Quote:So dozens of people just woke up one morning believing that a man called Yĕhōšûă or Iēsous or Iesus had wandered around Palestine?
Simplistic.
These things evolve. Lacking any evidence for xtianity in the first century we look to the second century where we start to see both xtians and Greco-Romans mentioning it.
The notion of a wandering preacher in pre-70 AD Judaea would have been an insult to the institution of the temple. Remember that the whole point of Judaism, as written by the priests who were the prime beneficiaries of the system, was that ALL worship was centered in the temple. The people showed up, paid their temple-tax and the priests conducted the sacrifices. There is none of this "study the torah" shit. That came later after Roman urban renewal left the temple a pile of rubble.
By the time we start to see definitive xtian writings it is the mid 2d century and by that time it is in areas outside of Judaea. The Jews in fact, after 3 rebellions, were decidedly persona non grata in the Roman empire and their primary role in the tale is to be the "bad guys."
So, no. This shit did not start overnight. It was embellished over a long period of time.
