They’re baaaa-aaaack
Barely a year after misdating artifacts and misinterpreting texts (including the Bible) willy-nilly to try to convince viewers that the biblical exodus from Egypt really happened (albeit not like the Bible narrates it), James Cameron, Simcha Jacobovici, and Charles Pellegrino are back to try to convince us that a tomb unearthed in 1980 is “The Jesus Family Tomb.”
I’ll undoubtedly watch the program, though please don’t expect a long review á là my review of The Exodus Decoded. I am skeptical of Jacobovici’s claims, especially after seeing the way he rode roughshod over the evidence in The Exodus Decoded. I also think it’s significant that the original excavators didn’t make the connection that Jacobovici is trying to make, and in fact disavowed it. But the main reason I won’t blog a long review of the documentary is that I don’t have sufficient expertise in New Testament studies and “historical Jesus” studies. I’ll leave the substantial reviews to other bibliobloggers, though I do hope that somebody like Mark Goodacre or Jim Davila will undertake a significant review of the film.
My a priori skepticism was heightened by this message from Stephen Goranson, which came across Jim West’s biblical studies e-mail list:
According to Toronto Star:
“The documentary speculates that the James ossuary was stolen shortly after the tomb was found. The archaeologists examining the tomb 26 years ago found 10 ossuaries, but only nine are in storage at the IAA. In The Lost Tomb, it is alleged that the James ossuary is that missing box.”
http://www.thestar.com/Unassigned/article/185534
James Tabor’s The Jesus Dynasty (pp. 31–33) previously raised this as a possible identity.
But Amos Kloner, “A Tomb with Inscribed Ossuaries in East Talpiot,” ‘Atiqot 29 (1996) page 17 Table 3 plainly lists that (#10) ossuary as having “No Inscription.” If it had no inscription in 1980 how can it be an anciently-inscribed “James” ossuary?
This is merely one of the items that do not add up.
Jacobovici never let a fact get in the way of a good theory before. Why start now?
7 comments Christopher Heard | Bible (specific texts), Christian history, television
[...] are a collection of sites related to it (HT: Codex: Biblical studies Blogspot and Higgaion and Internet Monk, here and here. The links at Internet Monk are being updated [...]
[...] Speaking of the previous documentary, Chris Heard (who ripped said documentary into itty bitty shreds) explains why he’s skeptical of this one, too. [...]
Against My Better Judgment – The “Jesus Family Tomb”…
After spending part of Sunday and today contemplating the implications of the wise words of Chris Heard, “But the main reason I won’t blog a long review of the documentary is that I don’t have sufficient expertise in New Testament……
[...] Heard of Higgaion fame has a short note questioning the theory that the James ossuary was originally from the Talpiot tomb. For an [...]
Goranson’s query was also sent to me personally and I offered him the following reply. I hope it sheds some light on the subject:
I am not sure if the 10th ossuary is or is not the one we now know as the “James ossuary.” I do indeed think there is evidence pointing in that direction, namely the new patina tests that seem to match it to this tomb and the other ossuaries, the dimensions, and the fit with the “family” names. It does seem to be the case that the 10th ossuary, although given a registration number was never received or “catalogued” at the Rockefeller as far as the records go. It seems to have disappeared. Gibson, who was part of the original excavation, and I checked the IAA files and only nine are listed as “received” at the Rockfeller, there are photos of all the others, including those other “plain” ones, but none of this tenth.
I think when Kloner wrote his article, notice in 1996, he had nothing to go on but the registration number and dimensions, so he writes “plain.” Notice on all the others, even those that are plain, he gives photos and detailed descriptions. We checked Gath’s notes and there is nothing about this one, again, other than the dimensions and the registration number. When Kloner wrote his article in 1996, notice, just after the BBC story that Ray Bruce broke on this tomb, I am assuming that he had nothing to go on for this 10th ossuary–no photos, nothing in the files, and no record that it was ever “received” by the IAA. I have copies of all those documents. If he did see it back in 1980 and remembers it, that is for him to say, or if he has records that are not in the IAA files, but now, at least since 1996 when he put his article together, it was gone. It could well have been taken over the Sabbath, the tomb was opened on Friday, then left open all that weekend. We have interviewed the neighbors (some of this is in the film) who tell us of what went on that weekend, people going in the tomb, etc. before Gath, Kloner, and Gibson arrived Sun morning. For these reasons I do not think the one word “description” as “plain” tells us much at all and it surely does not preclude this missing 10th being the James ossuary. So you are right, something does not add up here but we were told by the IAA curators that had the ossuary been brought in, even if it were put in the yard outside in the Rockefeller, it would have been given recorded as received and only nine were so recorded, so don’t we have to conclude it was never “received?” I am not implying any kind of conspiracy here, just that it might have never made it to the storage facility as the others did. I have no stake in this being one way or the other and would be glad to have a better or clearer explanation.
Gibson BTW, does not think the James ossuary is the missing 10th but he has said it might have been a missing “11th” or “12th” or whatever, in that things could have easily been removed from that tomb before the archaeologists arrived that Sunday morning. He assumes the 10th was of no interest and was just put out in the yard behind the Rockefeller.
[...] Heard has ignored his own advice and decided to tackle the issue of the DNA evidence in relation to the [...]
[...] Dr. Christopher Heard, Associate Professor of Religion, Pepperdine University: Barely a year after misdating artifacts and misinterpreting texts (including the Bible) willy-nilly to try to convince viewers that the biblical exodus from Egypt really happened (albeit not like the Bible narrates it), James Cameron, Simcha Jacobovici, and Charles Pellegrino are back to try to convince us that a tomb unearthed in 1980 is “The Jesus Family Tomb.” … Jacobovici never let a fact get in the way of a good theory before. Why start now? (Online Source) [...]