Jesus: Tales from the Crypt

[CaptainCaveMan]

http://time-blog.com/middle_east/

Brace yourself. James Cameron, the man who brought you 'The Titanic' is back with another blockbuster. This time, the ship he's sinking is Christianity.

In a new documentary, Producer Cameron and his director, Simcha Jacobovici, make the starting claim that Jesus wasn't resurrected --the cornerstone of Christian faith-- and that his burial cave was discovered near Jerusalem. And, get this, Jesus sired a son with Mary Magdelene.

No, it's not a re-make of "The Da Vinci Codes'. It's supposed to be true.

Let's go back 27 years, when Israeli construction workers were gouging out the foundations for a new building in the industrial park in the Talpiyot, a Jerusalem suburb. of Jerusalem. The earth gave way, revealing a 2,000 year old cave with 10 stone caskets. Archologists were summoned, and the stone caskets carted away for examination. It took 20 years for experts to decipher the names on the ten tombs. They were: Jesua, son of Joseph, Mary, Mary, Mathew, Jofa and Judah, son of Jesua.
Israel's prominent archeologist Professor Amos Kloner didn't associate the crypt with the New Testament Jesus. His father, after all, was a humble carpenter who couldn't afford a luxury crypt for his family. And all were common Jewish names.

There was also this little inconvenience that a few miles away, in the old city of Jerusalem, Christians for centuries had been worshipping the empty tomb of Christ at the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. Christ's resurrection, after all, is the main foundation of the faith, proof that a boy born to a carpenter's wife in a manger is the Son of God.

But film-makers Cameron and Jacobovici claim to have amassed evidence through DNA tests, archeological evidence and Biblical studies, that the 10 coffins belong to Jesus and his family.

Ever the showman, (Why does this remind me of the impresario in another movie,"King Kong", whose hubris blinds him to the dangers of an angry and very large ape?) Cameron is holding a New York press conference on Monday at which he will reveal three coffins, supposedly those of Jesus of Nazareth, his mother Mary and Mary Magdalene. News about the film, which will be shown soon on Discovery Channel, Britain's Channel 4, Canada's Vision, and Israel's Channel 8, has been a hot blog topic in the Middle East (check out a personal favorite: Israelity Bites) Here in the Holy Land, Biblical Archeology is a dangerous profession. This 90-minute documentary is bound to outrage Christians and stir up a titanic debate between believers and skeptics. Stay tuned.

This could be interesting. One question though:

How would they do DNA tests on jesus? It's not like you have his toothbrush or a confirmed hair sample to compare.

[Dax]

Just think how much clamoring there would be for people to "trace" their bloodline back to the main man of Christianity himself.

[SLIM_DURST]

Just think how much clamoring there would be for people to "trace" their bloodline back to the main man of Christianity himself.

only jewish folk would qualify i guess

[91Z28]

only jewish folk would qualify i guess

In the 2000 years since then his progeny could have spread across the globe.

[FuxOnTheFirstDate]

Hmm, I thought the atheists pretty much proved that Jesus never existed in the first place.

[gwballin]

Hmm, I thought the atheists pretty much proved that Jesus never existed in the first place.

I, as an atheist never claim that Jesus did not exist, historical documents of the time independent of the bible suggest a man named Jesus did exist. I've only ever claimed that he was just that, a man, not the son of god.

[91Z28]

I, as an atheist never claim that Jesus did not exist, historical documents of the time independent of the bible suggest a man named Jesus did exist. I've only ever claimed that he was just that, a man, not the son of god.

I agree. It is almost a given that a man named Jesus lived and led a church 2000 years ago. However I personally believe he was just a man also.

[Comedian]

Publicity Stunt, another version of the da vinci code. They will make lots of money on this ones. Many idiots will question their belief on false grounds and some of them will lose their faith, as if they had it in the first place.
the DNA part is going to be interesting. Looking forward to more info on this story.
Have you ever wondered why in the last 100 years or so, all excavations were done to authenticate Christianity while none wer done on other religions.

[Comedian]

JERUSALEM (CNS) -- Catholic biblical scholars and an Israeli archaeologist rejected filmmakers' claim that a tomb uncovered nearly 30 years ago in Jerusalem is the burial site of Jesus and his family.

Dominican Father Jerome Murphy-O'Connor, a biblical archaeologist and expert in the New Testament at the French Biblical and Archaeological School of Jerusalem who was interviewed for the film two years ago, said he did not believe there was any truth to the claim.

"It is a commercial ploy that all the media is playing into," he told Catholic News Service Feb. 27.

Amos Kloner, an Israeli archaeologist who wrote the original excavation report on the site for the predecessor of the Israel Antiquities Authority, called the claim "nonsense."

"In their movie they are billing it as 'never before reported information,' but it is not new. I published all the details in the Antiqot journal in 1996, and I didn't say it was the tomb of Jesus' family," said Kloner, now a professor of archaeology at Israel's Bar-Ilan University.

"I think it is very unserious work. I do scholarly work ... based on other studies," he said.

Toronto filmmaker Simcha Jacobovici and Oscar-winning Canadian director James Cameron announced at a press conference in New York City Feb. 26 that by using new technology and DNA studies they have determined that among the 10 ossuaries -- burial boxes used in biblical times to house the bones of the dead -- found in the cave by Kloner in 1980 are those of Jesus, his brothers, Mary, another Mary whom they believe is Mary Magdalene, and "Judah, son of Jesus."

[CaptainCaveMan]

Have you ever wondered why in the last 100 years or so, all excavations were done to authenticate Christianity while none wer done on other religions.

They shouldn't have taken the Ark away from Indiana Jones though. It belongs in a museum.

[FuxOnTheFirstDate]

I, as an atheist never claim that Jesus did not exist, historical documents of the time independent of the bible suggest a man named Jesus did exist. I've only ever claimed that he was just that, a man, not the son of god.

I found this LONG read to be pretty interesting.

http://www.atheists.org/christianity/didjesusexist.html

[CaptainCaveMan]

I found this LONG read to be pretty interesting.

http://www.atheists.org/christianity/didjesusexist.html

Interesting.

[FuxOnTheFirstDate]

It sucks that these are so long but they have some good info in them.

http://www.nobeliefs.com/exist.htm

Some theologians and historians believe that many of the details of Jesus' life were "borrowed" from a competing, contemporary religion, Mithraism.

Mithra was a fictional character who was worshipped as a Good Shepherd, the Way, the Truth and the Light, the Redeemer, the Savior, and the Messiah. A religion in his name was founded in the 6th century BCE. 5 Mithraism one of the most popular of religions in the Roman Empire, particularly among its soldiers and civil servants. It was Christianity's leading rival. 19 Mithra was also believed to have been born of a virgin. Like Jesus, their births were celebrated yearly on DEC-25. Mithra was also visited by shepherds and by Magi. He traveled through the countryside, taught, and performed miracles with his 12 disciples. He cast out devils, returned sight to the blind, healed the lame, etc. Symbols associated with Mithra were a Lion and a Lamb. He held a last supper, was killed, buried in a rock tomb. He rose again after three days later, at the time of the spring equinox, circa MAR-21. He later ascended into heaven. Mithraism celebrated the anniversary of his resurrection, similar to the Christian Easter. They held services on Sunday. Rituals included a Eucharist and six other sacraments that corresponded to the rituals of the Catholic church. Some individuals who are skeptical about stories of Jesus' life suspect that Christianity may have appropriated many details of Mithraism in order to make their religion more acceptable to Pagans. St. Augustine even stated that the priests of Mithra worshipped the same God as he did. 19 Other early Christians believed that Satan invented Mithraism and that he made Mithra's life and the practices of the religion identical to what Christianity would become centuries later. They felt that Satan's purpose was to confuse believers.

http://www.religioustolerance.org/chr_jcno.htm

Hmm, Mithra sounds familiar.

[CaptainCaveMan]

Look up Apollonius of Tyana. Same shit there also.

[Spaz]

either way... what harm could be done trusting or beliveing or having faith taht god exsists? i dunno? just my opinion...

[CaptainCaveMan]

either way... what harm could be done trusting or beliveing or having faith taht god exsists? i dunno? just my opinion...

The same amount of harm that comes along with believing that pink unicorns are flying around your house.

[FSANE]

http://youtube.com/watch?v=e2o1ww_Nexk


and



http://youtube.com/watch?v=0dyWW0aS9Ec

[Dax]

either way... what harm could be done trusting or beliveing or having faith taht god exsists? i dunno? just my opinion...

Good point- it's always going to be a range of results, not just "good" and "bad".

Believing in someone, or something (a religion) isn't the worst thing in the world, if the result is that a human being is kind or considerate to a fellow human being.

[rbob93]

The same amount of harm that comes along with believing that pink unicorns are flying around your house.

Ahhhh....So that would be........NONE

[djvaly]

there is a "god" in so many religions but I think the truth is there was no god at all, just a great tale to serve as social order and people be afraid of something in order to be good.