Ten Years Ago: Benedict confirms I am no longer the Supreme Pontiff of the Catholic Church, Benedicts Last Audience: Ten Years After, Roma Locuta Est Considers: Benepapism and the Munus vs. Ministerium (EpisodeVI), Is the Culture of Death creating the Remnant? All rights reserved. The darkness during the crucifixion. 12:40, Matt. He dabbed the sweat from his pallid face and intoned Are you at peace with God? The gospel of Luke mentions that John the Baptist began his ministry in the 15th year of Ceasar Tiberius (Luke 3:1-3). The Historical Jesus. This is a clear Bible prophecy foretelling that God would cause the punishment for our sins to fall upon Jesus. source:http://earthquaketrack.com/il-06-jerusalem/recent. On this day, Christians recall especially that part of the Creed in which we affirm of Jesus Christ: for our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate, he suffered, died and was buried. These things we affirm to be historical facts. I will also point out that the Roman historian Thallius also recorded these events. Check Huffpost. However, the sixth hour in Bithynia is also at the same time as the sixth hour in Jerusalem. I am not convinced by this even though I believe in the darkness over the land when Jesus was crucified. Pure speculation. Then the other speaker, also a minister, stepped forward. 196-7, College Press Publishing Company, 1996., 4 Tertullian, Apologeticus, Chapter 21, 19 cited in Bouw, G. D. (1998, Spring). event bed is another distinctive mixed layer less than one inch thick. Julius Africanus quoted from the Olympiades a section no longer in existence which said this darkening if the sun happened at the time of the full moon. We do however have important sections of Phelgon's work, which are critical in dating the Crucifixion. "In the 4th year of the 202nd Olympiad, there was a great eclipse [Greek EKLEIPSIS] of the Sun, greater than had ever been known before, for at the 6th hour the day was changed into night and the stars were seen in the heavens. This is done carefully in Humphreys book [1]. . Origen, Against Celsus, Book 2.33, Phlegon mentioned the eclipse which took place during the crucifixion of the Lord Jesus Christ, and no other (eclipse); it is clear that he did not know from his sources about any (similar) eclipse in previous times . But it is a challenging issue to unravel. Your email address will not be published. 3) the 4th year of the 202nd Olympiad; being commonly associated with the March 19, 33 CE solar eclipse. 1996. p. 217. . Retrieved November 30, 2006 from [2]. Since Passover took place in the Spring before the Olympics, I think the fourth year of the 202nd Olympiad would be Summer 32 AD to Summer 33 AD. 1 Maier, Paul. Pontius Pilate (Wheaton, Ill.: Tyndale House, 1968), p. 366. Last month: Next month: new 11:37 32/06/26 UTC : 1: 32-06-27/28: Noumenia kata Selene : 2: 32-06-28/29: Agathos Daimon : 3: 32-06-29/30: Athene : 4: 32- . The New Testament records the three-hour darkness during Christs crucifixion (Matthew 27:45, Mark 15:33, Luke 23:4445). Clearly, Peter and his hearers had seen the sun darken. On the subject of unusually long eclipses of the sun, Pliny states the following: Eclipses of the sun also take place which are portentous and unusually long,such asoccurred when Csar the Dictator was slain, and in the war against Antony, the sun remained dim for almost a whole year(Pliny the Elder,Natural History,II, 30) [Italics added]. In light of themassobservation and notoriety of a three hour darkness, it would not have made any sense for the Apostlesin preaching or writing about the truth of Christ to believers and nonbelievers aliketo have mentioned this darkness if it had notreallyhappened. Of all these verses, only Matt. The speaker continued The 53rd chapter of Isaiah, written over 700 years before the birth of Christ, describes the most important aspect of the ministry of Jesus Christ!! The first Olympiad was conducted in 776 BC. (LogOut/ Thus the New Moon is not visible. The maximum duration for a total solar eclipse is seven minutes, not three hours, and at the latitude of Jerusalem the maximum duration is even less. While the actual words used by Thallus no longer survive, the response of Africanus (below) give us a sense of what he must have said: As to His (i.e., Jesus Christ) works severally, and His cures effected upon body and soul, and the mysteries of His doctrine, and the resurrection from the dead, these have been most authoritatively set forth by His disciples and apostles before us. I am more concerned in determining the year than the exact date and day of the week, but it seems you cannot really determine the year confidently without figuring out the exact day and day of the week. TheActs of the Apostlesrecounts Peters words on Pentecost. All Rights Reserved. Phlegon of Tralles, a Greek historian who lived in the second century, has been referenced by Christian apologists for over a thousand years now as confirmation of the events surrounding the Crucifixion. Jesus was born whilst Herod, the Great, was still alive; we know he died in BCE and on 1st April 4BCE. The Date by Deduction 4th year of the 202nd Olympiad. As explained, we believe that the darkness referred to by Phlegon is the same darkness referred to in Matthew 27:45. The Olympiades can be used as a useful means of establishing a time-line. Colin Humphreys estimates that Jesus' ministry began in 30 A.D. About two weeks after the New Moon is the Full Moon, which corresponds to Passover. Is this a powerful confirmation of the events described in the New Testament? The second quote is recorded by Philopon. Thepoint is that thedestruction of the discovered earthquake had to be catastrophic in order to destroy buildings there, which leads to the conclusion that the big one that hit Jerusalem also hit Turkey along the fault line at the same time. Assume Jesus died Friday afternoon about 3 PM as we reckon time today. This earthquake did not center near Jerusalem exactly but it was strong enough to be very noticable in effects at Jerusalem if it did damage in Nicea. The third quote is from Julius Africanus and the last is from Jerome. I have wondered if an astronomical body accounted for some aspects of the Deluge, such tidal effects on the waters. To me it seems the place to start with deduction from all the available information is with John the Baptist. Modern context of the calendar of ancient Olympics would put the 4th year of the 202nd Olympiad at July 32-33AD. For from Nehemiah, who was sent by Artaxerxes to resettle Jerusalem in the 115 th year of the Persian empire, the twentieth year of Artaxerxes, the fourth year of the 83rd Olympiad, until this time, which was the second year of the 202nd Olympiad, the sixteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, there is a total of 475 years. From Friday evening at sunset to Saturday evening at sunset was an entire 24 hour day cycle, so it also counted as a day and a night. We can therefore calculate with great accuracy that the three hour period of darkness, and also the Crucifixion, had to be in the Spring of A.D. 33. I would not always agree with him on some interpretational points but he does well in analyzing the crucifixion date question. The timing of this "eclipse" referred to by Phlegon is similar to the event described in the Gospels. Part II: The Role of the Church, Roma Locuta Est Considers: Benepapism and the Munus vs. Ministerium (EpisodeV), Is the Culture of Death creating the Remnant: Part 1 Declining births and life expectancy, Roma Locuta Est Considers: Benepapism and the Munus vs. Ministerium (EpisodeIV), Roma Locuta Est Considers: Benepapism and the Munus vs. Ministerium (EpisodeIII), 10th Anniversary of Benedict XVIs Renunciation of the Papacy, A Rebuttal of Dr. Mazzas book on Pope Benedicts Resignation, Valid? To home he may gobut, it must be with his tail between his legs. AWESOME I had read so many "time lines" and prophetic explanations. Here, too, we see an Apostle feared not to mention the event precisely because it was already widely known among his readers. GO TO creationanswers.net This is the first of the gospels, written some time between38 and 45 A.D. Even if there was an issue of corruption or inaccuratetranslation of the Phlegon writing, how could the science possibly have been faked when there would have been no way of faking it hundreds of years later without it being obviously exposed? (Sextus Julius Africanus,Fragment 18. The next piece of the puzzle is to determine if Jesus indeed was crucified on a Friday. Archeological study of artifacts or buried structures is helpful but archeologists would often consider an ancient written source to be more important than an artifact because you need to know something to give the artifact a context. Otto Keller, Rerum Naturalium Scriptores Graeci Minores, 1 (Leipzig Teurber, 1877), p. 101., 2 Julius Africanus, Extant Writings, XVIII in The AnteNicene Fathers, ed. He said, "A day and a night are an Onah, and the portion of an Onah is as the whole of it." Moon phase and solar year events are shown on the day in Athens. This year would be AD 29 from Roman historical sources. Then you can go through a process of elimination to to rule out all these years except AD 33. The written testimony from outside the Bible confirms some of the main events, people, and places mentioned in the New Testament. From this brief statement, the skeptic wants to declare victory and go home. The Historical Jesus, pp. Jesus baptism was apparently not long after the beginning of John the Baptist's ministry. 3: 32-07-28/29: Athene : 4: 32- . The fourth year of the 202nd Olympiad I believe would include some of the same year as the 203rd Olympiad but the new Olympiad did not start till the Olympics event took place in the Summer. You yourselves have the account of the world-portent still in your archives. (Tertullian, Apologia 21) (Emphasis added). But why is this significant, if it doesnt even validate darkness during the Crucifixion as referenced in the Gospels? Note that I am oversimplifying a number of calendar complications that are worked out in Humphrey's book. I would say there are a couple oflines of argument that can be used to date the crucifixion. Using the above information we can work out that the period of darkness occurred in 33 AD. We also know from the New Testament that at that time Caiaphas was the Jewish High Priest (Caiaphas is mentioned in Jewish writings) and Pilate was the Roman governor of Judea. There are no surviving records after this date. (see Figure 2 below). earthquake! Some of the students had come just to harass the speakers. He wrote extensively about natural phenomena earthquakes and such. Jerome (4th century) is quoting Phlegon's 13th book which is a translation of a historical chronicle on the 202nd Olympiad by Eusebius. Moon phase and solar year events are shown on the day in Athens. So, it is possible, if not probable, that Jesus was born on 31st March, 4BCE certainly in that March anyhow. This is writing from an early Christian apologist named Jerome. It even mentions buildings collapsing in Nicea, which would be over 1,000 miles Northwest from Jerusalem by land. Sixty thousands people could witness with awe the sun dancing in the sky. Thank you, Ive just been looking for information about this Even if there is speculation on whether this is the correct eclipse referenced, there is only one more that would have been visible by the Persian Gulf and Rome during the Olympiad: http://eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/5MCSEmap/0001-0100/29-11-24.gif. In fact, it is also quite impossible for a solar eclipse to last for 3 hours. This is especially significant I think because no other significant earthquakes turned up in Israel for the entire range of years from 25 to 35 AD. Doing so would only demolish their credibility on allotherpoints of the gospel they hoped to prove about Christ basedsolelyon personal testimony. It would be absurd to think that Peter would have asserted that his hearers had witnessed the darkening of the sun if they in fact had not. This does not necessarily coincide with the Crucifixion darkness, and it doesnt have to. . April 13, 2017 (Steven OReilly) Good Friday approaches. In the verses above, Peter cites a scripture which speaks of various signs which God did by Him, inclusive of thesun being darkenedand the moon turning red. One day it occurred to me that there were physical events that were extraordinary that WOULD most likely be preserved in historyand here are some very awesome references. For example the first Olympiad happened in 776 and the second occurred in 772 BC. Change), You are commenting using your Twitter account. These historians even mention the darkening of the sky and the earthquake which the gospels describe at the time of the crucifixion. However, if the crucifixion were on a Wednesday or Thursday this does not seem to fit the proper timing in the Jewish Passover week. An earthquake occurred in Bythinia . Though it is almost impossible to deny that this strange event truly happened, on the same day our Lord died on the Cross, I strived for years to find a natural astronomical explanation about it but in vain. Matthew 12:40 says that as Jonah was three days and three nights in the fish, Jesus would be dead three days and three nights. Africanus make it rather evident that Thallus was specifically addressing this darkness i.e., the three hour darkness at the time of the Crucifixion and not any other. The Bible is Gods book of love and redemption. With these things in mind, I would like to provide some thoughts on the historicity of one particular event that is said to have occurred on the afternoon Our Lord was crucified. On Marvels consists of "anecdotes culled from sources as diverse as the Greek poet Hesiod and the Roman natural historian Pliny the Elder. Barton, Bill, This webpage quotes John Lightfoot explaining the "onah" concept. The Romans, for example, are known to have have kept archives which included data on eclipses of the moon and sun. AD 33 is too early for his crucifixion, surely. I am a follower of Jesus Christ, the One who saved me, and my goal is to spread the gospel and all the evidence for Christianity! It should then not come as a surprise to us that Pliny, who scorned the idea of God and religion (cfNatural HistoryI, 5), would pass over in silence this world-portent now claimed by and associated with the Christian religion, which wasat that time he wrotea portent of a persecuted, criminal and maligned sect. However, what concerning the bottom line? This comes from how Jewish scholars would interpret passages such as in Jonah where Jonah was in the belly of the fish for 3 days and also in Esther where Esther prayed and fasted for 3 days when she went to speak with King Xerxes. One of the strengths of Humphrey's book is the way it clarifies calendar issues and the way the Jews counted months, days, and nights. It is significant that Jesus be crucified on a Friday because that is the normal time when the passover lamb was sacrificed by the Jews. Well, for starters, it places a high degree of scientific precision for a writing that could considered to be hearsay or speculative because of its inference from another source. by Alexander Roberts and James Donaldson (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1973), vol. The fourth year of the 202nd Olympiad was in 33 A.D.!!! He asks for your prayers for his intentions. This blatantly religious appeal seemed odd and out of place. If your sunset occurs later than sunset in Athens, the event may occur on . Ancient writers sometimes describe their Olympiads as lasting five years but do so by counting inclusively; in fact each comprised a four year period. The dates of the Olympic Games, recorded in Phlegon's Olympiad In ancient Greece the Olympic Games were held in the July of the first year of each Olympiad, which was a 4 year period running from July to June of each succeeding year. (31 B.C. So, we have evidence as strong for these miracles at the crucifixion and resurrection as we have for many other events in history that no one ever questions. Now before the accusations fly about me ascribing random astronomical events to this writing, consider this: these are the only two solar eclipses that occur within the time frame reference by Phlegon, and from 20-40AD there are only 3 other eclipses that could even possibly have been seen by Rome or the Persian Gulf; one in 20AD and the other two occur after 36AD. Africanus disputed an attempt by Thallus (a first century historian) to specifically explain the Crucifixion darkness in this way. He made a famous statement to explain how days were counted for certain ceremonial purposes. Thus, if the quote is accurate, and Phlegons eclipse has not been conflated with one which occurred in 29 A.D., then Phlegon is another source who supports the Crucifixion darkness. The onah concept applies to part "days" and whole "days" so that they counted the same. His boyish face was flush and confident now. . Phlegon Darkness occurred when Christ was crucified, an eclipse of the sun cannot occur during a full moon since the moon would be on the opposite side of the earth. Please note, I do not believe that this eclipse is connected with the crucifixion. At the sixth hour the day was turned into the darkness of night, so that stars were seen in the heaven; and there was a . The 202nd Olympiad has been calculated to run from July AD 29 to June AD 33. Zero as a mathematical number in the Greco-Roman world was a later invention. For these are not drunk, as you suppose, seeing it is but the third hour of the day: But this is that which was spoken of by the prophet Joel: And it shall come to pass, in the last days, (saith the Lord,) I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams. They were not myths or literary devicesas skeptics or modernist biblical scholars might now suggest. The San Andreas fault is 800 miles long, running along the California coast; Israel and Turkey sit onyou guess ita major fault line! XIV), wrote that Phlegon, in his Chronicles, mentions Jesus: "Now Phlegon, in the thirteenth or fourteenth book, I think, of his Chronicles, not only ascribed to Jesus a knowledge of future events (although falling into confusion about some things which refer to Peter, as if they referred to Jesus), but also testified that the result corresponded to His predictions." April 3 would be the Julian Calendar date; the same day on today's Gregorian calendar is April 1, 33 A.D. Julian dates are usually used by historians and Bible scholars for events in this time in history. Another writer, a Christian historian named Sextus Julius Africanus, also commented about Phlegon's writings which connect the above event to the the crucifixion: "Phlegon records that, in the time of Tiberius Csar, at full moon, there was a full eclipse of the sun from the sixth hour to the ninth - manifestly that one of which we speak. Edit them in the Widget section of the, Repost: The Historicity of the Crucifixion Darkness. The darkness and earthquake were evident not just in Jerusalem but also in Nicea which is over 300 miles away from Jerusalem! One problem with AD 30 being the crucifixion is that it does not allow enough time for Jesus ministry. Many Christian scholars have come to question either the synoptic gospels or the gospel of John because of the difficulties of resolving questions about exactly when Jesus was crucified. The writings on the crucifixion of the historians from the first and second centuries is very interesting. Jesus was ABOUT 30 years old when He began His ministry. Be that as it may, and even if the dating of Phlegon is not correct, this does not diminish the case made thus far for the historicity of the Crucifixion darkness. At some time during that twelve months occurred the darkness over Asia in which lay Bithynia and Nicea to which Phlegon refers. Why preach something that was manifestly untrue? We know that Jesus was crucified in the Spring, at the time of the Passover. Tertullians statement certainly suggests he himself had seen the account of this world-portent. Otherwise, it would have been foolhardy of him to have made such a bold challenge to such sticklers for record keeping as the Romans, who could have proven him wrong. Now consider if this were either all fake or unauthentic; Christian historians have used this writing to cite as an extra-biblical account of the Gospel accounts and opponents have used the writing to discredit the theory as contrived. Only one earthquake in this span of years came up in the results, in 33 AD The database showed two published geological sources regarding this earthquake. Peter reminds his hearers these things were done in the midst of you, as you also know. Clearly, Peter referenced an eventthe three hour darkening of the sunwhich waspreviouslywitnessed by all hearing him that day. With this principle in mind, let us now consider the evidence. So the daylight part of a day (or any part thereof) is an onah and the evening is an onah and the entire dark period of the night is also an onah. Sect 257 f16, c, p. 1165. At New Moon, the Moon is positioned between the Sun and the Earth with the dark side of the Moon facing the Earth. Is there historical evidence for the darkness & earthquake at the crucifixion? Again, modern science has corroborated that not only is the Persian Gulf was a seismically-active area, but that a major earthquake did hit the region between 26-36AD: source :http://www.deadseaquake.info/was-there-really-an-earthquake-on-the-day-that-jesus-died/. These historians attempt to interpret the darkness as a direct effect of a solar eclipse which we know is scientifically not possible - but they wouldn't have known that in their time. . [3]. . Moon phase and solar year events are shown on the day in Athens. Emma Southon: "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them". So how should we understand the statement about Jesus being dead three days and three nights? Having provided an argument for the historicity of a three hour darkness based on historical sources and reason, we may now address the objection made to it by skeptics, which may be stated as follows. That is a nearly impossible standard to meet. "In the fourth year, however, of Olympiad 202, an eclipse of the sun happened, greater and more excellent than any that had happened before it; at the sixth hour, day turned into dark night, so that the stars were seen in the sky, and an earthquake in Bithynia toppled many buildings of the city of Nicaea." This would include the April 33 AD date I have used above for the crucifixion. An earthquake occurred in Bythinia and overthrew a great part of the city of Nica. It also gives a link to download Lightfoot's entire New Testament commentaries in four volumes as free PDF files. First, there are differences between the synoptic gospels in the New Testament and the gospel of John that have puzzled Bible scholars. It cannot be denied that Pliny the Elder wrote on topics like eclipses of the sun. He can be contacted at [email protected]. The Crucifixion is widely reported by numerous ancient writers. Within each olympiad, time was reckoned by referring to its 1st, 2nd, 3rd, or 4th year. No one has ever met a literary device walking down the street or stubbed their toe on one, thus we should not expect that any early Christian would have suffered martyrdom for one. He was smartly dressed, flamboyant and gregarious. Earthquake and rocks split open Key to this text though, is that it has never been found in an original form. Roman historical sources confirm that Jesus Christ lived on Earth and died by crucifixion. For the Hebrews celebrate the passover on the 14th day according to the moon, and the passion of our Saviour fails on the day before the passover; but an eclipse of the sun takes place only when the moon comes under the sun. The above said, we may venture still further in suggesting another reason for theseemingsilence. He wrote that during the fourth year of the 202nd Olympiad there was a period of unexplained darkness and there was an earthquake that collapsed buildings in Nicea in northern Asia Minor. /*