Suetonius: The Expulsion Of The Jews From Rome

The three non-Christian sources were the governor named Pliny, the Roman historian named Suetonius, and Tacitus. Pliny notified the Emperor about a group named the Christians and that they follow Jesus, but don’t have evidence of Jesus. Pliny asks the emperor if he should kill the Christians. The Roman historian wrote about the riots, caused by a man named “Chrestus”. Tacitus wrote about Jesus in a fire, and describes the religion as dangerous.

The Flames of Rome by Paul Maier is a documentary-fiction that has not only brought to life the evolution of Christianity in Rome but has also painted a clear picture of what it was like to live in Rome at the time. Understanding the Roman’s way of life and reasoning behind their actions plays a major role in the reasoning for Maier writing this book. The Flames of Rome is equivalent to reading a textbook but Maier makes it much more enjoyable and intriguing by adding plausible details of his own. Maier’s portrayal of the death of Claudius Caesar, in chapter nine of the novel, closely follows the primary sources of Tacitus and Suetonius but also loosely follows that of the secondary sources. It is important to compare Maier’s version to other

Marcus Ulpius Trajanus, notoriously known as the Roman Emperor Trajan was born September 18, most likely in the year 52 AD of Spanish origin. He was an educated man with a powerful, masculine figure. A bronze sculpture at Harvard University showcases his physique in ceremonial armor standing as if addressing his troops. He possessed a true sense of dignity and humbleness which to the Romans made him an emperor of true virtue. He was an emperor who truly enjoyed war; his passion for war came from the fact that he was very good at it. He was a brilliant general, as shown by his military achievements. He was naturally very popular with the troops, especially due to his willingness to share in the hardships alongside his soldiers.

The mutinies in Pannonia and on the Rhine were not a good start to Tiberius’ rule and the Senate saw that. Tiberius disregarded the mutinies and attempted to follow in his predecessor’s steps of co-ruling with the Senate. Tacitus condemns Tiberius by stating, ‘Tiberius made a habit of always allowing the consuls the initiative, as thought the Republic still existed and he himself uncertain whether to take charge or not.’ Suetonius contradicts Tacitus’ claim by writing, ‘Tiberius did not

The historian provided a lot of ethos and allusion to prove that there was religious intolerance against Christianity. She alluded the early persecutions of Christianity caused by Nero as bait to all the problems Rome faced at the time. She also made an excellent point about

“Disciplined community who concentrate on religious matters. They have gone out into the wilderness because they think that they cannot fulfill

Suetonius, the author of The Twelve Caesars belonged to the equestrian order, the second tier of the roman elite. He had a hugely successful public career as an advocate, which is a professional speaker who represented people in court cases. He was also described as a teacher of literature, one who specialized in the meaning and usage of words and the explanation of obscure names and references. Suetonius was a serious scholar who had already made his reputation prior to The Twelve Caesars with several major works such as Nero and Caligula. The Twelve Caesars is not only Suetonius’ longest work, but it also involved extensive and careful research of its validity by including various documentary sources. He also cites personal documents of the emperors from which he often, contrary to the normal practice of ancient historians, quoted passages verbatim. Suetonius wrote The Twelve Caesars as a work of scholarly biography because he did not want to produce a historical document nor an expose. He judiciously excludes everything that does not pertain to the person on whom he is focusing and includes everything that does, hence the presence of so much personal and domestic detail. Suetonius not only provides examples from documents but also injects first hand witness information throughout the book; therefore supporting the validity of his writings.

The section is from Book Five, which is split into forty-six parts; this critical commentary looks at Part Ten, which is about Claudius’s accession to power. Part of the background behind this text is that Suetonius tries to portray Claudius as a hopeless and fearful man pushed into a position he was not suited for. The way in which Claudius became emperor as well as the Senates quick acceptance of him are vital for the history of the Principate. These acts show the true nature of the Augustan Principate; having these events unfold as they did demonstrates how the Principate robbed Rome of the possibility of being a Republic again (Fagan, 1998). The notion that Claudius might be proclaimed emperor—as he was, by the Praetorians—was very unsettling. Claudius was never considered to be future emperor material—not even by his own mother, ‘Claudius’s mother often called him ‘a monster: a man whom Mother Nature had begun to work upon but then flung aside’’ (Jones, 1981:17). He suffered from physical and quite possibly mental disabilities, including a limp and a speech impediment, which is now today diagnosed as dystonia (Osgood, 2011:9). Although that may be the case, it is rightly argued that Claudius had intellectual ability. Before he became emperor he was often ridiculed by others, he was not considered capable of a public or private career. He was excluded from public office

In The Judaeo-Christian Tradition by Jack H. Hexter, the trial of Jesus is addressed in an unorthodox perspective. The trial of Jesus incorporates two trials: the Roman trial and the Jewish trial. In Hexter's book the Roman trial is addressed in great length while the Jewish trial is almost unaddressed. Hexter provides a perspective of the trial of Jesus with only one cause: the charge of sedition, for claiming to be king of the Jews. By using the four gospel texts, Hexter's view is illuminated and we find crucial aspects to the trial that not only counter Hexter's view on the sedition charge but also provide evidence for other important charges. Themes other than the charge of sedition supporting Hexter's perspective include, the

“The grandeur of the ancient city is evident in the remains uncovered by archaeologists, including the ruins of the Artemision, the civic agora, the temple of Domitian, gymnasiums, public baths, a theater with seating for 24,000, a library, and the commercial agora, as well as several streets and private residences” (Holman, np). This was a big city, full of culture, and full of ungodly people and activities. Among the many religious groups in the city, there were many Jews there who were brought the gospel right after Pentecost (Orr, np). Because of the pluralism of religions in the city, new Christians didn’t know exactly what to believe or how to worship. On top of this, the city was constantly bombarded with false teachers trying to tell people that salvation came from works, not faith (MacArthur, np).

• Writes about Christ suffering extreme penalty during the reign of Tiberius at the hands of Pontius Pilatus. Refers to an immense multitude of Christ followers willing to die for their beliefs. Pg. 82

Tacitus, perhaps the greatest Roman historian, provides us with an account of the fire of Rome.1 It is within this account, recorded in The Annals, that Tacitus mentions Jesus. In chapters 38 through 45 of Annals 15, Tacitus discusses how Nero implicated Christians as those responsible for the fire.

The ancient historian Suetonius was born in the year AD 69, when his father, a Roman knight, served as a colonel in a regular legion and took part in the Battle of Baetricum. From the letters of Suetonius's close friend Pliny the Younger we learn that he practiced briefly at the bar, avoided political life, and became chief secretary to the Emperor Hadrian. The historian Spartianus records that he was one of several Palace officials, including the Guards Commander, whom Hadrian, when he returned from Britain, dismissed for behaving indiscreetly with the Empress Sabina. Suetonius lived a great life as a historian and biographer and wrote many books. The titles of his books are recorded as follows: The Twelve Caesars; Royal Biographies;

Tacitus’ motivations for writing The Annals are multifaceted. First, he was promoting the stance that the empire, despite its shortcomings, was necessary for the stability of Rome at the time. Secondly, he wanted to give an honest and fair account of Rome during the reigns of four emperors of the principate: Tiberius, Gaius, Claudius and Nero.

Tacitus, Suetonius and Plutarch, although major historians of their time, were not completely reliable and (now we realise) their works contained bias, mainly a result of upon the writers personal opinion and beliefs. Another cause of bias within primary text was the influence of the Roman elite hierarchy upon the contemporary writers of the time. Plutarch himself admitted this in many statements and claimed to not be a historian but a biographer. Plutarch regarded biography as a different class of writing, and his primary goal was to entertain the audience, as opposed to informing them. He did this by writing only what the reader wanted to read rather than the actual event that had taken place. This is the number one reason why much of ancient Roman sources are unreliable, and biased.