Jesus did not rise from the dead -- My debate opening statement.

[Pat Mustard]

The oldest extant copy of thr passage originally read "Chestus" and "Chrestians". Chrestus was a common name or title in late Antiquity given to thousands of holy men and at least one king of Pontus.

That may be, but there is little doubt that there was only one "Pontius Pilate," and it is clear from the context, that Tacitus was referring to Jesus.  I am not aware of any scholar who is on the faculty of a University anywhere in the World who disagrees with Tacitus' clear reference to Jesus.

How is it clear from context? Tacitus gave no contxt to describe the group. And given that the original person was Chrestus it could point to any number of religious cults.

At best all the passage does is give confirmation that at the time that Tacitus was writing (remember he was very partisan against the Julio-Claudians as a Republican, so imputing that Nero went apeshit against a group over Rome burning, for which we've no contemporary records of happening would be a good way of blemishing an enemy) christianity was an active cult in Rome, large enough to be noted. Me I think it is far more likely that all the passage means is that some christian scholar doctored it in order to give the Roman diocese an undeserved authority when Rome was battling Constantinople for primacy after the Eastern patriarchates fell to the Arabs.