Resources > Ask Jeff The Jesus Tomb Posted by Rev. Jeff Dixon, Senior Equipping Minister, CCC Ministries on Feb 27, 2007, 10:11

The Jesus Tomb

It is that time of year. Spring brings a number of things that signal the subtle movement from winter to the coming warmth and new life of spring. Somewhere along the months the bitter winter cold fades and the snow begins to melt. The temperature climbs and the days get longer. Winter coats are put away and the more comfortable colors and fabrics of spring emerge. Then of course there is the customary annual attempt to prove that Jesus really didn’t exist as the Bible says He did. Is that a part of the annual passing of the seasons that you have missed? Well go back and think about it.

Each year as spring begins to unfold there is another book, film, story, discovery, or media event that attempts to try to disprove the reality of who Jesus is and what He came to do. Now in other parts of the world or segments of society this type of comment would cause riots in the streets, burning of churches, cries of discriminatory speech, and charges of bias and hatred. When these types of statements are made against Jesus and the followers of Jesus Christ, many readily accept them, they make national news, and when Christ Followers respond they are often ignored or regarded as silly. The civilized response of those who follow Jesus stem from the fact that they actually do believe and follow Jesus and attempt to live their lives by what He taught and commanded. So instead of riots they love, instead of screaming and demanding (some scream and demand, but in the end they look silly) they speak with a clarity and confidence, instead of whining and complaining they understand and expect this type of attack to be the norm not the exception. Interestingly enough the reason that these attempts to discredit or disprove Christianity keep showing up and gaining traction is because the followers of Jesus don’t really do a very good job at understanding, defending, communicating and sharing their faith. Mix this with the skepticism on steroids that many people possess in life and all of the sudden this Easter tradition of attempting to disprove faith is now a part of not only American culture but a worldwide phenomena.

Recent history reminds of us items like the famous DaVinci Code, The Jesus Papers, and The Gospel of Judas. Now here comes the “titanic” announcement from film producer James Cameron that he has found the tomb of Jesus! This tomb contains the entire family of Jesus including his wife, son, mother, and others. Fortunately for the world this great film producer is going to share this with the world in his new documentary and book on the subject. And here is startling news, once again, it is just time for the Easter season.

On Monday, February 26, 2007 a press conference was held to announce; "The Lost Tomb of Christ," which the Discovery Channel will run on March 4, 2007 (and later release on DVD) which suggests that 10 ancient ossuaries (small caskets used to store bones) discovered in a suburb of Jerusalem in 1980 may have contained 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. And the very fact that Jesus had an ossuary would contradict the Christian belief that he was resurrected and ascended to heaven.

Cameron and a team of scholars showed two stone ossuaries, or bone boxes, that he said might have once contained the bones of Jesus and Mary Magdalene. These findings are what will be shown in the documentary and a book "The Jesus Family Tomb."

Several had inscriptions translated as Jesus, Mary Magdalene and "Judah, son of Jesus," Cameron informed in the news conference at the New York Public Library surrounded by scholars and archeologists.

"This is the beginnings of an ongoing investigation," Cameron said. "If things come to light that erode this investigation, then so be it."

Now that is interesting…because what James Cameron is suggesting is exactly what happens every year and then all evidence that debunks and erodes these types of claims is promptly ignored. As a matter of fact, he himself as a documentary maker has had to ignore historical and factual evidence that carries stronger credibility than the assumptions and presuppositions he bases his discoveries on.

So what is it that those that get upset by these kinds of things need to remember and need to be ready to respond with?

Here are a few things to bring to the conversation.

A British archeologist who worked with Cameron, Dr. Shimon Gibson, admitted he's "skeptical" about the claims that challenge some of the central tenets of Christianity.

Dr. Gibson, who was one of the first people to examine the caskets 27 years ago, now says: "Entering the tomb in 1980 I didn't imagine this would become such an international focus.

"These are typical stone caskets from the first century. There are a lot of aspects that need to be looked at. A lot of new research has to be done. I'm skeptical."

In Jerusalem, the Israeli archeologist who also carried out excavations at the tomb on behalf of the Israel Antiquities Authority, disputed the documentary's conclusions.

The archeologist, Amos Kloner, said the 2,000-year-old cave contained coffins belonging to a Jewish family whose names were similar to those of Jesus and his relatives.

"I can say positively that I don't accept the identification (as) ... belonging to the family of Jesus in Jerusalem," Kloner told Reuters. "I don't accept that the family of Miriam and Yosef (Mary and Joseph), the parents of Jesus, had a family tomb in Jerusalem."

"They were a very poor family. They resided in Nazareth, they came to Bethlehem in order to have the birth done there -- so I don't accept it, not historically, not archeologically," said Kloner, a professor in the Department of Land of Israel Studies and Archeology at Bar-Ilan University near Tel Aviv.

"They just want to get money for it," Kloner said. "It was an ordinary middle-class Jerusalem burial cave," he added. "The names on the caskets are the most common names found among Jews at the time."

"The historical, religious and archaeological evidence show that the place where Christ was buried is the Church of the Resurrection," said Attallah Hana, a Greek Orthodox clergyman in Jerusalem.

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," he said. "But sceptics, in general, would like to see something that pokes holes into the story that so many people hold dear."

"How possible is it?" he added. "On a scale of one through ten, with ten 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 is more likely the name Hanun. Ancient Semitic script is notoriously difficult to decipher.

Professor L. Michael White, of the University of Texas, said he also doubted the claims were true.

"This is trying to sell documentaries," he said, adding a series of strict tests needed to be conducted before a bone box or inscription could be confirmed as ancient. "This is not archeologically sound, this is fanfare."

Archaeologists also balk at the filmmaker's claim that the James Ossuary (the center of a famous antiquities fraud in Israel) might have originated from the same cave. In 2005, Israel charged five suspects with forgery in connection with the infamous bone box. Since the James Ossuary is readily accepted as a fake then this surely is a weak offering of proof for the reliability of the claims concerning the Jesus Tomb.

"I don't think the James Ossuary came from the same cave," said Dan Bahat, an archaeologist at Bar-Ilan University. "If it were found there, the man who made the forgery would have taken something better. He would have taken Jesus."

The cave or tomb itself is not a new discovery, it has been looked at and studies now for a number of years. Cameron has not really found anything new he is just repackaging an old argument, suspect evidence, non-credible science, and skepticism in a brand-new slick package…just in time for an Easter release. It is fantastic marketing, and there is nothing wrong with that. However creating fictional facts, as others have made a career of doing, makes a mockumentary of the documentary and at the end of the day it sinks when the credits roll. It matters little to the reality of who Jesus is.

 So lets summarize why this is really not the tomb of Jesus Christ and why the suggestion is weak and somewhat comical.

First, The discovery is not new.

As the article explains this has been a discovery that has been poked at, looked at, shared, and studied for a long time. It is not new and it holds no more credibilty today than it did when it was found and explored the first time.

Second, According to studies and reports this is not the first tomb discovered in the Middle East with names and or combination of names found included. You are going to hear a great deal about the statistical probablilty of finding this combination of names. However, because of the common names found that means little. Also if you were to pay extremely close attention and try to match up where people may have actually died, the historical account of the people in the Bible would indicate that they would not have ended up back in this tomb in Jerusalem.

Third, The fact that this was found in Jerusalem would mean that that family of Jesus would have had a tomb there. To get them here you would have to throw out the record of where they lived and how nothing indicates they would have ever lived in Jerusalem with a good honest look at history. To make the assumption they got to Jerusalem and lived there and happened to get a tomb to be buried in a place that was never their home involves making a reckless statement of faith.

Fourth, There is nothing to indicate that the family of Jesus would have had the wealth to own a tomb like this, in Jerusalem. Even if a follower of Jesus would have donated the tomb, then the probability of gathering the family members to be buried there would be very unlikely at best. The only Christian teachings that suggest Jesus and his family had great wealth are some of the teachers of the "faith movement" or are heavily involved in "televangelism." This teaching just does not hold up in Scripture, so is easily dismissed or disproven.

Fifth, There of course were the 500 plus eye witnesses to the risen Jesus Christ. Throughout the first century these accounts and the validity of these people were beyond question and could not be disproved. It is fascinating how now, years later, so many want to discount or ignore what was unable to be disproven by those that actually gave the reports to the risen Jesus. And remember, the Roman rulers really had in their best interests the need to disprove that Jesus was alive. They could not with all the power of Rome behind them. So today, years later, bad research and weak assumptions often carry more clout for some than the reality and honesty of the reports and histories of the people who lived it.

Now with those 5 reasons you can have enough info to sink the titanic tomb discovery of James Cameron. But don't be afraid to have the conversations, this is yet another chance to talk about Jesus. Don't miss the opportunity!

Bonus Material !

Here are some additional resources to help you in your investigation of this ongoing, not original, and same old questioning relating to the reality of Jesus, the married to Mary myth, and more...

What is the Gospel of Judas?
The Gospel of Judas has now been made public based upon a discovery by National Geographic. In a culture where The DaVinci Code has captured the attention of many spiritually this document adds to some of that intrigue. So what is it? What does it contain? What does it have to do with the Christian faith...Judas...and Jesus?

Frequently Asked Questions About The DaVinci Code
Here are some commonly asked questions about The DaVicni Code by Christians who are wondering whether or not they should even be concerned with the book and movie.

How can we trust the reliability of the Scriptures?
How can we trust the reliability of the Scriptures?

Were there other authentic sources or gospels that were discarded in the process?

Here’s a quote from the book. One of the characters in The Da Vinci Code says, “The Bible is a product of man, my dear, not of God. History has never had a definitive version of the book. The Bible as we know it today was collated by the pagan Roman Emperor Constantine the Great in 325 AD.” This questions the Scripture. How did we get it? How do we know we can trust it?

Was Jesus married to Mary ?
Was Jesus married to Mary?
Did they have a child named Sarah? (Although the James Cameron claim suggests there was a son named Judah)
How can we know, there would surely be proof if this were true...wouldn't there?

DeCode the DaVinci Code
First as a runaway bestselling novel and now a major motion picture release, The DaVinci Code has captivated the imagination of millions.

The charges it makes against historic Christianity are colorful and interesting...but are they true, or are they merely inaccurate accounts of centuries old myths and heresies?

DIG
A Mystery from the past unlocks the future in this exciting time of Celebration Worship at CCC! The viewer and the guests become a part of the adventure in this very special worship event. In this section you can explore the entire event, check the 3 part film created for DIG, watch the blooper reel, and discover some information about the research and articles written about the wildly controversial "James Ossuary" or "Bone Box". You can even get a glimpse at the "behind the scenes" overview of the DIG experience.