Redemptive suffering He made Himself human in Jesus in order to redeem mankind: It is believed that Jesus freed mankind from the bondage of sin: Thus one may consider that God paid for mankind's freedom from sin in His human incarnation: The belief is that the price that God, in Jesus, paid for the redemption of mankind, is the Passion, that is, his suffering and agony that led directly to his Crucifixion. Christians believe that, as members of the Church, they are members of the body of Jesus Christ: Hence, orthodox Catholic theology presents the belief that our suffering can be united
Sources for the historicity of Jesus Pliny the Younger reaffirm the validity of all three accounts. Tacitus was a patriotic Roman senator and his writings shows no sympathy towards Christians. Andreas Köstenberger and separately Robert E. Van Voorst state that the tone of the passage towards Christians is far too negative to have been authored by a Christian scribe – a conclusion shared by John P. Meier Robert E. Van Voorst states that "of all Roman writers, Tacitus gives us the most precise information about Christ". John Dominic Crossan considers the passage important in establishing that Jesus existed and was crucified, and states: "That he was