February 11, 2009 5:17 PM
- Text
Scholars Dismiss Jesus Documentary
(CBS/AP)
An Oscar-winning director is about to challenge the most elemental tenets of Christianity, claiming the bones of Jesus Christ were found in a Jerusalem tomb, but many archaeologists and clergymen have been quick to cast doubt on the movie's assertions.
James Cameron's "The Lost Tomb of Christ," which the Discovery Channel will run on March 4, argues 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, according to a press release issued by the Discovery Channel.
In fact, the astounding claim is that the entire Holy Family was buried in a vault, reports CBS News correspondent Mark Phillips. Astounding, critics say, because Jesus' family was famously poor and such tombs were the fashion of the wealthy.
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.
But Philips reports that, although archeologists have long argued over the factual and historic accuracy of Christianity's version of history, in this case, the archeological establishment has lined up to label this claim as bunk.
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.
"What's the story, they found the DNA connecting Jesus to God? Can you check the DNA of god," Kloner, seen at left, sarcastically asked during an interview for the CBS News Early Show.
Cameron said his critics should withhold comment until they see his film.
"I'm not a theologist. I'm not an archaeologist. I'm a documentary film maker," he said.
The tomb bears the names Jesus, Mary and Joseph and one of the caskets even bears the title, "Judah, son of Jesus," hinting that Jesus may have had a son. But scientists argue the names were extremely common during that time period, and in no way prove the Jesus buried at the site was Jesus Christ.
Another researcher whose work has focused on the Middle East, biblical anthropologist Joe Zias, has dismissed Cameron's claims as "dishonest".
"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," he said.
He said the appearance of the names proved nothing.
Cameron told NBC'S "Today" show that statisticians found "in the range of a couple of million to one in favor of it being them." Simcha Jacobovici, the Toronto filmmaker who directed the documentary, said the implications "are huge."
"But they're not necessarily the implications people think they are. For example, some believers are going to say, well this challenges the resurrection. I don't know why, if Jesus rose from one tomb, he couldn't have risen from the other tomb," Jacobovici told "Today."
Most Christians believe Jesus' body was laid for 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 the southern Jerusalem neighborhood of Talpiyot, nowhere near the church.
The film's claims have also raised the ire of Christian leaders in the Holy Land.
"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. The documentary, he said, "contradicts the religious principles and the historic and spiritual principles that we hold tightly to."
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."
After its debut in New York, "The Lost Tomb of Christ" will be shown on the international Discovery Channel, Canada's Vision, Channel 4 in Britain and Channel 8 in Israel.
This is the second time The Discovery Channel has been involved in a disputed claim about an ancient tomb, Phillips reports. The man at the center of the previous case is now facing trial for forgery.
James Cameron's "The Lost Tomb of Christ," which the Discovery Channel will run on March 4, argues 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, according to a press release issued by the Discovery Channel.
In fact, the astounding claim is that the entire Holy Family was buried in a vault, reports CBS News correspondent Mark Phillips. Astounding, critics say, because Jesus' family was famously poor and such tombs were the fashion of the wealthy.
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.
But Philips reports that, although archeologists have long argued over the factual and historic accuracy of Christianity's version of history, in this case, the archeological establishment has lined up to label this claim as bunk.
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.
(AP Photo/Oded Balilty)
Cameron said his critics should withhold comment until they see his film.
"I'm not a theologist. I'm not an archaeologist. I'm a documentary film maker," he said.
The tomb bears the names Jesus, Mary and Joseph and one of the caskets even bears the title, "Judah, son of Jesus," hinting that Jesus may have had a son. But scientists argue the names were extremely common during that time period, and in no way prove the Jesus buried at the site was Jesus Christ.
Another researcher whose work has focused on the Middle East, biblical anthropologist Joe Zias, has dismissed Cameron's claims as "dishonest".
"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," he said.
He said the appearance of the names proved nothing.
Cameron told NBC'S "Today" show that statisticians found "in the range of a couple of million to one in favor of it being them." Simcha Jacobovici, the Toronto filmmaker who directed the documentary, said the implications "are huge."
"But they're not necessarily the implications people think they are. For example, some believers are going to say, well this challenges the resurrection. I don't know why, if Jesus rose from one tomb, he couldn't have risen from the other tomb," Jacobovici told "Today."
Most Christians believe Jesus' body was laid for 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 the southern Jerusalem neighborhood of Talpiyot, nowhere near the church.
The film's claims have also raised the ire of Christian leaders in the Holy Land.
"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. The documentary, he said, "contradicts the religious principles and the historic and spiritual principles that we hold tightly to."
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."
After its debut in New York, "The Lost Tomb of Christ" will be shown on the international Discovery Channel, Canada's Vision, Channel 4 in Britain and Channel 8 in Israel.
This is the second time The Discovery Channel has been involved in a disputed claim about an ancient tomb, Phillips reports. The man at the center of the previous case is now facing trial for forgery.
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Tucker Reals Tucker Reals is a senior news editor and overnight site editor for CBSNews.com, based at CBS News' London bureau.
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