(March 31, 2010 at 5:39 pm)Minimalist Wrote: This excerpt is from Josephus, The Jewish War, Book VI, Chapter 5.3.........
........uttering the very same presages he gave up the ghost.
Minimalist - what a marvellous extract! Is it verbatim or have you edited it? I had always thought that Josephus never mentioned Jesus but that seems to be a root of the myth doesn't it.
I don't have Josephus' works to refer to but a bit of quick research on his father's name, 'Ananus', found this interesting text as well.
Quote: Josephus allegedly describes the death of James as follows:
Ananus, who, as we have told you already, took the high priesthood, was a bold man in his temper, and very insolent; he was also of the sect of the Sadducees, who are very rigid in judging offenders, above all the rest of the Jews, as we have already observed; when, therefore, Ananus was of this disposition, he thought he had now a proper opportunity [to exercise his authority]. Festus was now dead, and Albinus was but upon the road; so he assembled the sanhedrim of judges, and brought before them the brother of Jesus, who was called Christ, whose name was James, and some others, [or, some of his companions]; and when he had formed an accusation against them as breakers of the law, he delivered them to be stoned: but as for those who seemed the most equitable of the citizens, and such as were the most uneasy at the breach of the laws, they disliked what was done; they also sent to the king [Agrippa], desiring him to send to Ananus that he should act so no more, for that what he had already done was not to be justified; nay, some of them went also to meet Albinus, as he was upon his journey from Alexandria, and informed him that it was not lawful for Ananus to assemble a sanhedrim without his consent. Whereupon Albinus complied with what they said, and wrote in anger to Ananus, and threatened that he would bring him to punishment for what he had done; on which king Agrippa took the high priesthood from him, when he had ruled but three months, and made Jesus, the son of Damneus, high priest.
Get the story tellers to repeat and hone this lot for a few decades, conflate it with the Mithras tales and you have the start of Christianity! Could it really be that simple?
