Who Was Josephus? (And What He Wrote About Jesus)
Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article belong to the author and do not necessarily match my own. - Dr. Bart D. Ehrman
The name Flavius Josephus always reminds me of my first encounter with him and his writings. In the first lecture of my graduate course on Early Christianity, a fierce debate emerged between my professor and one of the students about the importance of Josephus' testimony in establishing the historicity of Jesus.
The intensity of that discussion underscored the pivotal role Josephus plays in the study of Early Christianity and the broader field of ancient history.
Flavius Josephus, a name that stands at the crossroads of Judaism and early Christianity, offers a unique perspective on the tumultuous era that saw the rise of both these faiths against the backdrop of Roman dominion. Born into a priestly Jewish family in the first century C.E., Josephus found himself amid political upheaval, war, and cultural transformation.
This article aims to shed light on the life of Josephus, delving into his birth, upbringing, and the dramatic turn of events that led him to adopt Roman citizen
Railroaded
American historian Richard White is the Margaret Byrne Professor of American History at Stanford University. He is a leading scholar of the American West, Native American history, and environmental history. White’s writing and research have earned him the MacArthur Fellowship, a Guggenheim Fellowship, the Parkman Prize, and other awards. He is currently at work on a new volume in the Oxford History of the United States to cover Reconstruction, the rise of American industry, and the development of the West.
Also by Richard White
Remembering Ahanagran: Storytelling in a Family’s Past
The Organic Machine: The Remaking of the Columbia River
The Middle Ground: Indians, Empires, and Republics in the Great Lakes Region,
“It’s Your Misfortune and None of My Own”: A New History of the American West
The Roots of Dependency: Subsistence, Environment and Social Change among the Choctaws, Pawnees, and Navajos
Land Use, Environment, and Social Change: The Shaping of Island County, Washington,
The Frontier in American Culture: Essays by Richard White and Patricia Nelson Limerick (edited by James R. Grossman)
The Native Americans: An Illustrated History (with Peter
Remembering Ahanagran: A History of Stories
Stories and what White calls “history” – the past as revealed by the written record – are both forms of evidence. Slaughter summarizes how stories complement historical fact:
The stories are true to the memories, to the emotions, to the order that the teller makes of her life. They are not White’s “history,” which has a different chronology, trajectory, and, sometimes, causality. They are not the same stories told by newspapers, census records, and o
Vine & Branches
He was born Yosef ben Matityahu in AD He was a member of the Jewish religious class who later became a military commander in the wars against Rome.
Later, he became a Roman prisoner and then a Roman citizen. He took a Roman name and became one of the world's most read historians.
His name was Flavius Josephus.
And we're still talking about him two thousand years after he was born.
Read on below, or check out the video version if you’re so inclined.
Josephus is most well known for two books. The first is The Jewish War.
It’s his firsthand account of the Jewish revolt against the Roman Empire in 66 AD. And the resulting war fought against Rome under generals Vespasian and Titus.
According to one historian, it is “…perhaps the most influential non-biblical text of Western history.”
If you're like me, you might not have grown up knowing that this war was a big deal.
Judea somehow seemed like some overlooked Roman backwater. But the Jewish War stretched from 66 - 73 AD. It required more than twice as many Roman soldiers as the Roman Parthian Wars of 58 - 63 AD.
The Arch of Titus still stands today commemorating Rome’s ultimate victory. A vic
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