The reason the Romans didn't like Christians initially was that, like the Jews, Christians didn't acknowledge the divinity of Caesar. The main change in the stories was the separation of the followers of Jesus from "the Jews", as by the second half of the first century, the leaders of the temple cult, formerly agents of Roman rule, had made themselves very unpopular, hence the destruction of the temple and Massada.

Later, the Roman Empire assimilated the Jesus Cult, with the result that the Bishop of Rome ended up acquiring some of the Emperor's titles, such as "Pontiff".