I hate seeing "the religion of peace" bullshit here.

[bhikkhu]

146. the bible is a compilation of various accounts

...which is the sort of "historical record" we have for most things that far back. Of course, it could have been concocted, and it was almost certainly embellished, cleaned up and skewed deliberately over the years before the council of Nicea. But I don't see much point in the "there's no historical record" argument, as it has a rather large exception. What passes for historical record is often little more than anecdote, and plenty of other things considered historical (though still openly questioned and debated over) are only known from one or two documents. The debate is a valuable one, but a mind clear of agendas is best (easier said than done, given the topic).

One of the best books I've read dissecting the bible is "james, the Brother of Jesus" by Eisenman. Another very good one (though less scholarly) putting together what we know of the time and place is "Rabbi Jesus" by Chilton. If I remember right, the linking of the riot at the temple with the crucifixion of Jesus and the other "murderer" involved comes from that book.

One of the things to remember is that after the Roman destruction of Jerusalem, shortly after Jesus's death, the language and culture of that time was more or less extinguished. Current scholarship has gifted us with a better understanding of Aramaic and better access to original texts than has been the case for nearly two thousand years. I suppose the origin of my interest comes from 8 years of catholic schooling, but it is essentially academic. The bible remains a good primary source of material, along with many others.