basically, jesus gets kind of a bad press in the Talmud, which isn't really surprising, because the relationship between jews and christians went very bad fairly quickly and by the time this stuff all gets written down, 200-400 CE it has degenerated from name-calling and shopping each other to the romans all the way into full-blown propaganda and schism. the rabbis don't actually refer to christians explicitly, but they are generally included and sometimes specifically meant by terms such as "heretics" and "sectarians" - although it is not always christians that are referred to - the heretics in question may be samaritans (although the term "kutim" is the general derogatory term for the samaritans) essenes, karaites, or whatever other type of weirdo.
jesus in particular is a target for ridicule partly because of (to the rabbinic perspective) the apparently laughable claims of his supporters. the tone is usually somewhat pythonesque: "immaculate conception? yeah, right. pull the other one. we know how babies are made. doesn't know who his father is? G!D? some bloody roman more likely. in fact, this bloke down the pub told me his name. yeah, his actual name. everyone knows it was him." this is where the name of panthera, or "potiris" is mentioned - it's an obviously non-jewish greek name, hence the general derisive nickname for jesus, "ben potiris".
however, christians are not, if you ask me, particularly singled out. the rabbis were more than happy to rubbish anyone they disliked. aside from heretics and christians, there were a lot of people they disapproved of and were thoroughly rude about including: karaites, sadducees (because they disapproved of the oral Law) samaritans, chaldeans, fire-worshippers (zoroastrians), ignorant [jewish] people, superstitious people, witches, wizards and other magicians and every variety of idol-worshipper - in fact idol-worshippers get an entire tractate to themselves which goes through how to avoid any association with them. christians, incidentally, are not considered idol-worshippers, but "followers of ben potiris", in other words, heretics, but still jews. basically the rabbis make pretty free with their invective, which is generally fairly vitriolic and often more than a little hilarious in its inventiveness. for example, you shouldn't leave your horse at an idol-worshipper's inn, because "everyone knows" that such people are prone to get drunk and shag anything in sight, particularly animals.
"toledoth yeshu", however, is not a respectable or canonical text; as far as i am aware it is a piece of propganda pamphleteering, pure and simple. it is not a religious source, merely a historical curiosity.
b'shalom
bananabrain
