What are peoples thoughts on finding of Jesus' tomb?

Answer 1

I think James Cameron's sensationalizing the finding of an ordinary 1st century tomb. The names on the ossuaries are not unique--they are typical names you would find in that era. And he claims it's where the James ossuary was found, even though the person who claimed it was original was caught with a ton of "artifacts" he was creating in his home, and who later admitted it was a forgery.

Answer 2

I have read the case, and they have better sourcing than the Bible. There is also limited testable physical evidence to back it up. That ain't a real high standard, but it is still more evidence that there was a Jesus at all than the book that Christians follow, and since I already wouldn't argue against a historical Jesus it is quite fair for me to argue that this is what it looks like.

I have also read what little I could find on the case against. I am sure there will be more later. It was pretty hard to follow because I don't have an advanced degree in writing styles, but they were arguing style and the date because of the style. The guys site that was against it was more than fair because he had about 10 pages of back and forth emails with three guys on the other side. I have no idea who was right and it could probably be argued forever. I know for sure that he was well credentialed, didn't seem to have a bias, and thought it dated 9th century which means no way.

One thing that I have not been able to find, that I am sure was done was radiological dating. I haven't seen a single test result here, but that would go a long way to deciding the paragraph above. C14 dating is certainly accurate enough to decide 800 years difference 2000 years ago.

The write ups are pretty short on details because they want you to watch the show on Sunday, but you can bet I will watch. Let me say that right now I think there is slightly more chance than not that they have exactly what they say they have. The guys doing it have a little too much of a reputation to risk it without at least a solid case.

The big thing is there is a ton more evidence that I have already seen than for claims like they found the Ark. If this agreed with Christian ideas they would already have this guy up for a Nobel Prize.

Answer 3

The tomb has been described in the Bible as being hewn into solid rock. Basically, a cave. This was common in those days among people that could afford it. It was basically donated. The Bible also tells us about the large stone being rolled across the entrance....and other details, so many which contradicts this so called tomb they recently found.
Also, the names found scratched into this thing they found were very common then. Just as common as Bill, Dave, Mary, Sue...etc. are today.

Answer 4

It's suspect at best. It would be like digging up a tomb in the future from our time with the names Bobby, Greg, and Cindy on it, and assuming you found The Brady Bunch There is nothing to suggest that these names are the same people as those in the Bible.

Answer 5

I think this is not the tomb of the mythical Jesus, but that of a middle class family from Jerusalem of the 1st century A.D. who had some family members with names like Jesus, Joseph, Mary and Judah, names that where very common among Jews of that era. all of these names, spelled in the correct Hebrew form, and not in the Latin form, are very common among Jews even today.
Yehoshua, Yehuda, yosef, Miriam, etc. all common Hebrew names.

Answer 6

Be a good TV show, but thats all. How would anyone be able to prove or disprove anything at all? Just because the names are the same doesn't mean very much. There would have to be heaps of other evidence as well.

Answer 7

No one found Jesus tomb,He is very much alive.

Answer 8

My thoughts are you need to get your facts straight.


Feb. 26, 2007, 2:11PM
James Cameron's Lost Tomb of Christ faces criticism


By KAREN MATTHEWS
Associated Press

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NEW YORK — Filmmakers and researchers on Monday unveiled two ancient stone boxes they said may have once contained the remains of Jesus and Mary Magdalene, but several scholars derided the claims made in a new documentary as unfounded and contradictory to basic Christian beliefs.

"The Lost Tomb of Jesus," produced by Oscar-winning director James Cameron and scheduled to air March 4 on the Discovery Channel, argues that 10 small caskets discovered in 1980 in a Jerusalem suburb may have held the bones of Jesus and his family.

One of the caskets even bears the title, "Judah, son of Jesus," hinting that Jesus may have had a son, according to the film.

"There's a definite sense that you have to pinch yourself," Cameron said Monday at a news conference. He told NBC'S "Today" show earlier that statisticians found "in the range of a couple of million to one" in favor of the documentary's conclusions about the caskets, or ossuaries.

Simcha Jacobovici, the Toronto filmmaker who directed the film, said that a name on one of the ossuaries — "Mariamene" — offers evidence that the tomb is that of Jesus and his family. In early Christian texts, "Mariamene" is the name of Mary Magdalene, he said.

The very fact that Jesus had an ossuary would contradict the Christian belief that he was resurrected and ascended to heaven.

Most Christians believe Jesus' body spent three days at the site of the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem's Old City. The burial site identified in Cameron's documentary is in a southern Jerusalem neighborhood nowhere near the church.

In 1996, when the British Broadcasting Corp. aired a short documentary on the same subject, archaeologists challenged the claims. 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.

Shimon Gibson, one of three archaeologists who first discovered the tomb in 1980, said Monday of the film's claims: "I'm skeptical, but that's the way I am. I'm willing to accept the possibility."

The film's claims, however, have raised the ire of Christian leaders in the Holy Land.

Stephen Pfann, a biblical scholar at the University of the Holy Land in Jerusalem who was interviewed in the documentary, said the film's hypothesis holds little weight.

"I don't think that Christians are going to buy into this," Pfann said. "But skeptics, in general, would like to see something that pokes holes into the story that so many people hold dear."

"How possible is it?" Pfann said. "On a scale of one through 10 — 10 being completely possible — it's probably a one, maybe a one and a half."

Pfann is even unsure that the name "Jesus" on the caskets was read correctly. He thinks it's more likely the name "Hanun." Ancient Semitic script is notoriously difficult to decipher.

Kloner also said the filmmakers' assertions are false. "The names on the caskets are the most common names found among Jews at the time," he said.

William Dever, an expert on near eastern archaeology and anthropology, who has worked with Israeli archeologists for five decades, said specialists have known about the ossuaries for years.

"The fact that it's been ignored tells you something," said Dever, professor emeritus at the University of Arizona. "It would be amusing if it didn't mislead so many people."

Osnat Goaz, a spokeswoman for the Israeli government agency responsible for archaeology, said the Antiquities Authority agreed to send two ossuaries to New York, but they did not contain human remains. "We agreed to send the ossuaries, but it doesn't mean that we agree with" the filmmakers, she said.


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Associated Press Writer Marshall Thompson contributed to this report from Jerusalem and AP Religion Writer Rachel Zoll contributed from New York.

Answer 9

No way my Saviour rose from the dead.He was put in a borrowed tomb.No one knows for sure where.Read the new testament in the Bible.

Answer 10

They are nuts. None of this disproves the resurection of Jesus Christ. I hope they like hot weather.