'Jesus Tomb' Controversy Rages as Archaeologists Explore Another 2,000-Year-Old Tomb.

'Jesus Tomb' Controversy Rages as Archaeologists Explore Another 2,000-Year-Old Tomb.(ABC).By Juju Change and Jenna Millman. Archaeologists working in Jerusalem claim that a discovery they made inside a burial tomb, dating back to the time of Jesus Christ, could shed new light on the origins of Christianity. Biblical historian James Tabor, professor and chair of religious studies at the University of North Carolina in Charlotte, is working with the team, led by controversial filmmaker Simcha Jacobovici. Using a camera mounted on a robotic arm, the team found a 2,000-year-old engraving, which they claim depicts Jesus' resurrection, on an ossuary -- a limestone burial box that contains human bones -- in a first-century tomb. Their exploration of ancient life in the holy land is told in a new documentary for the Discovery Channel called "The Resurrection Tomb Mystery," which premieres on April 12 at 10 p.m. ET/PT. "It's almost like a moonscape feeling of something eerie, something kind of silent- a reverent feeling really," Tabor said. "Because these people died 2,000 years ago and now we are investigating their last memories, how they bury their dead, what they left behind, so that was there and then the excitement of, 'Well will there be something we'll find or will we find just another Jewish tomb'?" But the team thinks they found something much more than that. Tabor believes the engraving found on the ossuary depicts the Biblical story of Jonah, who was swallowed by a whale in the Book of Jonah. For many Christians, the Old Testament story of Jonah and the whale has come to symbolize the resurrection of Jesus. If the engraving is of Jonah, as Tabor believes, he said it would be the earliest Christian symbol of resurrection ever found. Jacobovici has been criticized before when he made the claim five years ago that he had found Jesus' family tomb, with ossuaries that contained the bones of Jesus' mother Mary, Jesus himself, Mary Magdalene and perhaps -- as told in "The DaVinci Code" -- their love child. But Tabor, among others, do believe that Jacobovici did find something significant -- that the two tombs, just 200 feet apart, are related somehow. Tabor has even collaborated on a new book called "The Jesus Discovery." "We have one tomb that has the bones of Jesus and 200 feet away, people celebrating his resurrection," Tabor said. "They're able to put this together in a way that maybe people today haven't considered." However, as Goodacre points out, there is no evidence that either tomb has anything to do with Jesus. But what Jacobovici and his critics can agree on is that exploring the inside of tombs dating back to the first century is "really exciting."
Belief: Dr James Tabor is certain the inscription has something to do with resurrection of the dead In the earliest gospel materials the 'sign of Jonah,' as mentioned by Jesus, has been interpreted as a symbol of his resurrection. Jonah images in later 'early' Christian art, such as images found in the Roman catacombs, are the most common motif found on tombs as a symbol of Christian resurrection hope. In contrast, the story of Jonah is not depicted in any first century Jewish art and iconographic images on ossuaries are extremely rare, given the prohibition within Judaism of making images of people or animals. The tomb in question is dated prior to 70 CE, when ossuary use in Jerusalem ceased due to the Roman destruction of the city. They argue believe both tombs are part of the same complex which may have been the property of Joseph of Arimathea, who, according to the gospels, buried Jesus. If the markings are Christian, the engravings represent the earliest archaeological record of Christians ever found. So the engravings were most likely made by some of Jesus' earliest followers, within decades of his death, predating the writing of the gospels. The bible tells how on the evening of the crucifixion, Joseph of Arimathea asked Pontius Pilate for Jesus' body. Mosaic Law states that a person hanged on a tree must not be allowed to remain there at night, but should be buried before sundown. Joseph wrapped Jesus' body in a linen cloth and laid it in a tomb. The book of John tells how Joseph was assisted in the burial process by Nicodemus, who brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes and included these spices in the burial cloth as per Jewish customs. Among the approximately 2000 ossuaries that have been recovered by the Israel Antiquities Authority, only 650 have any inscriptions on them, and none have inscriptions comparable to the team's finds. Less than a dozen ossuaries from the period have epitaphs but, according to Tabor, these inscribed messages usually have to do with warnings not to disturb the bones of the dead. In contrast, the four-line Greek inscription contains some kind of statement of resurrection faith.Read the full story here, more here.