The Shadow of the Galilean

There has been much historical debate over the years about whether Jesus actually existed. Today, most scholars agree that a man named Jesus did exist in the first-century Herodian Kingdom (ancient Palestine and Lebanon), and that Christianity is based upon the life and teachings of this man. However, there is little consensus among historians on Jesus; without clear historical records separate from religious texts, it is difficult to paint an accurate picture of his life. Historians do agree that Jesus was crucified by the Romans in either 30 CE or 33 CE (sources vary) as there are accounts of Jesus or someone fitting Jesus’s description being crucified not just in the New Testament, but also in some secular sources, including the histories written by Josephus and Tacitus. The fact that these sources are non-Christian lends additional credence to the idea that there was a real historical Jesus. Archaeological research has confirmed that Romans used crucifixion as a method of execution at this time. 

Many religious and secular scholars have researched Jesus, including Gerd Theissen and the scholars who attended the famous Jesus Seminar in 1985. Participants in this academic quest highlight the importance of using historical sources as well as religious ones to determine the truth about Jesus’s life.