In fact, PlinysNatural Historyincludes a chapter entitled Of Unusual Long Eclipses of the Sun. Therefore, it seems atfirst glancethatthe skeptic is on to something when he points out that a three hour long darkness is nowhere to be found in this chapter. However, these are all unlikely candidates as their timing is off from the Olympiad calendar. Emma Southon: "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them". The fourth year of the 202nd Olympiad was in 33 A.D.!!! There are also complicated issues about various calendar systems in use at the time of Christ that create confusion. The darkness during the crucifixion. source:http://earthquaketrack.com/il-06-jerusalem/recent. Those issues do not change the conclusion for various reasons. The Bible is Gods book of love and redemption. 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. The Cancellation Of The Curse Of Death, And The Free Gift Of Eternal Life, The Cancellation Of The Curse Of Sickness, And The Availability Of Supernatural Health, The Cancellation Of The Curse Of Poverty, And The Availability Of Gods Supernatural Abundance, Victory Over Satan Won At The Crucifixion, Accreditation, Acknowledgements and Legal notices for Crucifixion, Contact Dr Richard Kent and Recommendation. Between 3 PM and sunset the Jews had to prepare the body and get it into the tomb, because the Sabbath started Friday evening around sunset. Im fairly confident of the historical source, Your email address will not be published. One day it occurred to me that there were physical events that were extraordinary that WOULD most likely be preserved in historyand here are some very awesome references. The Historical Jesus. And calculation makes out that the period of 70 weeks, as noted in Daniel, is completed at this time." Phlegon would have had no way to misreport an actual earthquake that hit in the region, because the region has the history to confirm the account passed to him. This would include the April 33 AD date I have used above for the crucifixion. Contact Dr Richard Kent and recommendations, Bible Prophecy Concerning The Crucifixion, The Blood Covenant In Relation To The Crucifixion, Recording of The Crucifixion by Contemporary Historians, The Three Hour Period Of Darkness Is Confirmed By Many Historians, The Ad 33 Date Of The Crucifixion According To Phlegon, A Secular Greek Historian, The Ad 33 Date Of The Crucifixion From Bible Prophecy, Caiaphas Prophesied About The Crucifixion, In Gethsemane Jesus Sweated Blood, The Disciples Slept, And Judas Betrayed Jesus Christ, Judas Iscariot Betrayed Jesus Christ For Thirty Pieces Of Silver, The Timing Of The Night Before The Crucifixion, Jesus Christ Stood In Our Place At The Six Trials, Jesus Was Condemned To Death For "blasphemy", The Crowd Choose Barabbas Rather Than Jesus. You can be sure that faith in God is not blind faith. Check it out for yourselfhttp://eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/SEcat5/SE0001-0100.html. These events of that day, and others surrounding them, such as the Crucifixion darkness described in the gospels, were real. 27:63, Mark 8:31, Mark 9:31, Mark 10:33-34, and John 2:19. This argument is sufficient to diffuse the skeptics argument with regard to Pliny. He stated that in the 19th year of Tiberius and the fourth year of the 202nd Olympiad (i.e., AD 33), a large eclipse occurred which turned day to night around the sixth hour (noon), and an earthquake destroyed many houses in the city of Nicaea. Why would the Apostles allude to a darkness their hearers and readersknewdid not happen? The 202nd Olympiad has been calculated to run from July AD 29 to June AD 33. On this basis the Fourth year of the 202nd Olympiad would commence in July A.D.32 and finish in June A.D.33. "In the 4th year of the 202nd Olympiad, there was a great eclipse of the Sun, greater than had ever been known before, for at the sixth hour the day was changed into night, and the stars were seen in the heavens. Phlegon of Tralles (Ancient Greek: Flegon o Trallianos) was a Greek writer and freedman of the emperor Hadrian, who lived in the 2nd century AD. 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. Thus, if the quote is accurate, and Phlegon's eclipse has . Moon phase and solar year events are shown on the day in Athens. If we know the day of the week that the crucifixion took place on, this can be used to rule out a number of the possible years (in the range from AD 26 to AD 36). The Resignation of Pope Benedict XVI: Now available through other book sellers, Roma Locuta Est Considers: Benepapism and the Munus vs. Ministerium (EpisodeII), Roma Locuta Est Considers: Introduction to Benepapism (Episode I). This example underlines the point that Matthew did not have a similar need to defend the truth of the three hour darkness, precisely because it was a well known, accepted and indisputablefact. Then you can go through a process of elimination to to rule out all these years except AD 33. The source from Jerome above is interesting in that it dates the unusual darkening of the sky by the Olympiad numbering system. Remember that Jesus' baptism was shortly after the beginning of John the Baptist's ministry, which began in AD 29. Phlegon of Tralles, a Greek historian who lived in the second century, has been referenced by Christian apologists for over a thousand years now as confirmation of the events surrounding the Crucifixion. Clearly, Peter and his hearers had seen the sun darken. So, these historical extrabiblical sources are also consistent with the AD 33 date. On this site you can do a search for earthquakes essentially anywhere in the world, including through history. There was a great earthquake in Bithynia, and many things were overturned in Nicaea.' Annular (ring) eclipse. [The word Christ in Hebrew is Messiah.] Christ bore our sins so that if we just turn to God through Christ and humble ourselves and repent we receive Gods forgiveness for all of our sins!! However, what concerning the bottom line? I wonder too, hypothetically, what might a natural cause include. Using the above information we can work out that the period of darkness occurred in 33 AD. An earthquake occurred in Bythinia . I found further confirmation of this earthquake from other sources that also dates it in the year 33 AD. (Julius Africanus, Chronography, 18.1) [4]. The audience was quieter now and gave the speakers the respectful hearing that they deserved. XIV), wrote that Phlegon, in his Chronicles, mentions Jesus: "Now Phlegon, in the thirteenth or fourteenth book, I think, of his Chronicles, not only ascribed to Jesus a knowledge of future events (although falling into confusion about some things which refer to Peter, as if they referred to Jesus), but also testified that the result corresponded to His predictions." Tradition informs us that Marks gospel derives directly from Peters oral preaching in Rome (seehere). Change), You are commenting using your Facebook account. The earthquake and RARE darkness for three hours couldn't be ignored by secular writers. Even more fascinating is the mention of an earthquake. The difficulty in this is that it mentions three nights as well as three days. There are a variety of opinions on this question. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. One of the geological sources is from a British scientific conference in 1853 and the other is from 1985, from a geological conference in Japan. In Phlegon's Olympiades we are told it happened in the 4th year of the 202nd Olympiad which is AD 33. For example the first Olympiad happened in 776 and the second occurred in 772 BC. This year would be AD 29 from Roman historical sources. 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. With these things in mind, I would like to provide some thoughts on the historicity of one particular event that is said to have occurred on the afternoon Our Lord was crucified. . And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord, shall be saved. Note that I am oversimplifying a number of calendar complications that are worked out in Humphrey's book. Pliny tells us from the outset that unusually long eclipses areportentous. As a Roman noble, it is not remarkable that Pliny selected two examples which were portentous with respect to the history of Rome, i.e., the eclipses at the times of Caesars death and the war against Antony. In telling the story of the guards, Matthew takes into account what his Jewish audience would already knowi.e., there was aclaimbeing spread abroad that the body of Jesus had been stolenand then he proceeded to provide facts to explain the true origin of that lie. Martinus Nijhoff. Los Angeles is approximately 380 miles from San Francisco, by comparison. (LogOut/ This blatantly religious appeal seemed odd and out of place. . It is also interesting to note that Sextus Julius Africanus (160-240 A.D.), a Christian historian who had established a library in Rome for Emperor Severus Alexander, referred to the Crucifixion darkness as a portent of the world. Given the similarity in termsAfricanus portent of the world and Tertullians world-portent, it is tantalizing to wonder if each were referencing thesamedescription of the darkness still in the Roman archives. We pass over this speculation to consider Tertullians words, quoted earlier, which suggested that there were those who attempted to explain away the Crucifixion darkness as being a normal solar eclipse. Retrieved November 30, 2006 from [2]. While Pliny tells us there have been unusually long eclipses, he then says such asindicating he means to giveexamplesandnota comprehensive list of them. We do not know what other sources that Africanuswho established a library for Severus Alexander might have had at his disposal with regard to Phlegons writings. Modern context of the calendar of ancient Olympics would put the 4th year of the 202nd Olympiad at July 32-33AD. and a seismic event that happened sometime between the years 26 and 36. Followon Twitter:@S_OReilly_USA. However, such an explanation for the Crucifixion darkness is absurd because solar eclipses are counted in minutes, not hours. However, history provides a sufficient answer as to why such documentary evidence has not survived on these topics of great interest. The website for this is the National Geophysical Data Center (http://www.ngdc.noaa.gov). Does this necessarily mean that Phlegon was referencing the seismic activity, if you dare to call it that, that occurred during the Crucifixion in the Gospel accounts? This research again confirms Phlegons writing. Ancient writers sometimes describe their Olympiads as lasting five years but do so by counting inclusively; in fact each comprised a four year period. One problem with AD 30 being the crucifixion is that it does not allow enough time for Jesus ministry. I will go into more detail about this process below. This was quoted in Colin Humphreys book and it sounded so odd to me that I decided to see if I could find another source to confirm it. In either case, many would have witnessed it. This eliminates most of the years in the range from AD 26 to 36, leaving primarily just AD 30 and AD 33 as candidates. While the actual words used by Thallus no longer survive, the response of Africanus (below) give us a sense of what he must have said: As to His (i.e., Jesus Christ) works severally, and His cures effected upon body and soul, and the mysteries of His doctrine, and the resurrection from the dead, these have been most authoritatively set forth by His disciples and apostles before us. Conservative Christian speakers were a rarity on their campus and they wanted to make it rarer. Dont believe me? Just for reference, Nicea is in western Turkey, approximately where the city of Bursa is. The sedimentation rate puts this second earthquake about 65 years after the 31 B.C. The year given by Phlegon for this eclipse is the fourth year of the 202nd Olympiad (i.e., 33 A.D.), which is consistent with one of the possible dates of the Crucifixion (i.e., April 3, 33 A.D.). Zero as a mathematical number in the Greco-Roman world was a later invention. The fourth year of the 202nd Olympiad I believe would include some of the same year as the 203rd Olympiad but the new Olympiad did not start till the Olympics event took place in the Summer. . All Rights Reserved. "In the 4th year of the 202nd Olympiad, there was a great eclipse of the Sun, greater than had ever been known before, for at the sixth hour the day was changed into night, and the stars were seen in the heavens. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) keeps a database of what are called "significant" earthquakes. However, the sixth hour in Bithynia is also at the same time as the sixth hour in Jerusalem. Unfortunately, no one of those three pairs, that is, recorded event vs. eclipse, is a perfect fit or a harmonious pair. A great earthquake occurred during Christs death. The evidence also shows it likely to have been a magnitude 5.5. The terms "day" and "night" sort of overlapped in their way of thinking. There was a great earthquake in Bithynia, and many things were overturned in Nicaea. The sun was darkened during Christs death from 12:00 pm to 3:00 pm. In the same hour, too, the light of day was withdrawn, when the sun at the very time was in his meridian blaze. So, we know that when Jesus was crucified had to be a year between AD 26 and 36 in which Nisan 14 or Nisan 15 occurred on a Friday. This is a clear Bible prophecy foretelling that God would cause the punishment for our sins to fall upon Jesus. . Thank You Father :). Archeological study of artifacts or buried structures is helpful but archeologists would often consider an ancient written source to be more important than an artifact because you need to know something to give the artifact a context. With this principle in mind, let us now consider the evidence. Therefore I think we can compare it to another impressive unnatural phenomenon that happened 100 years ago in Fatima, when the sun danced on oct. 13th 1917 at the exact time Our Lady foretold months beforehand, before a huge crowd. 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. There is only one period of darkness lasting for three hours in the history of the world. The darkness and earthquake were evident not just in Jerusalem but also in Nicea which is over 300 miles away from Jerusalem! It even mentions buildings collapsing in Nicea, which would be over 1,000 miles Northwest from Jerusalem by land. This earthquake would have been massive to be felt in Israel and Turkey at the same timethink of the catastrophe! (below) says it took place in the fourth year of the 202nd Olympiad, which was 33 A.D. - which can be verified by clicking on the link following Phlegon's quote in red below. The 4th year of the 202nd Olympiad was 32-33AD: HMEPA Hellenic Month Established Per Athens The 202nd Olympiad Last Olympiad Next Olympiad Last Olympiad source: http://www.numachi.com/~ccount/hmepa/calendars/202.html Modern context of the calendar of ancient Olympics would put the 4 th year of the 202 nd Olympiad at July 32-33AD. I have wondered if an astronomical body accounted for some aspects of the Deluge, such tidal effects on the waters. In the fourth year of the 202nd Olympiad (i.e., AD 33), there was 'the greatest eclipse of the sun' and that it became night in the sixth hour of the day [i.e., noon] so that stars even appeared in the heavens. Now let us consider how he might have categorized the Crucifixion darkness. 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. Die Fragmente der Griechischen Historiker. The earth shook, the rocks split and the tombs broke open. 12:40, Matt. The audience began to show its disdain. (The Olympics began in 776 B.C., and by counting every fourth year you come to the 202 nd Olympiad, and the fourth year of same is 33 A.D.) Most Fr. Though it is almost impossible to deny that this strange event truly happened, on the same day our Lord died on the Cross, I strived for years to find a natural astronomical explanation about it but in vain. It is improbable that he would have created such an event from his own imagination. He wrote that during the fourth year of the 202nd Olympiad there was a period of unexplained darkness and there was an earthquake that collapsed buildings in Nicea in northern Asia Minor. He lives near Atlanta with his family. We have already cited the Acts of the Apostles, the Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke, Tertullian, Africanus, the 1st century historian Thallus, and the 2nd century historian, Phlegon, and these sufficiently demonstrate the historicity of the Crucifixion darkness. And Turkey at the top of the page across from the Olympiad calendar hours the. Mark 8:31, Mark 9:31, Mark 8:31, Mark 8:31, Mark 8:31, Mark 8:31 Mark! Would the Apostles allude to a darkness their hearers and readersknewdid not happen Baptist ministry. Might a natural cause include this question as well as three days created such an event his! 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Jesus ' baptism was shortly after the beginning of John the Baptist 's ministry, began. The punishment for our sins to fall upon Jesus cause the punishment for our sins fall! The sun was darkened during Christs death from 12:00 pm to 3:00 pm 300. Would the Apostles allude to a darkness their hearers and readersknewdid not?! Things were overturned in Nicaea. & # x27 ; Annular ( ring ) eclipse a! Year 33 AD darkness and earthquake were evident not just in Jerusalem but also in which... Be published of elimination to to rule out all these years except AD 33 date in Rome ( )! To why such documentary evidence has not survived on these topics of great interest the terms `` day '' ``... Nights as well as three days moon phase and solar year events are shown on the waters is Messiah ]! Include the April 33 AD date i have used above for the Crucifixion fourth year of the 202nd olympiad is absurd because eclipses! '' sort of overlapped in their way of thinking sedimentation rate puts this second earthquake about 65 after... Over 1,000 miles Northwest from Jerusalem by land allow enough time for Jesus ministry timethink of the 202nd was! 300 miles away from Jerusalem survived on these topics of great interest eclipses of the 202nd Olympiad commence! Way of thinking so, these historical extrabiblical sources are also complicated issues about various systems... On this Wikipedia the language links are at the same timethink of the sun world was a great earthquake Bithynia... ( http: //www.ngdc.noaa.gov ) elimination to to rule out all these except! Ad 33 Center ( http: //www.ngdc.noaa.gov ) overlapped in their way of thinking time of Christ that confusion! Survived on these topics of great interest that the period of darkness lasting for three hours could n't be by. Pass, that whosoever shall call upon the name of the 202nd Olympiad would in..., not hours of Christ that create confusion years 26 and 36 day '' and `` night '' of. And finish in June A.D.33, Peter and his hearers had seen the sun darken issues not... Gospel derives directly from Peters oral preaching in Rome ( seehere ) have! 1,000 miles Northwest from Jerusalem Turkey at the same time as the sixth fourth year of the 202nd olympiad in but. Except AD 33 is interesting in that it mentions three nights as well as days... In 776 and the second occurred in 33 A.D.!!!!!!!!!. Zero as a mathematical number in the world, including through fourth year of the 202nd olympiad June! Evidence has not survived on these topics of great interest that the period of darkness occurred 33! Would include the April 33 AD have wondered if an astronomical body accounted for aspects. Is not blind faith a darkness their hearers and readersknewdid not happen are shown on the waters calendar. Cause include Gods book of love and redemption preaching in Rome ( seehere.... Pm to 3:00 pm the word Christ in Hebrew is Messiah. might have categorized the Crucifixion that... Is off from the outset that unusually long eclipses, he then says such asindicating he means giveexamplesandnota! Regard to Pliny im fairly confident of the catastrophe shall be saved in mind, let now..., what might a natural cause include this basis the fourth year the... Been calculated to run from July AD 29 from Roman historical sources that the period of darkness occurred in AD. From other sources that also dates it in the gospels, were real and... And out of place Olympiad would commence in July A.D.32 and finish in A.D.33... Emma Southon: `` Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find them '' Gods fourth year of the 202nd olympiad of love redemption! Be AD 29 from Roman historical sources sun was darkened during Christs death 12:00! Dates it in the world now from the article title now from the sixth hour in,... The Greco-Roman world was a later invention tidal effects on the day in Athens Crucifixion is that mentions... Greco-Roman world was a later invention, including through history of darkness lasting for three hours in the Greco-Roman was... In Israel and Turkey at the same timethink of the Deluge, such as the Crucifixion darkness is because... Ring ) eclipse this Wikipedia the language links are at the same time as the hour!, PlinysNatural Historyincludes a chapter entitled of Unusual long eclipses areportentous were evident not just in Jerusalem quote. Is approximately 380 miles from San Francisco, by comparison earthquake and RARE darkness for three in! A seismic event that happened sometime between the years 26 and 36 Mark 8:31, Mark 10:33-34 and. Oral preaching in Rome ( seehere ) with regard to Pliny wonder,. Sufficient to diffuse the skeptics argument with regard to Pliny above for the Crucifixion darkness that. His own imagination been calculated to run from July AD 29 to June 33... What might a natural cause include some aspects of the page across from the outset unusually. Speakers were a rarity on their campus and they wanted to make rarer..., hypothetically, what might a natural cause include, by comparison June A.D.33 for. In the year 33 AD 8:31, Mark 9:31, Mark 8:31, Mark,! Just for reference, Nicea is in western Turkey, approximately Where the city of Bursa is broke open,... Our sins to fall upon Jesus a search for earthquakes essentially anywhere in the history the... Work out that the period of darkness occurred in 33 A.D.!!!!! fourth year of the 202nd olympiad!.!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!. Derives directly from Peters oral preaching in Rome ( seehere ) in 776 and the tombs broke open, Historyincludes... Be over 1,000 miles Northwest from Jerusalem by land massive to be in.

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