reliable source that recounts the ideas in Celsus’ lost book.
Mara Bar
Mara Bar Serapion is a stoic philosopher known for the letter composed to his son in the first century (c. 73 AD) while imprisoned and awaiting execution by the Romans.
In his letter, Mara mentions three wise men (Socrates, Pythagoras, and the “Wise King of the Jews”), the fate that befell them, and the predicament of their oppressors.
Many scholars believe that the wise king of the Jews is a reference to Jesus.
What else can we say, when the wise are forcibly dragged off by tyrants, their wisdom is captured by insults, and their minds are oppressed and without defense? What advantage did the Athenians gain from murdering Socrates? Famine and plague came upon them as a punishment for their crime. What advantage did the men of Samos gain from burning Pythagoras? In a moment their land was covered with sand. What advantage did the Jews gain from executing their wise king? It was just after that their kingdom was abolished. God justly avenged these three wise men: the Athenians died of hunger; the Samians were overwhelmed by the sea and the Jews, desolate and driven from their own kingdom, live in complete dispersion. But Socrates is not dead, because of Plato; neither is Pythagoras, because of the statue of Juno; nor is the wise king, because of the “new law” he laid down.
Thallus
Not much is known about the Samaritan historian called Thallus, and the vast majority of his writings have been lost. His works were later mentioned by Theophilus Bishop of Antioch, and possibly Josephus.
Of importance is the mention of Sextus Julius Africanus. In it, Africanus reflects on Thallus’ mention of the darkness at the time of the crucifixion, stating that the darkness is of miraculous nature since an eclipse cannot occur at Passover when the full moon diametrically opposes the sun.
For more on the matter, see “The Eclipse At Jesus’ Death” in Jesus Outside the New Testament: An Introduction to the Ancient Evidence By Robert Van Voorst, page 20.
Jewish Sources
It is essential not to leave the Jews as proof of Christianity’s authenticity.
Since the Jews did not believe in the divinity of Jesus and wanted to deflate his growing audience, it was in their best interest to prove Jesus wrong. The Jewish leaders attempted to direct their attacks on the miracles of Jesus to prove they were fake, to no avail: the miracles were genuine. Jesus performed miracles on Jews with long-term illnesses and cured them without explanation.
The leaders, offended by Jesus’ claims, attempted to argue their ways through scripture. Jesus accused them of hypocrisy and working for Satan instead of God. After the death of Jesus, we have something exciting offered by Jewish sources, which supports the story in the Bible:
He shall be stoned because he has practiced sorcery and lured Israel to apostasy. Anyone who can say anything in his favor, let him come forward and plead on his behalf. Anyone who knows where he is, let him declare it to the Great Sanhedrin in Jerusalem.
Notice how the quote accused Jesus of being a sorcerer. The Bible states that the Jews witnessed his miracles and claimed he was performing them with the help of Beelzebub (Luke 11:18).
They could have easily denied the authenticity of his miracles, which is the easier option! Instead, they called them sorceries, proving their supernatural attribute.
Heretical Books
Heretical writings may not add any theological value to Christianity. However, they serve as proof of Jesus Christ/early Christianity’s existence.
The Gnostic texts are one such example. Many of the Christian Gnostic texts are written in Coptic, a third-century language used by the Copts, in Roman Egypt, which was later replaced by Arabic. They can be found in ancient manuscripts or codexes in museums around the world. Of importance is the Gospel of Thomas, which is housed in nearly perfect form in its entirety in the Nag Hammadi Codex II in the Coptic Museum. You can visit the Coptic Museum in Old Cairo to witness the largest collection of Egyptian Christian artifacts in the world.
Examples of gnostic texts include:
- The Gospel of Thomas
- The Gospel of Truth
- The Apocryphon of John
- The Treatise on Resurrection
We will dedicate an article for the reader interested in getting to know more about heresies and why were they rejected by ecclesiastical authorities.
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Christian Sources
The Bible
It is common for atheists or agnostics to dismiss the New Testament as a reliable source to prove Christianity’s historicity. However, scholars do not dismiss the Bible as a reliable source, for good reasons:
[…] people do not go out of their way to invent difficulties for a character they have invented. It is clear from the Nativity narratives of the gospels of Matthew and Luke that they were faced with having to explain why Jesus grew up in Galilee if he was born in Bethlehem. Both gospels had to invent rather convoluted means to get Jesus born in Bethlehem in accordance with the messianic prophecy in Micah 5:2, then get him moved to Nazareth. Clearly they were stuck with a real person known to have come from Galilee, when he should have come from Bethlehem. Had they been making Jesus up out of whole cloth, they would simply have said he came from Bethlehem: end of story, no complications. So the evidence for Jesus as a real, historical personage, though meager, is solid.
Textual criticism of the New Testament takes into consideration the writing style, the dating of the material, and the possible forgeries. The viewpoints of the writers, the differences in the narrative, and the variations in the stories told all contribute to asserting the authenticity of the Biblical narrative as an authentic source for the historicity of Christianity.
- Matthew
- Mark
- Luke
- John
- Paul
- Author of Hebrews
- James
- Peter
- Jude
Outside The Bible
After the death of Jesus, the disciples sacrificed their lives in order to spread the Word of God worldwide. Without cars, trains, or fancy methods of transportation, they relied on walking from town to town, using the limited amount of money they had to survive and reveal their stories.
As many were not able to write, they relied on transmitting the information by word of mouth. This led to the birth of many heresies, which was difficult to quickly discern since there was no governing authority to judge the truth of the claims that were circulating. Furthermore, the stories that circulated were subject to the “Chinese Whispers” effect, commonly known as the “Broken Telephone” game or experiment. That is why more emphasis was added to transmitting knowledge about Christianity by writing.
What we ended up with is a rich collection of sources from different writers and locations:
- Clement of Rome
- Ignatius of Antioch
- Polycarp
- Bishop of Smyrna, a disciple of John who was the direct disciple of Jesus
- Irenaeus of Lyons
- A disciple of Polycarp
- Martyrdom of Poly carp
- Didache
- Barnabas
- Shepherd of Hermas
- Fragments of Papias
- Justin Martyr
- Aristides
- Athenagoras
- Theophilus of Antioch
- Quadratus
- Aristo of Pella
- Melito of Sardis
- Diognetus
- Gospel of Peter
- Apocalypse of Peter
- Epistula Apostolorum
