How many sources are there about the life of Jesus?

Question

How many different people talk about Jesus in a historical sense?
(Are they all now found in the Bible?)

I just looked up Josephus. It seems he was born in 37AD, isnt that too late to be considered a source?

Tacitus, was born in the year 56. But I will definitely check out Gnostic Gospels, sounds interesting.

Answer 1

Great question.

I know that there are a BUNCH of gospels out there, not just the four in the Bible. Check out the Nag Hammadi Library (this is a book of the actual non-Canonical Gospels and I highly recommend purchasing it. If you can't find it at your local book store, try Powels.com http://www.powells.com/s?kw=nag+hammadi&x=0&y=0).

But, beyond that I don't know. Is there actually historical evidence for Jesus that are not Christian religious texts? Some scholars have even made the radical suggestion that Jesus might not ever have existed. It's possible that the whole thing was just a myth created by early Christians. Some of them may have seen the ressurrection in very symbolic terms: a form of mysticism about the death and ressurrection of the soul.[1]

Answer 2

Well, there are probably several who discuss Jesus in a historical sense. However, there are no contemporary sources talking about Jesus. The earliest mention, depending on how one dates Mark, is around 70CE, about 40 years after his death.

As far as extra-bibical sources, there are very, very few. The Josephus text is suspect, as he discusses Jesus being the messiah, which would not be something a Jew would say. There's another source that mentions Chrestus. The problem is that this source places Chrestus firmly in Rome only. Jesus never went to Rome, so far as the bible is concerned. Other sources mention the Christians, but that is a far different question than whether there was a historical Jesus. Contemporary maps don't even show the existence of a town called Nazareth at that time or for some time after the supposed time of the gospel narrative.

If one looks at the question of a historical Jesus from a totally objective standpoint (frankly, it doesn't matter to me if he existed or not), there is no evidence he actually existed. Not even Paul mentions what many would consider important events, such as the virgin birth.

I also see a lot of mention of the gnostic gospels, but those were not written to be historical records. Many mention Jesus as being nothing more than a spirit. They also deny the existence of the old testament god, claiming he was a petty deity who was harsh and cruel. Gnosticism (in a general sense) is a very different animal than what we consider Christianity today and must be studied as a different subject, not as an indicator of historical events.

Answer 3

There are Josephus, Tacitus, and the Gnostic Gospels.

Answer 4

The only existing sources about the life of Jesus are not included in the bible. The Catholic church destroyed all manuscripts in about 350 AD so no one would know the truth.

Answer 5

Hah, thats a riot, The budhists have more ON Jesus than christianity! and the hindu's have more than the budhists.

a good starter book is called the childhood of Jesus by Glenn kimball. http://www.applejax.com/kimball_college/hidden-stories-of-the-childhood-of-jesus-p-96.html

Answer 6

You may want to read the "Life of Jesus Christ And Biblical Revelations" (sale at $60, TAN Books). 'One of the most extraordinary books ever published. These four volumes record the visions of the famous 19th-century Catholic mystic, Ven. Anne Catherine Emmerich, a nun who was privileged to behold innumerable events of biblical times, going back all the way to the creation of the world.'

Answer 7

The Bible & the Qur'an

Answer 8

all of the resources that are accurate are in the bible. the romans weren't concerned with judea and did a lousy job of record keeping there. go with the bible you can't miss

Answer 9

WELL YES, BUT IF YOU LOOK BACK DURING ALEXANDER THE GREATS TIME MOST HISTORICAL THINGS MATCH UP WITH THE BIBLE