The New Testament confirms the Apocalypse (Revelation in Greek) of Peter which claims that Jesus never died on the cross!
The sections of this article are:
1- The NT confirms that only Peter witnessed the
crucifixion.
2- The Apocalypse of Peter was written and spoken by Peter himself!
3- Some important notes about the "blind" trinitarians from the Apocalypse.
- Even the NT itself is confused about
whether it was the cross or a tree!
- The Apocalypse of Peter answers this
confusion!
4- The current trinity lie is not different from the
far eastern pagan religions.
5- Did the Disciples of Jesus really die for the trinity and/or
crucifixion lie?
- Christians fought
fiercely (in debates) among each others on who Jesus was!
- Jesus' sins when he was a "kid".
- The vast popularity of the Apocalypse of Peter among early Christians
even in the 4th century!
- The wrath of Rome on everybody, including the Christians.
6- So why would people really dare to make up lies about Jesus or any
Truth in general for this matter?
- The "Big Brother" law.
7- The many different Canons (New Testaments)
that Christians believe in, and the hundreds of manuscripts.
- Constantine's unified "Bible" was
permanently lost! Only portions of it were found almost 1/2 century later.
- Hundreds of conflicting manuscripts existed among early Christians.
- Detailed listing of the different canons
of the "Bible".
8- Conclusion.
1- The NT confirms that only Peter witnessed the crucifixion:
First of all, it is important to know that according to the New Testament itself, all of Jesus' Disciples fled for their lives on the night of crucifixion. None of them witnessed Jesus' crucifixion except for one, that is Saint Peter! He was the lone and only witness of the actual crucifixion event. Let us look at what the Bible's New Testament says:
Matthew 26:34-35, 55-57, 69-75
34 Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee,
That this night, before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice.
35 Peter said unto him, Though I should die with thee, yet will I not
deny thee. Likewise also said all the disciples.
.......
55 In that same hour said Jesus to the multitudes, Are ye come out as against a
thief with swords and staves for to take me? I sat daily with you teaching in
the temple, and ye laid no hold on me.
56 But all this was done, that the scriptures of the prophets might be
fulfilled. Then all the disciples
forsook him, and fled.
57 And they that had laid hold on Jesus led him away to Caiaphas the high
priest, where the scribes and the elders were assembled.
69 Now Peter sat without in the palace: and a damsel came unto him, saying, Thou
also wast with Jesus of Galilee.
70 But he denied before them all, saying, I know not what thou sayest.
71 And when he was gone out into the porch, another maid saw him, and said unto
them that were there, This fellow was also with Jesus of Nazareth.
72 And again he denied with an oath, I do not know the man.
73 And after a while came unto him they that stood by, and said to Peter, Surely
thou also art one of them; for thy speech bewrayeth thee.
74 Then began he to curse and to swear, saying, I know not the man. And
immediately the cock crew.
75 And Peter remembered the word of Jesus, which said unto him, Before the cock
crow, thou shalt deny me thrice. And he went out, and wept bitterly.
Now as we clearly see, Peter did witness the so-called crucifixion event. He
was present there. The only thing that saved him from death is his denial that
he knew Jesus. Otherwise, he would've got crucified that night.
Examples of third-party narrations in the "Gospels" of the NT:
Let us also notice the third-party narration in the "Gospel of Matthew", and in the rest of the so-called "Gospels" of the New Testament. Here are few examples:
From www.answering-christianity.com/authors_gospels.htm:
"...And as Jesus passed forth thence, HE (Jesus) saw a man, named Matthew, sitting at the receipt of custom: and HE (Jesus) saith unto HIM (Matthew), follow ME (Jesus) and HE (Matthew) arose, and followed HIM (Jesus). (Matthew 9:9)"
"And this is the record of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, Who art thou? (From the King James Version Bible, John 1:19)"
"John answered them, saying, I baptize with water: but there standeth one among you, whom ye know not; (From the King James Version Bible, John 1:26)"
"For John was not yet cast into prison. (From the King James Version Bible, John 3:24)"
etc.....
A lot more examples and proofs are available at:
Just who were the real authors of the Bible? Today's Books and Gospels' authors of the Bible are UNKNOWN. See the comments from the NIV Bible itself! Also includes detailed refutations and exposing of Paul's lies. See Paul's section in the article. It also includes proofs about the New Testament was written in the 3rd century by Constantine and his church by their own words. It wasn't written by Jesus and his original Disciples.
Quotes from NIV Bible theologians, and Roman Catholic Encyclopedia admitting that the Bible had been corrupt and the original manuscripts had been lost. Also, proofs that it was Constantine and his church who wrote the New Testament with their hands around year 300, not Jesus and his original Disciples.
According to the NIV and KJV Bible's theologians, the gospels were written by mysterious and unknown people, in unknown places and unknown dates!
2- The Apocalypse of Peter was written and spoken by Peter himself!
Unlike the Gospels of the New Testament, the Apocalypse of Peter (the Revelations sent to Peter) was directly written and spoken by Peter himself. This Revelation was widely accepted and believed in by the early Christians during the 1st, 2nd and 3rd centuries. Also listen to this AUDIO file from Christian theologians. The early Christians clearly rejected the lies of crucifixion and trinity!
Here are the fragments of his Apocalypse.
From http://wesley.nnu.edu/biblical_studies/noncanon/apoc/fgapcpt.htm:
(emphasis below are mine. Pay close attention to the red ones.)
As the Savior was sitting in the temple in the three hundredth year of the covenant and the agreement of the tenth pillar, and being satisfied with the number of the living, incorruptible Majesty, he said to me (Peter),
"Peter, blessed are those above belonging to the Father, who revealed life to those who are from life, through me, since I reminded them, they who are built on what is strong, that they may hear my word, and distinguish words of unrighteousness and transgression of the law from righteousness, as being from the height of every word of this Pleroma of truth, having been enlightened in good pleasure by him whom the principalities sought. But they did not find him, nor was he mentioned among any generation of the prophets. He has now appeared among these, in him who appeared, who is the Son of Man who is exalted above the heavens in fear of men of like essence. But you yourself, Peter, become perfect in accordance with your name with myself, the one who chose you, because from you I established a base for the remnant whom I have summoned to knowledge. Therefore be strong until the imitation of righteousness - of him who had summoned you, having summoned you to know him in a way which forth doing because of the rejection which happened to him, and the sinews of his hands and his feet, and the crowning by those of the middle region, and the body of his radiance which they bringing hope of service because of a reward of honor - as he was about to reprove you three times in this night".
And as he was saying these things I saw the priests and the people running up to us with stones, as if they would kill us; and I was afraid that we were going to die. And he said to me: "Peter, I have told you many times that they are blind ones who have no guide. If you want to know their blindness, put your hands before your eyes - your robe - and say what you see." But when I had done it, I did not see anything. I said "No one sees this way" And he said to me, "Do it again." And there came in me fear with joy, for I saw a new light greater than the light of day. Then it came down upon the Savior. And I told him about those things which I saw. And he said to me again, "Lift up your hands and listen to what the priests and the people are saying." And I listened to the priests as they sat with the scribes. The multitudes were shouting with their voice. When he heard these things from me he said to me "prick up your ears and listen to the things they are saying." And I listened again, "As you sit, they are praising you." And when I said these things , the Savior said "I have told you that these people are blind and deaf. Now then, listen to the things which they are telling you in a mystery, and guard them. Do not tell them to the sons of this age. For they shall blaspheme you in these ages since they are ignorant of you, but they will praise you in knowledge - for many will accept our teaching in the beginning, and they will turn from them again by the will of the Father by their error, because they have done what he wanted. And he will reveal them in his judgment, i.e the servants of the Word. But those who became mingled with these shall become their prisoners, since they are without perception. And they praise the men of propagation of falsehood, those who will come after you. And they will cleave to the name of a dead man, thinking that they will become pure. But they will become greatly defiled and they will fall into a name of error, and into the hand of an evil, cunning man and a manifold dogma, and they will be ruled without law."
"For some of them will blaspheme the truth and proclaim evil teaching, and they will say evil things against each other. Some will be named: those who stand in the strength of the archons, of a man and a naked woman who is manifold and subject to much suffering. And those who say these things will ask about dreams. And if they say that a dream came from a demon worthy of their error, then they shall be given perdition instead of incorruption - for evil cannot produce good fruit. For the place from which each of them is produces that which is like itself; for not every soul is of the truth, nor of immortality. For every soul of these ages has death assigned to it in our view, and their eternal destruction, in which they are and from which they are. They love the creatures of the matter which came forth with them. But the immortal souls are not like these, O Peter. But indeed, as long as the hour is not yet come, the immortal soul shall resemble the mortal one. But it shall not reveal its nature, that it alone is the immortal one, and thinks about immortality, having faith, and desiring to renounce these things."
"For people do not gather figs from thorns or from thorn trees, if they are wise, nor grapes from thistles. For on the one hand, that which is always becoming is in that from which it is, being from what is not good, which becomes destruction for it and death. But that which comes to be in the Eternal One is in the One of the life and the immortality of the life which they resemble. Therefore all that which exists not will dissolve into what exists not. For deaf and blind ones join only with their own kind. But others shall change from evil words and misleading mysteries. Some who do not understand mystery speak of things which they do not understand, but they boast that the mystery of the truth is theirs alone. And in haughtiness they shall grasp at the pride to envy the immortal soul which has become a pledge. For every authority rule, and power of the aeons wishes to be with these in the creation of the world, in order that those who are not, having been forgotten by those that are, may praise them, though they have not been saved, nor have they been brought to the Way by them, always wishing that they may become imperishable ones. For if the immortal soul receives power in an intellectual spirit. But immediately they join with one of those who mislead them."
"But many others, who oppose the truth and are the messengers of error, will set up their error and their law against these pure thoughts of mine, as looking out from one perspective, thinking that good and evil are from one source. They do business in my word. And they will propagate harsh fate. The race of immortal souls will go in it in vain, until my Parousia. For they shall come out of them, and my forgiveness of their transgressions into which they fell through the adversaries, whose ransom I got from the slavery in which they were, to give them freedom that they may create an imitation remnant in the name of a dead man, who is Hermas, of the first-born of unrighteousness, in order that the light which exists may not be believed by the little ones. But those of this sort are the workers who will be cast into the outer darkness, away from the sons of light. For neither will they enter, nor do they permit those who are going up to their approval for their release."
"And still others of them who suffer think that they will perfect the wisdom of the brotherhood which really exists, which is the spiritual fellowship of those united in communion, through which the wedding of incorruptibility shall be revealed. The kindred race of the sisterhood will appear as an imitation. These are the ones who oppress their brothers, saying to them, "Through this our God has pity, since salvation comes to us through this," not knowing the punishments of those who are made glad by those who have done this thing to the little ones whom they saw, and whom they took prisoner."
"And there shall be others of those who are outside our number who name themselves bishop and also deacons, as if they have received their authority from God. They bend themselves under the judgment of the leaders. Those people are dry canals."
But I said " I am afraid because of what you have told me, that indeed little ones are, in our view, the counterfeit ones, indeed, that there are multitudes that will mislead other multitudes of living ones, and destroy them among themselves. And when they speak your name they will be believed." The Savior said , "For a time determined for them in proportion to their error they will rule over the little ones. And after the completion of the error, the never-aging one of the immortal understanding shall become young, and the little ones shall ruler over those who are their rulers. The root of their error He shall pluck out, and He shall put it to shame so that it shall be manifest in all the impudence which it has assumed to itself. And such ones shall become unchangeable, O Peter."
"Come therefore, let us go on with the completion of the will of the incorruptible Father. For behold, those who will bring them judgment are coming, and they will be put to shame. But me they cannot touch. And you, O Peter, shall stand in their midst. Do not be afraid because of your cowardice. Their minds shall be closed, for the invisible one has opposed them."
When he said those things, I saw him seemingly being seized by them. And I said "What do I see, O Lord, that it is you yourself whom they take, and that you are grasping me? Or who is this one, glad and laughing on the tree? And is it another one whose feet and hands they are striking?"
The Savior said to me, "He whom you saw on the tree, glad and laughing, this is the living Jesus. But this one into whose hands and feet they drive the nails is his fleshly part, which is the substitute being put to shame, the one who came into being in his likeness. But look at him and me."
But I, when I had looked, said "Lord, no one is looking at you. Let us flee this place." But he said to me, "I have told you, "Leave the blind alone!" And you, see how they do not know what they are saying. For the son of their glory instead of my servant, they have put to shame."
And I saw someone about to approach us resembling him, even him who was laughing on the tree. And he was filled with a Holy Spirit, and he is the Savior. And there was a great, ineffable light around them, and the multitude of ineffable and invisible angels blessing them. And when I looked at him, the one who gives praise was revealed. And he said to me, "Be strong, for you are the one to whom these mysteries have been given, to know them through revelation, that he whom they crucified is the first-born, and the home of demons, and the stony vessel, in which they dwell, of Elohim, of the cross, which is under the Law. But he who stands near him is the living Savior, the first in him, whom they seized and released, who stands joyfully looking those who did him violence, while they are divided among themselves. Therefore he laughs at their lack of perception, knowing that they are born blind. So then the one susceptible to suffering shall come, since the body is the substitute. But what they released was my incorporeal body. But I am the intellectual Spirit filled with radiant light. He whom you saw coming to me is our intellectual Pleroma , which unites the perfect light with my Holy Spirit."
"These things, then, which you saw you shall present to those of another race who are not of this age (i.e., the Arabs who then became Muslims). For there will be no honor in any man who is not immortal, which has shown that it is able to contain him who gives his abundance. Therefore I said, "Every one who has, it will be given to him, and he will have plenty." But he who does not have, that is, the man of this place, who is completely dead, who is removed from the planting of the creation of what is begotten, whom, if one of the immortal essence appears, they think that they possess him - it will be taken from him and be added to the one who is. You, therefore, be courageous and do not fear at all. For I shall be with you in order that none of your enemies may prevail unto you. Peace be to you, Be strong!"
3- Some important notes about the "blind" trinitarians from the Apocalypse:
Like I mentioned above, notice how the Revelation of Peter is original. It is not narrated by a third-party person. It was spoken and written by Saint Peter himself. There are few points I'd like to elaborate on from the Apocalypse:
1- Jesus, peace be upon him, clearly never got crucified according to the Revelation. He spoke about the "substitute" that got crucified in his place that perfectly matches the Noble Quran's Divine Claims:
"That they rejected Faith; That they uttered against Mary A grave false charge; That they said (in boast): 'We killed Christ Jesus The son of Mary, The Messenger of Allah.' But they killed him not, Nor crucified him, but so it was made to appear to them, and those who differ therein are full of doubts, with no (certain) knowledge, but only conjunction to follow, for of a surety they killed him not. Nay, Allah raised him up Unto Himself; and Allah Is Exalted in Power, Wise. And there is none of the people of the book (Jews and Christians) But must believe in him (Jesus) Before his death; And on the Day of Judgment He (Jesus) will be a witness Against them. (The Noble Quran, 4:156-159)"
(www.answering-christianity.com/isaiah_53.htm)
2-
Peter according to the NT and to the Apocalypse was the only one who witnessed
the crucifixion. There is even further evidence in
Hebrews 5:7 of the NT that clearly support Peter's Apocalypse.
3- Jesus pointed to the Arabs
as the future race when he called them "another
race." Even the New Testament supports this quote very
well:
"Therefore say I unto you, The kingdom of God shall be taken from you, and given to a nation bringing forth the fruits thereof. (From the KJV Bible, Matthew 21:43)"
(www.answering-christianity.com/god_kingdom.htm)
4-
The "blind" from the polytheist
trinitarian pagans and the others who believed and still believe that Jesus got
crucified will never prevail. They only believe in lies without certain
knowledge. Even their scriptures are all man-made as we clearly saw above in
the third-party narration proofs.
This goes well, by the way, with the following Noble Verses:
"Behold! Allah said: O Jesus! I will take thee And raise thee to Myself And clear thee (of the falsehoods) Of those who blaspheme; I will make those Who follow thee superior To those who reject faith, To the Day of Resurrection: Then shall ye all return unto me, And I will judge Between you of the matters wherein ye dispute. (The Noble Quran, 3:55)"
"That they rejected Faith; That they uttered against Mary A grave false charge; That they said (in boast): 'We killed Christ Jesus The son of Mary, The Messenger of Allah.' But they killed him not, Nor crucified him, but so it was made to appear to them, and those who differ therein are full of doubts, with no (certain) knowledge, but only conjunction to follow, for of a surety they killed him not. Nay, Allah raised him up Unto Himself; and Allah Is Exalted in Power, Wise. And there is none of the people of the book (Jews and Christians) But must believe in him (Jesus) Before his death; And on the Day of Judgment He (Jesus) will be a witness Against them. (The Noble Quran, 4:156-159)"
(www.answering-christianity.com/crucified.htm)
5-
The Apocalypse of Peter indeed confirms Peter's disowning of Jesus three times
as mentioned in the NT verses above. The Apocalypse's quote:
"as he was about to reprove you three times in
this night" clearly refers to when Peter
disowned Jesus three times.
6-
Notice the "tree" part where
Jesus was sitting on top of. There are some mixed signals/evidence in the NT
that prove the Truthfulness of the Apocalypse of Peter. The NT itself can not
make up its mind on whether the so-called crucifixion took place on a cross or
on a tree. It seems that many of the "blind"
ones back then got confused with whether or not Jesus got crucified on the cross
or on the tree. The mention of the "tree"
was obviously done by Peter and his followers. But as years and centuries
passed by (the NT was written around year 300....300 years
after Jesus!), false stories and lies were fabricated and rumored
regarding Jesus, the cross and the tree.
Let us look at the following verses:
Tree?
Acts 5
29 Then Peter and the other apostles answered and
said, We ought to obey God rather than men.
30 The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom ye slew and hanged on
a tree.
31 Him hath God exalted with his right hand to be a Prince and a Saviour, for to
give repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins.
Acts 10
38 How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy
Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were
oppressed of the devil; for God was with him.
39 And we are witnesses of all things which he did both in the land of the Jews,
and in Jerusalem; whom they slew and hanged on a tree:
40 Him God raised up the third day, and shewed him openly;
Acts 13
28 And though they found no cause of death in him,
yet desired they Pilate that he should be slain.
29 And when they had fulfilled all that was written of him, they took
him down from the tree, and laid him in a sepulchre.
30 But God raised him from the dead:
Cross?
Matthew 27
39 And they that passed by reviled him, wagging their heads,
40 And saying, Thou that destroyest the temple, and buildest it in three days,
save thyself. If thou be the Son of God, come down from the cross.
41 Likewise also the chief priests mocking him, with the scribes and elders,
said,
Matthew 27
41 Likewise also the chief priests mocking him,
with the scribes and elders, said,
42 He saved others; himself he cannot save. If he be the King of Israel,
let him now come down from the cross, and we will believe him.
43 He trusted in God; let him deliver him now, if he will have him: for he said,
I am the Son of God.
Mark 15
29 And they that passed by railed on him, wagging
their heads, and saying, Ah, thou that destroyest the temple, and buildest it in
three days,
30 Save thyself, and come down from the cross.
31 Likewise also the chief priests mocking said among themselves with the
scribes, He saved others; himself he cannot save.
Mark 15
31 Likewise also the chief priests mocking said
among themselves with the scribes, He saved others; himself he cannot save.
32 Let Christ the King of Israel descend now from the cross,
that we may see and believe. And they that were crucified with him reviled him.
33 And when the sixth hour was come, there was darkness over the whole land
until the ninth hour.
Luke 23
25 And he released unto them him that for sedition
and murder was cast into prison, whom they had desired; but he delivered Jesus
to their will.
26 And as they led him away, they laid hold upon one Simon, a Cyrenian, coming
out of the country, and on him they laid the cross, that
he might bear it after Jesus.
27 And there followed him a great company of people, and of women, which also
bewailed and lamented him.
John 19
18 Where they crucified him, and two other with
him, on either side one, and Jesus in the midst.
19 And Pilate wrote a title, and put it on the cross.
And the writing was JESUS OF NAZARETH THE KING OF THE JEWS.
20 This title then read many of the Jews: for the place where Jesus was
crucified was nigh to the city: and it was written in Hebrew, and Greek, and
Latin.
(www.answering-christianity.com/was_jesus_crucified.htm)
The Apocalypse of Peter answers this confusion!
The real Jesus was sitting on the tree, while the false servant was on the cross!
4- The current trinity lie is not different from the far eastern pagan religions:
Some might say that since most Christians today are "Trinitarians" or polytheist trinitarian pagans who believe that Jesus died on the cross for our sins, then this must mean that their religion is Divine and Truthful.
We have already seen above about what Jesus said regarding the "blind" ones. But even according to the New Testament itself, trinitarians are actually false because they are the majority and they are the "blind" ones. Let us look at the following verses:
Matthew 15:9
9 But in vain they do worship me, teaching for
doctrines the commandments of men.
Matthew 7:22-23
22 Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord,
have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in
thy name done many wonderful works?
23 And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from
me, ye that work iniquity.
The far eastern pagan religions!
It is also important to know that the earth's population is around 7.0 billion people, half of which are far-eastern pagans. Not only that, but their pagan religions (buddhism, hinduism, shintos, etc...) date 1000s of years back. This means that many billions of humans have already been doomed in Hell because of their paganism. Yet, they are the majority!
So now are they truthful because they're the overwhelming majority in numbers?
5- Did the Disciples of Jesus really die for the trinity and/or crucifixion lie?
One of the biggest myths and lies Christians ever invented was the lie of trinity and the lie of Jesus' Disciples, peace be upon them, died for this man-made belief.
First of all, it is important to know that up until the beginning of the fourth century (around year 312 or so), the Apocalypse of Peter was widely accepted among Christians. In fact, the whole reason why Constantine (Rome's Emperor at that time) decided to "unify" the Christians under one "Canon" (modern New Testaments with all of their current variations and conflicting versions) is because they were so divided among each others as to who Jesus really was and what really happened to him! Take for instance the "Infancy Gospel of Thomas", which talks about Jesus' childhood life in good details, and the mistakes (sins?) that he made as a kid and the lessons that he learned as he grew up. Listen to the AUDIO FILE here (93 seconds) from the documentary film "Banned from the Bible."
Theologians' voices are:
1- Amir Hussain, Ph.D., California State University, Northridge, CA.
2- John Dominic Crossan, Author, Excavating Jesus.
Christians fought fiercely (in
debates) among each others on who Jesus was!
To say that Jesus' disciples believed in the trinity lie is an absurd statement. Not only trinity is soundly debunked using the modern Bibles' books themselves, but even the early Christians didn't believe in the trinity lie.
Listen to this AUDIO file.
Jesus' sins when he was a "kid":
Listen to this AUDIO file.
1- Killing a boy by pushing him off of the root and then lying about it.
2- Blinding a man for no valid reason.
Theologians' voices are:
The vast popularity of the Apocalypse of Peter among early Christians
even in the 4th century!
In fact, the Apocalypse of Peter itself, according to many Christian theologians and historians, ALMOST MADE IT (audio file. 42 seconds) in the "canon", which proves:
1- The Apocalypse of Peter was well popular back then.
2- It had many followers to it.
Listen to this AUDIO from the "Banned from the Bible" documentary film.
Interpreter's Voice:
John Dominic Crossan
Author, Excavating Jesus
Film can be purchased from the History Channel's web site.
The Apocalypse of Peter was not some heretical book that came out of no where. It had strong roots and a great number of Believers!
The wrath of Rome on everybody, including the Christians:
During that time, Rome was collapsing, and it was suffered many internal corruptions and outside threats. It even suffered conflicts from Romans going against each others. The following sources prove this beyond doubt:
1- An AUDIO file of a portion from the "Banned from the Bible" documentary film. Historians, theologians and books' authors were the spokes people in this film. So it is very reliable and the information in it is both authentic and objective.
2- http://patriot.net/~carey/afa/latinclub/persecution.htm:
"There were three basic periods of the persecution. The first was from the death of Christ until right before the Great Fire of 64 A.D., which Nero falsely blamed Christians for. However, this first persecution "was a mere afterthought, and did not result in any general proscription" (Cary and Scullard, p. 487). The second period lasted from the end of the first until around 250 A.D., and the final one spanned the years from 250/251, the persecution under Decius, until 313. Up until 250, the persecution was sporadic and localized. However, from 250-251 the Emperor Decius instituted what Michael Grant, an eminent classical historian, calls a "systematic persecution of the Christians" (Grant, p. 157). During this persecution, Decius even executed Pope Fabianus, after which he supposedly remarked: "I would far rather receive news of a rival to the throne than of another bishop in Rome.""
"The Christians were persecuted for a variety of reasons. First, they denied the basis for the Roman imperium (‘command, rule, empire, supreme power') by advocating that their God was the only real God. This denied the existence of the pagan Roman gods. These same Roman gods, in a sense, founded Rome, because according to legend and popular belief, Romulus, the offspring of the Roman god of war, Mars, founded the city of Rome in 753 B.C. This gave the Romans a divine basis for their temporal power. When the Christians denied the existence of Mars, they attacked the foundation of Roman power. Since they were attacking Roman authority and power, the Romans came to view Christians as a threat to the state....."
The threat of Religion to the pagan Rome was definitely one of the main reasons why religious people as a whole (Jews and early Christians) were persecuted and killed. There is not a single shred of evidence that proves:
(a)- The Disciples of Jesus believed in the polytheist trinity paganism.
(b)- Died for this false and man-made belief.
(c)- Died for the belief that Jesus died on the cross. They were not even the authors of the "gospels" that were attributed to them. See below for more proofs.