The historians who mention Jesus, and give details concerning early Christians’ worship and practice, have already been examined in our previous article. Such historians by no means exhaust our supply of authoritative non-New Testament writings which prove the historicity of Jesus Christ.
It is one of those interesting twists of fate that some of the government officials of Rome in the first and second centuries A.D., who, in their efforts to eradicate the ‘problems’ of Christianity from their Empire, unwittingly give further credence to the historicity of Jesus and the sound basis for true Christianity. It has been rightly said “Familiar letters written by eye-witnesses, and that, without design, disclose circumstances that let us more intimately into important events, are genuine history; and as far as they go, more satisfactory than formal premeditated narratives.”1-/[Horace Walpole to Sir John Fenn, 29th June, 1784.]
It will be seen from our examination of the letters of these men, who were recording facts and events in an official capacity, that many interesting points of corroborative evidence emerge which must draw the reader to undeniable conclusions concerning Jesus and his followers.
1. Pliny
Pliny the Younger (c.A.D. 61-113) was a prominent lawyer, administrator and landowner, and served as the governor of Bithynia in Asia Minor. He was the nephew and adopted son of a natural historian known as Pliny the Elder.
Pliny (the younger) was a prolific letter writer, and ten books of his letters are extant today, and are easily obtained.
In the tenth book, Pliny writes of the problem of his dealings with Christians in one of his letters, which is addressed to the Emperor Trajan. He wrote because he was unsure of how best to deal with them. The letter is lengthy, so we shall quote only the more important sections (the letter is quoted in full in “Eureka”[note]-/[Eureka, Vol. 1, Page 254,255. (Black & Logos Edition, Page 216-217 Red Edition).]
“For the moment this is the line I have taken with all persons brought before me on a charge of being Christians. I have asked them in person if they are Christians, and if they admit it, I repeat the question a second and third time, with a warning of the punishment awaiting them. If they persist, I order them to be led away for execution; for, whatever the nature of their admission lam convinced that their stubbornness and unshakeable obstinacy ought not to go unpunished. There have been others similarly fanatical who are Roman citizens …”2-/[The Letters of Pliny the Younger, Penguin Classics, Book 10, No. 96. Page 293-295.]
There are three particularly noteworthy things arising from this section:
- The Christians were, by A.D. 112 (when this letter was written) already being actively persecuted;
- They were noted for their ‘stubbornness’ and “unshakeable obstinancy’ in their beliefs;
- People from all social strata (including Roman citizens) were influenced by the teaching of Christianity. This last point is particularly telling, because a Roman of A.D. 112 would not have lightly forsaken his own practices of social conduct and religious worship for the ‘dubious’ rites of Christianity, particularly knowing the punishment which might follow. For Romans to adopt Christianity, there must have been some solid and forceful evidence and teaching at work.
Later in the letter, Pliny continues:
“Amongst these I considered that I should dismiss any who derived that they were or ever had been Christians when they had repeated after me a formula of invocation to the gods and had made offerings of wine and incense to your (Trojan’s) statue . . . and furthermore had reviled the name of Christ: none of which things, I understand ,any genuine Christian can be induced to do.”3-/[The Letters of Pliny the Younger, Penguin Classics, Book 10, No. 96. Page 293-295.]
This section gives clear testimony to some of the things which true Christians would not do, backing up New Testament commandments of Christ in relation to worship and conduct.
“Other, whose names were given to me by an informer, first admitted the charge and then denied it; they said that they had ceased to be Christians two or more years previously, and some of them even twenty years ago …”4-/[The Letters of Pliny the Younger, Penguin Classics, Book 10, No. 96. Page 293-295.]
It is obvious from this comment that Christianity, twenty years previous to AD. 112 (i.e. A.D. 82) was already well enough established to have converts who had believed for some period of time before recanting their beliefs.
Finally, perhpas the most important section of this letter, gives further insight into Christian worship and practice.
“They (the Christians) had met regularly before dawn on a fixed day to chant verse alternately amongst themselves in honour of Christ as if to a god, and also to bind themselves by oath, not for any criminal purpose, but to abstain from theft, robbery and adultery, to commit no breach of trust and not to deny a deposit when called upon to restore it. After this ceremony it had been their custom to disperse and reassemble later to take food of an ordinary, harmless kind.”5-/[The Letters of Pliny the Younger, Penguin Classics, Book 10, No. 96. Page 293-295.]
From this section of the letter we discover several more significant points.
- Christ was honoured in a manner which, to Pliny, seemed like worship of a god.
- Jesus’ ethical teachings are reflected in the oath taken by Christians not to commit any of the sins enumerated.
- We find a probable reference to a memorial meeting, and the celebration of the ‘love feast’ in Pliny’s remark about their regathering to partake of ordinary food. (cf I Corinthians 11:20-22; Matthew 26:26; Luke 22:15-18).
Following this section in Pliny’s letter, he comments concerning Christianity.
“I found nothing but a degenerate sort of cult carried to extravagant lengths;” and further:
“It is not only the towns, but villages too which are infected through contact with this wretched cult. “6-/[The Letters of Pliny the Younger, Penguin Classics, Book 10, No. 96. Page 293-295.]
Pliny concludes his letter by stating that, due to the widespread effects of Christianity, the worship of the Roman gods had all but ceased, and that no buyers could be found for the flesh of sacrifical victims.
Truly, this letter provides remarkable evidence concerning the historicity of Jesus, and of early Christianity.
2. Trajan
The Emperor Trajan’s response to this letter (which is published along with Pliny’s letters) is much shorter, and worthy of quoting in full.
“You have followed the right course of procedure, my dear Pliny, in your examination of the cases of persons charged with being Christians, for it is impossible to lay down a general rule to a fixed formula. These people must not be hunted out; if they are brought before you, and the charge against them is proved, they must be punished, but in the case of anyone who denies that he is a Christian, and makes it clear that he is not by offering prayers to our gods, he is to be pardoned as a result of his repentance however suspect his past conduct may be. But pamphlets circulated anonymously must play no part in any accusation. They create the worst sort of precedent and are quite out of keeping with the spirit of our age.”7-/[The letters of Pliny the Younger, Penguin Classics, Book 10, No 97, Page 295. (A translation of this letter also appears in “Eureka” Vol. 1, page 22 Black & Logos Edition; page 217 Red Edition).]
This response is particularly interesting for several reasons. It adds further weight to or evidence that Christianity was an established, growing region by the end of the first Century A.D., and that the Emperor of Rome was well acquainted with it, and its associated ‘problems.’ How could this have occurred in such an ‘enlightened’ era, if Jesus Christ had not actually lived on the earth? Furthermore, this period of persecution for early believers during the reign of Trajan, finds direct fulfilment in the prophetic word of Jesus Christ to the ecclesia of Smyrna, where they are told they will undergo “tribulation ten days” and that
“the devil will cast you into prison, that ye may be tempted” (Revelation 2:10).
The twenty-year reign of Trajan (A.D. 98 to 117) and his documented persecution of the Christians is a direct fulfilment of these words.
3. Hadrian
The Emperor Hadrian, who was Trajan’s successor (A.D. 117-138), also wrote to his Asian proconsul regarding the handling of Christians. In the letter, preserved by third century church historian Eusebius, Hadrian asserts,
“I do not wish, therefore, that the matter should be harassed, nor opportunity of malicious proceedings be offered to informers. If, therefore, the provincials can clearly evince their charges against the Christians, so as to answer before the tribunal, let them pursue this course only, but not by mere petitions, and mere outcries against the Christians. For it is far more proper, if anyone would bring an accusation, that you should examine it.”‘
Hadrian explains that, if Christians are found guilty, after an examination ,they should be judged
“according to the heinousness of the crime.”8-/[Eusebius’s Ecclesiastical History, IV:IX translated by Christian F. Cruse.]
Yet, if the accusers were only slandering the believers, then those who inaccurately made the charges were to be punished.
Again, much could be said in relation to Hadrian and his place in the first seal of Revelation 6, but let us simply remember that, in officially writing concerning their policy on the Christians, these government officials are unwittingly giving us a greater weight of evidence regarding the historicity of Jesus. These early second century writings make it plain to all, that followers of Jesus were already spread widely throughout the Roman world, and Christianity had been taken hold of by men of all classes and status. The government officials have again, in this instance, been used as instruments of the living God, to bolster the faith of ‘His elect.’
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