Lucian of Samosata on the Christians
A hostile pagan satirist, writing to entertain, takes the crucifixion in Palestine and the character of the Christian communities as common knowledge.
Nommé hors de la BibleAuteur antiquec. AD 165
A satirist writing to mock a charlatan describes, in passing and with contempt, what Christians were like: they worship a man who was crucified in Palestine for introducing a new cult, they take his teachings on trust, they hold their goods in common, and they are extraordinarily willing to die.
…the man who was crucified in Palestine because he introduced this new cult into the world… they are all brothers, from the moment that they are converted.
- Découvert
- Transmitted in medieval manuscripts
- Conservé à
- Various manuscript collections
- Langue
- Greek
- Comment il nous est parvenu
- Jamais enfoui — recopié à la main, génération après génération, jusqu'à l'imprimerie.
Ce qu'elle montre
Lucian is writing satire, not history, and his interest is in ridiculing gullibility. What he assumes his readers already know is the useful part.
Ce qu'en font les historiens
A standard non-Christian source on second-century Christian practice.
Dans l'Écriture
Sources
- Van Voorst, Jesus Outside the New Testament (2000)
Ces textes sont pour l'instant en anglais. Les traductions suivront.