Extra-biblical references to Jesus and Christianity

During a discussion of William Shakespeare, a student asked the old professor about the en vogue theory that Shakespeare did not write the plays ascribed to him.
The professor growled, "Young man, if Shakespeare did not write those plays,then they were written by someone who lived at the same time and had the same name!" 

The following are early extra-biblical references to Jesus and/or Christians by non-Christian writers.  Quotes are copied from the accompanying links, unless otherwise noted. 

Josephus <http://www.bartleby.com/65/jo/Josephus.html> (A.D. 37 - c. A.D. 100) 
Josephus' Antiquities <http://www.ccel.org/j/josephus/JOSEPHUS.HTM> (early 2nd century A.D.) refers to Jesus in two separate passages. The common translation of the first passage, Book 18, Ch. 3, part 3 <http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/ptext?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0146&query=whiston%20chapter%3D%23231&layout=&loc=18.63> is disputed and is most likely from an altered source. F. F. Bruce has provided a more likely translation: 
Now there arose at this time a source of further trouble in one Jesus, a wise man who performed surprising works, a teacher of men who gladly welcome strange things. He led away many Jews, and also many of the Gentiles. He was the so-called Christ. When Pilate, acting on information supplied by the chief men around us, condemned him to the cross, those who had attached themselves to him at first did not cease to cause trouble, and the tribe of Christians, which has taken this name from him is not extinct even today. 
The translations of this passage are discussed in Josephus: Testimonium Flavianum <http://jesus.com.au/html/page/josephus> from Jesus.com.au <http://jesus.com.au/html/page/home>. 
The second passage is from Book 20, Ch. 9, part 1 <http://www.ccel.org/j/josephus/works/ant-20.htm>: 
...so he assembled the sanhedrim of judges, and brought before them the brother of Jesus, who was called Christ, whose name was James, and some others, [or, some of his companions]; and when he had formed an accusation against them as breakers of the law, he delivered them to be stoned... 
(Note: The Antiquities can be found at several different sites, including the Christian Classics Ethereal Library <http://www.ccel.org/j/josephus/JOSEPHUS.HTM>, Perseus Digital Library <http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/ptext?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0146&layout=&loc=1.1&query=toc> and Crosswalk.com <http://bible.crosswalk.com/History/BC/FlaviusJosephus/>) 

Tacitus <http://www.encyclopedia.com/html/t/tacitus2.asp> (c. A.D. 55 - c. A.D. 117) 
Annals, book XV <http://classics.mit.edu/Tacitus/annals.11.xv.html>: 
Consequently, to get rid of the report, Nero fastened the guilt and inflicted the most exquisite tortures on a class hated for their abominations, called Christians by the populace. Christus, from whom the name had its origin, suffered the extreme penalty during the reign of Tiberius at the hands of one of our procurators, Pontius Pilatus, and a most mischievous superstition, thus checked for the moment, again broke out not only in Judaea, the first source of the evil, but even in Rome, where all things hideous and shameful from every part of the world find their centre and become popular. 

Suetonius <http://www.encyclopedia.com/html/s/suetoniu.asp> (c. A.D. 69 - c. A.D. 140) 
Lives of the Caesars - Claudius <http://www.historyinfilm.com/claudius/classics/12caesar/claudius3.htm>, sec. 25: 
He banished from Rome all the Jews, who were continually making disturbances at the instigation of one Chrestus. 
Lives of the Caesars - Nero <http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/ancient/suet-nero-rolfe.html>, sec. 16 
Punishment was inflicted on the Christians, a class of men given to a new and mischievous superstition. 

Julius Africanus <http://www.encyclopedia.com/html/a/africanu.asp> (c. 160 - c. 240) 
Chronography, XVIII <http://www.ccel.org/fathers2/ANF-06/anf06-50.htm> refers to writings by Thallus and Phlegon concerning the darkness during the Crucifixion: 
On the whole world there pressed a most fearful darkness; and the rocks were rent by an earthquake, and many places in Judea and other districts were thrown down. This darkness Thallus, in the third book of his History, calls, as appears to me without reason, an eclipse of the sun...Phlegon records that, in the time of Tiberius Caesar, at full moon, there was a full eclipse of the sun from the sixth hour to the ninth - manifestly that one of which we speak. 

Lucian <http://www.tektonics.org/jesusexist/lucian.html#lucrel> (c. 120 - c. 180)
From this satirist and playwright of the second century, we have two quotes from a play entitled "The Passing of Peregrinus." The hero of the tale, Peregrinus, was a Cynic philosopher who became a Christian, rose in prominence in the Christian community, then returned to Cynicism. Lucian's attack is not so much on Christianity, but on the person of Peregrinus, who took advantage of the Christians' simplicity and gullibility. [Alli.Luc, 99] 
The first quotes tells of Peregrinus, who learned "the wondrous lore of the Christians," became one of their leaders and was revered as a god, lawgiver, and protector, "next after that other, to be sure, whom they (the Christians) still worship, the man who was crucified in Palestine because he introduced this new cult to the world." [Harm.Luc, 13] The second quote, regarding these same Christians: "Then, too, their first lawgiver persuaded them that they are all brothers...after they have thrown over and denied the gods of Greece and have done reverence to that crucifed sophist himself and live according to his laws.

Pliny the Younger <http://www.bartleby.com/people/PlinyYng.html> (c. 62 - c. 113) 
Letters, 10.96-97 <http://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/jod/texts/pliny.html> records Pliny's dealings with Christians 

Pliny to the Emperor Trajan
It is my practice, my lord, to refer to you all matters concerning which I am in doubt. For who can better give guidance to my hesitation or inform my ignorance? I have never participated in trials of Christians. I therefore do not know what offenses it is the practice to punish or investigate, and to what extent. And I have been not a little hesitant as to whether there should be any distinction on account of age or no difference between the very young and the more mature; whether pardon is to be granted for repentance, or, if a man has once been a Christian, it does him no good to have ceased to be one; whether the name itself, even without offenses, or only the offenses associated with the name are to be punished. 
Meanwhile, in the case of those who were denounced to me as Christians, I have observed the following procedure: I interrogated these as to whether they were Christians; those who confessed I interrogated a second and a third time, threatening them with punishment; those who persisted I ordered executed. For I had no doubt that, whatever the nature of their creed, stubbornness and inflexible obstinacy surely deserve to be punished. There were others possessed of the same folly; but because they were Roman citizens, I signed an order for them to be transferred to Rome. ...
They asserted, however, that the sum and substance of their fault or error had been that they were accustomed to meet on a fixed day before dawn and sing responsively a hymn to Christ as to a god, and to bind themselves by oath, not to some crime, but not to commit fraud, theft, or adultery, not falsify their trust, nor to refuse to return a trust when called upon to do so. When this was over, it was their custom to depart and to assemble again to partake of food--but ordinary and innocent food. Even this, they affirmed, they had ceased to do after my edict by which, in accordance with your instructions, I had forbidden political associations. Accordingly, I judged it all the more necessary to find out what the truth was by torturing two female slaves who were called deaconesses. But I discovered nothing else but depraved, excessive superstition. 
Trajan to Pliny
You observed proper procedure, my dear Pliny, in sifting the cases of those who had been denounced to you as Christians. For it is not possible to lay down any general rule to serve as a kind of fixed standard. They are not to be sought out; if they are denounced and proved guilty, they are to be punished, with this reservation, that whoever denies that he is a Christian and really proves it--that is, by worshiping our gods--even though he was under suspicion in the past, shall obtain pardon through repentance. But anonymously posted accusations ought to have no place in any prosecution. For this is both a dangerous kind of precedent and out of keeping with the spirit of our age. 

Behind the call for additional non-Christian witnesses to the existence of Jesus is the refusal to accept the testimony of the four writers we do have. Should we reject the four because they are not forty? The silence of the imaginary majority cannot overthrow the clear testimony of the few. This demand for other witnesses reminds me of the anecdote about a man accused of theft. At his trial the prosecuting attorney brought forward four witnesses who saw him commit the crime, while the defense attorney introduced as evidence fourteen persons who did not see him do it. Needless to say, the man was found guilty!