A Swedish theologian has claimed that Jesus may not have have been crucified as there is no evidence to indicate that the Romans crucified prisoners 2,000 years ago.
According to Gunnar Samuelsson of Gothenburg University, the story of Jesus' execution is based on Christian traditions and artistic illustrations, not antique texts, according to a recently published doctoral thesis entitled "Crucifixion in Antiquity - An Inquiry into the Background of the New Testament Terminology of Crucifixion".
Samuelsson, a committed Christian, alleges the Bible has been misinterpreted, saying there are no explicit references to the use of nails or to crucifixion - only that Jesus bore a "staurus" towards Calvary, which can also mean "pole," his research states.
Samuelsson 400-page thesis is based on close study of the original texts and was submitted at the university last month.
"The problem is descriptions of crucifixions are remarkably absent in the antique literature," Samuelsson said in an interview with the UK Daily Telegraph. "The sources where you would expect to find support for the established understanding of the event really don't say anything."
Ancient Greek, Latin and Hebrew literature from Homer to the first century describe a number of suspension punishments, but none mention "crosses" or "crucifixion."
"Consequently, the contemporary understanding of crucifixion as a punishment is severely challenged," Samuelsson told the newspaper. "And what's even more challenging is the same can be concluded about the accounts of the crucifixion of Jesus. The New Testament doesn't say as much as we'd like to believe."
There is little evidence to suggest that Jesus was left to die after being nailed to a cross, both in ancient pre-Christian and extra-Biblical literature as well as the Bible.
http://www.thelocal.se/27480/20100628/
According to Gunnar Samuelsson of Gothenburg University, the story of Jesus' execution is based on Christian traditions and artistic illustrations, not antique texts, according to a recently published doctoral thesis entitled "Crucifixion in Antiquity - An Inquiry into the Background of the New Testament Terminology of Crucifixion".
Samuelsson, a committed Christian, alleges the Bible has been misinterpreted, saying there are no explicit references to the use of nails or to crucifixion - only that Jesus bore a "staurus" towards Calvary, which can also mean "pole," his research states.
Samuelsson 400-page thesis is based on close study of the original texts and was submitted at the university last month.
"The problem is descriptions of crucifixions are remarkably absent in the antique literature," Samuelsson said in an interview with the UK Daily Telegraph. "The sources where you would expect to find support for the established understanding of the event really don't say anything."
Ancient Greek, Latin and Hebrew literature from Homer to the first century describe a number of suspension punishments, but none mention "crosses" or "crucifixion."
"Consequently, the contemporary understanding of crucifixion as a punishment is severely challenged," Samuelsson told the newspaper. "And what's even more challenging is the same can be concluded about the accounts of the crucifixion of Jesus. The New Testament doesn't say as much as we'd like to believe."
There is little evidence to suggest that Jesus was left to die after being nailed to a cross, both in ancient pre-Christian and extra-Biblical literature as well as the Bible.
http://www.thelocal.se/27480/20100628/