If I recall correctly, Atwill's central thesis was that Rome invented Jesus to pacify the Jews. The chief objection to this is that it is tremendously out of character for Rome to do anything of the sort. Why didn't Rome invent godmen to pacify the Carthaginians or the Galls or the Germanic tribes or the Parthians or...well, any of the dozens of peoples who irritated Rome? Because that simply wasn't in the Roman character. Rome would absorb foreign gods into its own pantheon (by way of identifying native gods with Roman ones), but this wasn't done for pacification. Furthermore, Atwill builds his entire case on little more than coincidence and wishful thinking. It isn't good history, and it's barely passable as fiction.
I agree that the Jesus of the Gospels is largely an invention, but it was an invention of disaffected Jews, not Romans.
Boru
I agree that the Jesus of the Gospels is largely an invention, but it was an invention of disaffected Jews, not Romans.
Boru
‘I can’t be having with this.’ - Esmeralda Weatherwax
