Lifestyle

The last few weeks have been spent presenting non-biblical sources that speak to one or more of the three minimal bedrock facts concerning what happened to Jesus after His crucifixion. We spent a lot of time looking at the Roman historian Cornelius Tacitus and the Jewish historian Flavius Josephus. Both historians wrote in the mid-first century, and both wrote about Jesus. But there is more to mention. Lucian of Samosata is another non-Christian source that provides independent testimony to the fact that Jesus was a real person and that He died by crucifixion. Lucian was a second-century Greek writer. In his writing, The Death of Peregrine, Lucian wrote: “The Christians, you know, worship a man to this day–the distinguished personage who introduced their novel rites and was crucified on that account. . . . 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.”

AUSTIN – Governor Greg Abbott congratulated the City of Grapevine on being designated as a Tourism Friendly Texas Certified Community by Travel Texas after completing the multi-step certification process. The Tourism Friendly Texas Certified Community designation shows the Grapevine Convention & Visitors Bureau’s commitment to further develop tourism as an economic growth strategy, boost local job creation, and draw more visitors to their community and to Texas from across the nation and around the world.

AUSTIN – Governor Greg Abbott honored the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) troopers and Texas Rangers who made the ultimate sacrifice while serving in the line of duty during DPS’ annual Peace Officers Memorial Service.

EAGLE LAKE – The 51st annual Eagle Lake Rice Field Day tour is scheduled for 4 p.m. June 24 at the David R. Wintermann Rice Research Station on Farm-to-Market Road 102 just north of Eagle Lake, followed by an evening program at the Eagle Lake Community Center located at 100 N Walnut Avenue in Eagle Lake.

In our investigation of non-Christian sources that speak of Jesus and His crucifixion, we have thus far looked at the writings of Cornelius Tacitus. We also began investigating what the ancient historian Josephus had to say about Jesus. This week, we continue to look at his writings. The Jewish historian Flavius Josephus mentions Jesus in a work dated AD 93 titled Antiquities of the Jews. This passage, known as the Testimonium Flavianum, reads: “About this time there lived Jesus, a wise man, if indeed one ought to call him a man. For he was one who wrought surprising feats and was a teacher of such people as accept the truth gladly. He won over many Jews and many Greeks. He was the Messiah. When Pilate, upon hearing him accused by men of the highest standing amongst us, had condemned him to be crucified, those who had in the first place come to love him did not give up their affection for him. On the third day, he appeared to them restored to life, for the prophets of God had prophesied these and countless other marvelous things about him. And the tribe of the Christians, so called after him, has still to this day not disappeared.”