'Jesus tomb found' in Jerusalem" - BBC News - Monday, 26 February 2007, 15:23 GMT?

Question

Is it true? The news says that Jesus had a son named Judah and was buried alongside Mary Magdalene, according to a new documentary by Hollywood film director James Cameron.
It examines a tomb that, it is claimed, belonged to Jesus and his family, and was found in Jerusalem in 1980.
The Oscar-winning director of Titanic says statistical analysis and DNA show the tomb is that of Jesus.

Why BBC news has put this news in their Today's Headline?

I will appreciate your answers with reference or proof.

Answer 1

I like to add...... The entire theory is based upon the statistical improbability of these names belonging to another family than that of Jesus Christ. However, it should be noted that 25% of the women in Jesus’ day were named Mary. Joseph was also a common name. And about one in ten had the name, “Jesua”.

Each name with the exception of Mariamene seemed common to their period, and it was only in 1996 that the BBC made a film suggesting that, given the combination, it might be that family.

The idea was eventually discounted, however, because, as University of St. Andrews (Scotland) New Testament expert Richard Bauckham asserted in a subsequent book, the names with Biblical resonance are so common that even when you run the probabilities on the group, the odds of it being the famous Jesus' family are "very low."

And the inference that Mariamene e Mara was Mary Magdalene, as Cameron and Jacobovici assert, is not agreed upon by experts. Bauckham notes, “If ‘Jesus’ and ‘Mariamene’ weren't related matrilineally, why jump to the conclusion that they were husband and wife, rather than being related through their fathers? He adds, “The first use of ‘Mariamene’ for Magdalene dates to a scholar who was born in 185, suggesting that Magdalene wouldn't have been called that at her death.

It is the fact that these particular names have been discovered in the same tomb that has fuelled speculation that it really could be Jesus’ tomb. But there are many contradictory questions that need to be answered before one jumps to a conclusion that overturns centuries of historical scholarship.

IF IT REALLY WAS JESUS' TOMB---

1. Why don’t Cameron and Jacobovici cite scholars who disagree with their conclusions? For example, in 1996, when the British Broadcasting Corp. aired a short documentary on the same subject, archaeologists challenged the claims.

2. Since the custom was to bury the dead in their home town, why would Mary and Joseph’s family tomb be in Jerusalem instead of Nazareth? Middle East researcher and biblical anthropologist Joe Zias states, "It has nothing whatsoever to do with Jesus, he was known as Jesus of Nazareth, not Jesus of Jerusalem, and if the family was wealthy enough to afford a tomb, which they probably weren't, it would have been in Nazareth, not here in Jerusalem.” Zias dismisses Cameron's claims as "dishonest".

3. Why didn’t Jesus’ enemies, the Jewish leaders, expose the tomb? They searched unsuccessfully throughout Jerusalem for any evidence of Jesus’ body, claiming that Jesus’ disciples had stolen it. They hated Jesus enough to want him crucified, and would have been elated to discover his tomb, if it indeed existed.

4. Why didn’t the Romans expose the inscriptions as belonging to Jesus? Roman soldiers controlled the entire city of Jerusalem, and they knew his body was missing from a tomb they had been guarding.

5. Why didn’t contemporary Roman or Jewish historians write about the tomb? Not one single contemporary historian mentions the tomb in question.

6. Why was the James Ossuary, which has been labeled a forgery, cited by Cameron and Jacobovici as one of the reasons for the tomb‘s validity? CBS News correspondent Mark Philips reports “the archeological establishment has lined up to label this claim as bunk. This is the second time The Discovery Channel has been involved in a disputed claim about an ancient tomb,” reports Phillips. The man at the center of the previous case is now facing trial for forgery.” Ben Witherington, an early Christianity expert who was deeply involved with the James Ossuary, says “there are physical reasons to believe it couldn't have originated in the Talpiot plot.”

7. Why are Jacobovici and Cameron waiting until just prior to Easter to launch both the book and documentary? Amos Kloner, the first archaeologist to examine the site, said the idea fails to hold up by archaeological standards but makes for profitable television. "They just want to get money for it," Kloner said.

8. Why would Jesus’ disciples endure torture for claiming he was resurrected, if they knew it was a hoax? New Testament scholar Darrell Bock asks, “why would Jesus' family or followers bury his bones in a family plot and then turn around and preach that he had been physically raised from the dead?"

......this is only to sell books and movie tickets!!!!....not fact.

God Bless!

Answer 2

I think "Jesus remains" are the anti-Christ. They are calming it's him, and it has all of these people from the New Testament in it, plus the most complete Gospel of Philip (not put in to the King James bible I believe) blah blah blah, is fit's together to perfectly. So, "Jesus" has now been "resurrected". All it takes is good T.V., and every one will start to think it's true. about the Gospel though, I thought they where not written down for hundreds of years, so how would one have made it in to the tomb? Mary had a Gospel so why wouldn't it have been hers? Now with the Holy Grail story being out there (by the discovery channel) every one is going to think that this alleged "Judah" was it. I am curiose as to "Jesus" cause of death. surely if they can dig out remains from rock and tell us the causefrom 2 million years ago, then they should be able to tell us that of some one who has been in a tomb for 2000 years

Answer 3

Bar-Ilan University Prof. Amos Kloner, the Jerusalem District archeologist who officially oversaw the work at the tomb in 1980 and has published detailed findings on its contents, on Saturday night dismissed the claims. "It makes a great story for a TV film," he told The Jerusalem Post. "But it's impossible. It's nonsense."

Kloner, who said he was interviewed for the new film but has not seen it, said the names found on the ossuaries were common, and the fact that such apparently resonant names had been found together was of no significance. He added that "Jesus son of Joseph" inscriptions had been found on several other ossuaries over the years.

"There is no likelihood that Jesus and his relatives had a family tomb," Kloner said. "They were a Galilee family with no ties in Jerusalem. The Talpiot tomb belonged to a middle-class family from the 1st century CE."

Answer 4

Oh great. James Cameron wouldn't know the truth if it bit him. He is only interested in making money. His historical films only have a nodding acquaintance to history. So why is a 'documentary' by him suddenly so important. He makes fiction, he has never made a factual film, he doesn't know how.

Statistics prove whatever you want them to prove so claiming statistical analysis is invalid, meaningless. And DNA, what DNA, what is the comparison sample, where did it come from? One piece of collected DNA is meaningless on its own without a control sample.

All Cameron's evidence is meaningless.

And I would point out to the last poster, you are only getting one side of the story. Of course those who found it want it to be a big find and make their names. But, Ancient Aramaic is very hard to decipher. some scholars believe the name on the boxes is more likely to be Hunan than Jesus. And then, Jesus was a very common name in that period. Barabbas was a Jesus. There were thousands of Jesuses living at that time so what makes it likely that this one was Jesus of Nazareth. Nothing but wishful thinking.

Answer 5

But Bar Ilan University Professor Amos Kloner, a former IAA archaeologist who oversaw the excavation 27 years ago and has authored detailed reports on the findings, said the IAA was "very foolish" to loan the ossuaries.

"There is no likelihood that Jesus and his relatives had a family tomb," said Kloner.

"They were a Galilee family with no ties in Jerusalem. The Talpiot tomb belonged to a middle-class family from the first century CE [Common Era]," he said.

During an interview with the film's producers, Kloner said that "Jesus, son of Joseph" inscriptions had been found on several other ossuaries in Israel, along with the other names.

"It makes a great story for a TV film," said Kloner, "but it's impossible. It's nonsense."

That about says it all....

Answer 6

Very interesting. Unfortunately, there are too many holes in the story (see first link). Still, I'm looking forward to watching "The Lost Tomb of Jesus," which will premiere on the Discovery Channel on March 4 at 9 p.m. ET/PT (see second link). It's important to keep one's mind open in matters such as these.

Answer 7

I don't think it's true. There are many scholars who say it's just good tv.

Check out this story from the Associated Press:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070226/ap_en_mo/jesus_s_burial

Jesus was a very common name back then.

Plus where would they get DNA of Jesus to match it up against?

Also, apparenly British TV ran this same story 11 years ago...

Also, here is another one that thinks they might have the tomb of Jesus:
http://www.forteantimes.com/articles/183_jesuseast1.shtml

Answer 8

i don't have any links for you, but i do suggest you go to the Today Show's site, where they have an interview with Cameron and the archaeologist who worked on the site.

before i say anything else, i have to say, "lawdy lawdy, where did all these bible-thumping internet-goers come from??" it seems like yahoo answers is swarming with them! i'd better take cover...

i am a christian, and i love god and all that good stuff, but who am i to refute hardcore evidence, if it turns out that these bones are really jesus and his family? i'm just a naive american, and that was a team of experienced archaeologists. it would be ---foolish--- and ----thick headed--- of me (cough...) to automatically reject it because a book said the man magically disappeared.

i say if it is real, that's pretty cool. but i guess it has the potential to become a lame tourist attraction. you know, jesus family reunion mugs, t-shirts, mousepads, sports drinks...

Answer 9

You heathen love to gloat whenever something like this crops up, but you really don't understand the Christian life.

We have years of seeing God move in our lives daily. I mean ACTUALLY interact with us.
In my 19 years as a Christian, I've seen miracles, prophesies, healings, miraculous conversions, insights, words of knowledge, demons bound, people freed, etc. etc. etc.

How do you think, some "schollar's" refutation will stand up to what we've been eyewitnesses to ?!?!?

Answer 10

the ever ongoing attempts to discredit Jesus continue in a world that cannot deal with their sin or a God that loves them so much He gave His Son to redeem them.....

the logical question today is why after 26 years does this ridiculous claim come to the media?.......the next would be how can there be DNA of the risen and ascended Messiah?

the answers to these are in the truth of the Bible...Jesus lived, died and rose again.....for one reason...the Love of His Father and the redemption of all His children...rejoice today in this wonderful truth....†