Contemporary Accounts of Julius Caesar?

Question

Reference: http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=AhgRoKo44ecPzmvBDBPWWCbd7BR.;_ylv=3?qid=20071115104635AAVdLiv

I notice that not a single answer (with the exception of a couple of obscure references to coins) provided any specific details as to why anybody actually believed in Caesar or the acts he performed during his lifetime. Overwhelmingly, the answers centered on first-hand contemporary accounts. Of course, the New Testament is composed primarily of first-hand accounts of Jesus' life. So why is it that Christianity is deemed unreasonable and mocked by atheists while they are willing to accept Caesar's life without actually having read any direct evidence of him (since no atheists actually provided any specifics)? And is it true (as the responses suggest) that atheists accept many things as factual without any evidence? Isn't this absolutely contrary to atheists' claims?

st.aliaoftheknife: There are actually four contemporary accounts of Jesus. I'm not discounting contemporary accounts of Julius Caesar. But I noticed that you could not specifically mention one; just that they exist. However, the vast majority of our knowledge of Julius Caesar comes from Plutarch, who was not even one of Caesar's contemporaries.

dude: I'm doing no lumping. I know that many atheists accept Jesus as a historical figure and I don't expect you to accept his divinity. What I do find confusing is why atheists mock Christianity as absurd when it is essentially the acceptance of documented first-hand accounts of events that were predicted in the Old Testament. There is little difference between Christianity, which is a religion based on historical accounts, and the acceptance of the recorded acts of Julius Caesar.

st.aliaoftheknife: If your belief that Caesar exists is based on facts, then you should know the facts BEFORE you assert your belief, shouldn't you? Isn't that what atheism is about? Only believing that of which you have tangible evidence?

Answer 1

Sigh. You have one book.

Do you know Roman history? I do. I'm a geek for roman history of the times of marius to octavian. There are countless letters, books, wills, papers, etc...that all add up to the current knowledge we have today of what occurred during that time. There are sculptures in many countries as was typical at the time to take native temples and turn them into shrines for the current "first man" of rome, or the current consul, or militia golden boy.
Nevermind...you want to make your point without considering the evidence.

Answer 2

Umm... none of the Jesus stories was written until at least 40 years after he supposedly lived. And each story was written by someone with a vested interest in pretending he existed. And it is only one damn book.

Caesar, on the other hand... ummm... are you being serious? What more documentation of a life would you like? Contemporary accounts by friends, enemies, soldiers, Senators, Romans, Egyptians, Parthians, Greeks, chuckle-headed Bible writers, legal documents, sculptures, coins, his imprint in every media source available during his lifetime... we have everything but video.

Answer 3

First of all, you are lumping all atheists into one narrowly defined space.
Second of all, I know plenty of atheists that believe there was a MAN Jesus - but just that he was not the son of god.

Answer 4

Of course it is they believe what they want to believe a lot of them have never even done research but, just say they dont believe

Answer 5

no.