Are there any Roman documents which mention Christ in the time of his existence?

Answer 1

There's only one Roman document that refers to Jesus and this is the writing of Josephus in his works the Antiquities of the Jews which some modern historians now agree was a later insertion. There are no documents that date from Jesus' actual ministry. Let's not forget that his ministry lasted barely three years, and so in that time communications were poorer than today, and much of what Jesus did and said (with some exceptions) were orally transmitted. Even the gospel accounts were written a decade or two after the events, mainly by Jewish eyewitnesses (John, Matthew), one by a non-Jewish scholar and doctor commissioned to do so after interviewing eyewitnesses (Luke), and one by an early Jewish Christian (Mark). However, there are several Roman documents that mention Christ and Christians either directly or in passing that were written shortly after the events: Tacitus (56-117AD) a senator and Roman historian wrote in his Annals rather deogatively about the Christians and specifically about Jesus as the Christ ('Christus'): "Nero fastened the guilt of starting the blaze and inflicted the most exquisite tortures on a class hated for their abominations, called Christians [Chrestians] by the populace. Christus, from whom the name had its origin, suffered the extreme penalty during the reign of Tiberius at the hands of one of our procurators, Pontius Pilatus, and a most mischievous superstition, thus checked for the moment, again broke out not only in Judaea, the first source of the evil, but even in Rome, where all things hideous and shameful from every part of the world find their centre and become popular."

Josephus (37-100AD) was a Jewish historian (not a Roman), but, like Paul, had Roman Citizenship. There has been some controversy regarding Josephus' inclusion of this passage, mostly by sceptics and atheists wanting to 'disprove' the existence of Christ, as some sceptics claimed it was 'added' later. However, these claims have been categorically discredited by Roman scholars, as so many ancient copies of Josephus' works exist and textual criticism and the style of Latin used corrroborates Josephus' writing of this passage. In his Antiquities he wrote: "About this time came Jesus, a wise man, if indeed it is appropriate to call him a man. For he was a performer of paradoxical feats, a teacher of people who accept the unusual with pleasure, and he won over many of the Jews and also many Greeks. He was the Christ. When Pilate, upon the accusation of the first men amongst us, condemned him to be crucified, those who had formerly loved him did not cease to follow him, for he appeared to them on the third day, living again, as the divine prophets foretold, along with a myriad of other marvellous things concerning him. And the tribe of the Christians, so named after him, has not disappeared to this day."

Pliny the Younger was a Roman governor who wrote to Caesar about the Christians c112AD but not specifically about Christ, although Christ is mentioned in passing: "Those who denied that they were or had been Christians, when they invoked the gods in words dictated by me, offered prayer with incense and wine to your image, which I had ordered to be brought for this purpose together with statues of the gods, and moreover cursed Christ - none of which those who are really Christians, it is said, can be forced to do - these I thought should be discharged. Others named by the informer declared that they were Christians, but then denied it, asserting that they had been but had ceased to be, some three years before, others many years, some as much as twenty-five years. They all worshiped your image and the statues of the gods, and cursed Christ."

Suetonius (69-140AD) wrote of riots that broke out as a result of Romans attacking Christians, who were then expelled from Rome by the Emperor Claudius: "As the Jews were making constant disturbances at the instigation of Chrestus (Christ), he (Claudius) expelled them from Rome".

Thallus wrote a history of the Trojan War and wrote of the earthquake that hit the area of Judaea as Jesus died - exactly as recorded in the gospels at the same time: "On the whole world there pressed a most fearful darkness; and the rocks were rent by an earthquake, and many places in Judea and other districts were thrown down."

This darkness Thallus, in his third book of History, calls (as appears to me without reason) an eclipse of the sun. Lucian- a second century Roman satirist wrote disparagingly: "The Christians, you know, worship a man to this day - the distinguished personage who introduced their novel rites, and was crucified on that account… You see, these misguided creatures start with the general conviction that they are immortal for all time, which explains the contempt of death and voluntary self-devotion which are so common among them; and then it was impressed on them by their original lawgiver that they are all brothers, from the moment that they are converted, and deny the gods of Greece, and worship the crucified sage, and live after his laws."

Other writers include Celsus, Pontius Pilatehimself (in the Acts of Pilate - although these lack providence), Tertullian, and many others. Finally one must never forget St Paul. Paul was a Jew like Josephus but, like Josephus was also a Roman Citizen from his birthright, and therefore, like Josephus, must be classed as a Roman writer in the same way. Paul left us a wealth of writing that constitutes the bulk of the New Testament. In his writings descriptions and dates etc have been corroborated by archaeological and historical evidence to confirm their providence. The writings consist primarily of letters sent to various churches and individuals around the mediterranean area that teach, guide, admonish and encourage the fledgling churches there.

Answer 2

Almost, the most popular mention is in book 15, chapter 44 of Annals (116) by the senator and historian Tacitus in his narrative of the fire during Nero's reign. It is considered by historians to be an independent Roman source regarding Christians, whom he said were convicted of misanthropy and hated for their abominations. He mentions Christus as the founder of Christianity, but such is a title and not the proper name Jèsu Nazòræu. There is no contemporary record of him. There was one such record of Pontius Pilate on the Pilate Stone, dated 26-37, but it was a dedication and not a history, and there are no Roman records of his contact with a Jesus. Nor was there a Roman or independent record of a Nazareth until 221 by the Christian convert Julius Africanus but next-hand by claimed relatives of Jesus.

Flavius Josephus, although not a Roman, wrote under Roman patronage, and mentioned Jesus in chapter 18 of his Antiquities.