I am not convinced by this even though I believe in the darkness over the land when Jesus was crucified. Why would the Apostles allude to a darkness their hearers and readersknewdid not happen? An earthquake occurred in Bythinia . Then you can go through a process of elimination to to rule out all these years except AD 33. 1996. p. 217. In either case, many would have witnessed it. This information was considered reliable at the time because Origen (in 248 CE) quoted it to refute Celsus (Against Celsus II:14,33,59), a Greek philosopher very critical of Christianity but familiar with history. Thesestatements reveal several key things: 1. An unknown, massive astronomical body passing through the solar system or on long period orbit, transiting between the earth and sun? Every person needs to deal with the questions of who Jesus is and what his death means. Let us, briefly, consider the case for the historicity of this event by first quoting the relevant gospel accounts. AD 33 is a generally accepted year of His crucifixion. A solar eclipse supposedly occurred during a full moon. EARTHQUAKE AND DARKNESS THAT OCCURRED AT JESUS DEATH WAS RECORDED IN SECULAR HISTORY. The time from Friday 3 PM to sunset was counted as one day. Otto Keller, Rerum Naturalium Scriptores Graeci Minores, 1 (Leipzig Teurber, 1877), p. 101., 2 Julius Africanus, Extant Writings, XVIII in The AnteNicene Fathers, ed. (LogOut/ Copyright Like The Master Ministries. Are you sure that you will enter heaven to be with God in the afterlife? A secondline of argument for the crucifixion date comes from historical testimony and the weight of opinion of Christian scholars through history. It has only been referenced in Christian apologist books hundreds of years later. Why preach something that was manifestly untrue? Jeremiah 9:23-24. 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. Moon phase and solar year events are shown on the day in Athens. Therefore the year of the crucifixion is A.D 33. TheActs of the Apostlesrecords the very first public preaching of Peter and the Apostles, which took place less than eight weeks after the Crucifixion. . Regarding thissame2nd century historian, Africanus also wrote: Phlegon records that, in the time of Tiberius Caesar, 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(Sextus Africanus,Fragment 18. To God nothing is impossible. I believe Colin Humphreys is probably correct that the date of the crucifixion of Christ was Friday April 3, A.D. 33. He was a Greek historian who lived in Asia Minor during the first century. Sure, there is a degree of speculation as to whether this actually was an occurrence during the Crucifixion (I fully realize there a 10-year swing is 3650-ish days according to modern calendar, which means a .0274% chance that it was on the actual day), but here again is evidence that the transcription from ancient origins thatPhlegon relied on and passed to writers who referenced his collected materials is scientifically plausible. Read more . https://creation.com/darkness-at-the-crucifixion-metaphor-or-real-history, http://www.icr.org/article/greatest-earthquakes-bible/, http://www.nbcnews.com/id/47555983/ns/technology_and_science-science/t/quake-reveals-day-jesus-crucifixion-researchers-believe/#.Wiu9sUqWaUk, http://www.wall.org/~aron/blog/darkness-at-noon/. Phlegons citation is a fragment from Olympiades he Chronika 13, ed. This blatantly religious appeal seemed odd and out of place. The 202nd Olympiad has been calculated to run from July AD 29 to June AD 33. 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. The Text Widget allows you to add text or HTML to your sidebar. Earthquake and rocks split open 26:61, Matt. Phlegon was a Greek historian who wrote an extensive chronology around AD 137. 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. Phlegon, born about A.D. 80, was a secular historian who lived in the second century. In chapter 28, Matthew provides an accountprobably sourced to either one of the guards and or a Jewish elderof how the guards were bribed, and the lie was spread that the disciples had stolen the body of Jesus (cf Matthew 28:1-15). 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. 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. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. 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. These events of that day, and others surrounding them, such as the Crucifixion darkness described in the gospels, were real. In October, I will perform a miracle here so that all may believe. Thus, a solar eclipse, which happens when the moon passes between the earth and sun cannot be a valid explanation for the Crucifixion darkness. For example, the first year of Olympiad 140 began in the summer of 220 BC and lasted until the middle of . Sect 257 f16, c, p. 1165. Die Fragmente der Griechischen Historiker. 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. Change). I have wondered if an astronomical body accounted for some aspects of the Deluge, such tidal effects on the waters. This eliminates most of the years in the range from AD 26 to 36, leaving primarily just AD 30 and AD 33 as candidates. The 4th year of the 202nd Olympiad is from July 32 to June 33 CE, which confirms the date of 3 April 33 CE. This argument is sufficient to diffuse the skeptics argument with regard to Pliny. He dabbed the sweat from his pallid face and intoned Are you at peace with God? Phlegon provides powerful confirmation, identifying the year and the exact time of day. 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. April 13, 2017 (Steven OReilly) Good Friday approaches. The answer is a resounding yes.Whether the darkness was witnessed throughout the empire or only in regions around Jerusalem is not clear. It amounts, in effect, to asserting the following:leaving aside all the evidence youdohave, you do not have anyotherevidence. Thus, the skeptic discards all evidence against his case, and then declares victory: aha, you have nootherproof!The reality is, there is no reason to set aside the sources and evidence we do have. (Jerome) [4]. But what has an eclipse in common with an earthquake, the rending rocks, and the resurrection of the dead, and so great a perturbation throughout the universe? VI, p. 130, as cited in Gary R. Habermas, The Historical Jesus: Ancient Evidence for the Life of Christ, (Joplin, MO: College Press Publishing Company), 1996., 3 Habermas, Gary. What constitutes good historical evidence? . The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and manifest day of the Lord come. And accurate. Thus, in their mindset, Jesus could say "three days and three nights" and the Jews would not have understood that this had to be a full 72 hours. When they could see the new crescent Moon in the evening (only visible for a short time in the early evening) they would send runners to announce that the new month had begun. Africanus does this by noting that the eve of Passover falls on a date of a near full moon, i.e., when the moon is opposite the sun in relation to the earth. The onah concept applies to part "days" and whole "days" so that they counted the same. In 70 A.D., just forty years after the Crucifixion and Resurrection of Jesus Christ, the city of Jerusalem and the Temple were utterly destroyed by the Romans and the surviving population carried off into captivity. I will also point out that the Roman historian Thallius also recorded these events. Among these is a very interesting quote below from a Christian scholar quoting an earlier Roman historian named Phlegon (first and second century). The former says: "In the fourth year of the 202nd Olympiad, there was an extraordinary eclipse of the sun: at the sixth hour, the day was turned into dark night, so that the stars in heaven were seen; and there was an earthquake in Bithynia, which overthrew many houses in the city of Nice." Christians claim this corroborates the Gospels; opponents say it has nothing to do with the events described during the Passion and only perpetuates a false conclusion. By the time he wrote hisNatural History(73 A.D.), the Christians had already been claiming for the prior forty years that the Crucifixion darkness was a sign worked by their God. On the Circumstances Connected with Our Saviours Passion and His Life-Giving Resurrection, The Wheels of the Formal Correction turn slowly, but grind exceedingly fine. This Is A Perfect Picture Of The Gospel, The Crown Of Thorns, And The Mocking Of Jesus, The Wound Between The 5th And 6th Right Ribs, The Fulfilment Of Prophecy Concerning The Unbroken Bones, The Anatomical And Physiological Details Of Death By Crucifixion, The Rejection Experienced By Jesus On The Cross, The Discovery By Ron Wyatt In 1982 Of The Ark Of The Covenant, A Brief Overview Of The New Covenant In The Blood Of The Messiah, And The Biblical Support For The Blood On The Mercy Seat. Felix Jacoby. I would say there are a couple oflines of argument that can be used to date the crucifixion. Next, we consider the Gospel of Matthew. College Press Publishing Co. Joplin, Missouri. Thus says the LORD, Let not a wise man boast of his wisdom, and let not the mighty man boast of his might, let not a rich man boast of his riches; but let him who boasts boast of this, that he understands and knows Me . The Historical Jesus, pp. Now from the sixth hour there was darkness over the whole earth, until the ninth hour. (Matthew 27: 45), And when the sixth hour was come, there was darkness over the whole earth until the ninth hour. . Pure speculation. Have you ever heard of Phlegon of Karia? [citation needed]. Roman historical sources confirm that Jesus Christ lived on Earth and died by crucifixion. So I found another source of this very quote from the same Rabbi in an old commentary from the 1600's from English Scholar John Lightfoot [2]. The source from Jerome above is interesting in that it dates the unusual darkening of the sky by the Olympiad numbering system. Is it accurate? He wrote extensively about natural phenomena earthquakes and such. There was a great earthquake in Bithynia, and many things were overturned in Nicaea.'"1 Evidence from Africanus Seeing as Phlegon was born approximately in the second century, it is extremely unlikely he spoke with an eyewitness of either eclipse. Each year of an Olympiad began on 1st July. Thankfully we have a more detailed fragment from Phlegon's Olympiades: We know from the Bible that on the day of Crucifixion the Sun was darkened for three hours, and there was a great earthquake. But why is this significant, if it doesnt even validate darkness during the Crucifixion as referenced in the Gospels? 9 Of course, they only thought an eclipse had occurred. We believe that the period of darkness referred to by Phlegon is the same period of darkness referred to in the New Testament, since the event is unique. But Peter standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice, and spoke to them: Ye men of Judea, and all you that dwell in Jerusalem, be this known to you, and with your ears receive my words. . However, these are all unlikely candidates as their timing is off from the Olympiad calendar. 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. Used to date the crucifixion date comes from historical testimony and the weight of opinion of Christian scholars through.... This significant, if it doesnt even validate darkness during the crucifixion as referenced in summer! Who wrote an extensive chronology around AD 137 would say there are a couple oflines of that. 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