Dating The Crucifixion
See also: Chronology of Jesus#year of death estimatesAstronomical determinations of the date of the crucifixion have been derived from calculating the dates when the crescent of the new moon would be first visible from Jerusalem, which was used by the Jews to mark the first day of a lunar month, for example Nisan 1. Popular estimates have been April 7, 30 AD, April 3, 33 AD, and April 23, 34 AD.
Extra-biblical records have been incorporated with the determinations of the year of the crucifixion. Eusebius connected the solar darkening with the 18th year of Tiberius’ reign and the earthquakes to the year of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. Since Tiberius (42 BC – 37 AD) ascended the throne in 14 AD, the 18th year of his reign would have occurred in 32 AD, or, using Jewish ecclesiastical reckoning, between Spring of 32 and Spring of 33. Also, the darkening recorded by Phlegon yielded 32 or 33 AD. The fourth year of the 202nd Olympiad ran from summer of 32 to summer of 33 AD because the first Olympiad occurred in 776 BC. The Olympics were conducted every four years from 776 BC until 393 AD.
Read more about this topic: Crucifixion Darkness And Eclipse
Famous quotes containing the words dating and/or crucifixion:
“We go on dating from Cold Fridays and Great Snows; but a little colder Friday, or greater snow would put a period to man’s existence on the globe.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)
“The Crucifixion and other historical precedents notwithstanding, many of us still believe that outstanding goodness is a kind of armor, that virtue, seen plain and bare, gives pause to criminality. But perhaps it is the other way around.”
—Mary McCarthy (1912–1989)