with terms of the vilest
opprobrium. It only became familiar when the virtues of Christians had
shed lustre upon it, and when alike in its true form, and in the
ignorant mispronunciation "Chrestians," it readily lent itself to
valuable allegorical meanings.

[31] According to John of Antioch and the _Chronicon Paschale_, Nero was
originally favorable to the Christians, and put Pilate to death, for
which the Jews plotted his murder. Poppaea's Judaism is inferred from her
refusing to be burned, and requesting to be embalmed; from her adopting
the custom of wearing a veil in the streets; from the favor which she
showed to Aliturus and Josephus; and from the fact that Josephus speaks
of her as a religious woman.

[32] Tiberius Alexander, the nephew of Philo, afterward procurator of
Judea, was a person of influence at Rome; but he was a renegade, and
would not be likely to hate the Christians. It is, however, remarkable
that legend attributed the anger of Nero to the conversion of his
mistress and a favorite slave.

[33] St. Peter--apparently thinking of the fire at Rome and its
consequences--calls the persecution from which the Christians were
suffering when he wrote his First Epistle a "conflagration."

[34] Tertullian mentions one of these coarse caricatures--a figure with
one foot hoofed, wearing a toga, carrying a book, and with long ass's
ears, under which was written, "The God of the Christians, Onokoites."
He says that Christians were actually charged with worshipping the head
of an ass. The same preposterous calumny, with many others, is alluded
to by Minucius Felix. The Christians were hence called _Asinarii_.
Analogous calumnies were aimed at the Jews.

[35] Tertullian says that "Nero was the first who raged with the sword
of Caesar against this sect, which was then specially rising at Rome."

[36] James Russell Lowell: _The Present Crisis_.

[37] "Bronze-beard." Ahenobarbus was the name of a plebeian family to
which Nero belonged.

THE GREAT JEWISH REVOLT

SIEGE AND DESTRUCTION OF JERUSALEM

A.D. 70

JOSEPHUS

From A.D. 66 events of great moment occurred in Palestine. The Jews
were in the throes of revolt against the Roman Government. At the
same time the chief factions of the revolutionary party were
constantly fighting each other. One of these factions was led by
the famous John of Gischala, another by Simon bar Gioras, and a
third by Eleazar. These factions o