Family Tomb in Jerusalem is That of Jesus and His Family-Disputed!

Family Tomb in Jerusalem is That of Jesus and His Family-Disputed!

Summary of the eRumor:
The story says that according to film-maker James Cameron, a tomb in Jerusalem discovered in 1980 is that of Jesus and his family and that he and Mary Magdalene were probably buried as a couple. The eRumor says that Cameron has teamed with director Simcha Jacobovici to produce a documentary that says that not only was Jesus not resurrected from the dead and was teamed with Mary Magdalene, but father a son with her. They claim to have DNA studies that support their conclusions.

The Truth:
The article in the eRumor is from the February 26, 2007 issue of Time Magazine and was written by Tim McGirk. It describes Cameron's conclusions and his documentary accurately. It is to be titled The Lost Tomb of Jesus and will air on the Discovery channel. A Discovery Channel release says that film-maker Simcha Jacobovici has gathered scientific evidence to support his claim that a 2,000-year-old cave in Jerusalem's East Talpiot neighborhood once held the remains of Jesus, his mother Mary, Mary Magdalene, and possibly the son born to Jesus and Mary Magdalene, Judah. Jacobovici is Israeli-born but lives in Canada. Also on February 26 Cameron and his colleagues held a news conference in New York about the documentary.

The tomb was found in 1980 during construction of the neighborhood. Ten ossuaries (a container for holding the bones of the dead) were found inside. It has been sealed by the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA) but the film-makers said they found it with the help of people in the neighborhood, opened the cave, and were able to collect some evidence and do filming before a representative of the IAA asked them to leave and re-seal the entrance. Cameron says he hopes there can be further official excavation of the cave. Cameron and Jacobovici claim that six of ossuaries have inscriptions that thread them to "Jesus son of Joseph," "Mary," "Jose", "Matia", Mariamne" and a child named "Judah son of Jesus." They say that the Jesus ossuary is that of Jesus of Nazareth, the Mary is that of his mother, the Matia is another relative of the family, that Mariamne is Mary Magdalene, and that Judah is the son of Jesus and Mary Magdalene. Their claim is based largely on statistical evidence, not direct forensic proof. The team has a statistician who feels that the odds of their theory is right are very high. They did say that they were able to get enough of what they wanted from the "Jesus" and "Mariamne" boxes to determine that they were not blood relatives. They theorize that Jesus and "Mariamne" were a couple and that "Judah" could have been their child, but they have no proof of it.

In Jerusalem, however, Israeli archeologists have not reserved their words of criticism of the documentary. Professor Amos Kloner, who led the excavation of the Talpiot cave, told the Jerusalem Post that in his view the documentary was "...'brain confusion' that mixed fact with fiction and 'dressed up facts' in a Hollywood-like manner which could easily lead laymen astray." He dismissed the documentary's claims as "impossible" and "nonsense."

Updated 2-26-07

A real example of the eRumor as it has appeared on the Internet:

Jesus tomb found, says film-maker

Jesus had a son named Judah and was buried alongside Mary Magdalene, according
to a new documentary by Hollywood film director James Cameron.

It examines a tomb found near Jerusalem in 1980 which the film-makers say
belonged to Jesus and his family.

The Oscar-winning director of Titanic says statistical analysis and DNA back the
claim.

Archaeologists say that the burial cave is probably that of a Jewish family with
similar names to that of Jesus.

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.