Free Republic

Remember that scrap of papyrus the media were screaming about that claimed that Jesus had a wife? Scholars are lining up to dismiss it as a forgery. The Smithsonian Institute canceled its planned documentary on the subject after scholars expressed doubts about its authenticity. But the media, so quick to report on a scrap that CBS reporter Allen Pizzey argued “challenges the very foundation of Christian thinking,” weren’t so eager to report on the mounting evidence that the scrap of papyrus was a forgery. The broadcast networks trumpeted the existence and import of the papyrus with breathless excitement. ABC’s Elizabeth...

http://markgoodacre.org/Watson.pdf The Gospel of Jesus’ Wife: How a fake Gospel-Fragment was composed FRANCIS WATSON, Durham University, U.K, 20 September 2012. Email francis.watson@dur.ac.uk A gospel or gospel-fragment might be regarded as “fake” whether its author belongs to the ancient or the modern world. In both cases, the aim would be to persuade as many readers as possible to take the new text seriously – as a window onto unknown aspects of Jesus’ life, or how it was perceived by his later followers. In her thorough and helpful analysis of the text that is coming to be known as the Gospel of...

Oded Golan Speaks Out on Forgery Trial Verdict Asserts purchasers of looted antiquities preserve valuable information Hershel Shanks • 03/15/2012 After being acquitted of all forgery charges, Oded Golan responded by noting the important role that licensed collectors play by keeping artifacts documented and in Israel.

Seven years of trial, evidence from dozens of experts and a 475-page verdict has come no nearer to discovering whether the purported burial box of Jesus' brother James is authentic or a fake. A Jerusalem judge, citing reasonable doubt, acquitted Israeli collector Oded Golan, who was charged with forging the inscription on the box once hailed as the first physical link to Christ.

Date Set for James Ossuary Verdict Biblical Archaeology Society Staff • 03/05/2012 The James Ossuary verdict will be announced on Wednesday, March 14th. As events unfold, check in with Bible History Daily for exclusive reporting and commentary.

Jesus and his mother Mary were at a wedding feast at Cana (as recorded in John 2). There is what seems to us a tense interaction between them. Mary observes that they have no more wine. And Jesus says to her, Woman, how does this concern of yours affect me? My hour has not yet come. (Jn 2:4). To modern English ears this response of Jesus seems terse and off-putting. Is Jesus annoyed by his mother’s request? A little study of culture reveals that his repsonse ot his mother is not disrespectful but is in fact a sign of respect...

Excavations in Kfar Kana reveal settlements from time of King Solomon and Roman period 13 Mar 2006New excavations reveal findings from the Jewish settlement of “Kana of the Galilee” dating from the Roman period. Excavating one of 11 storage jars (Israel Antiquities Authority)Salvage excavations conducted by the Israel Antiquities Authority in Kfar Kana (north of Nazareth), have uncovered remains of a settlement that existed at the time of the United Kingdom of King Solomon and the Kingdom of Israel (following the split between Israel and Judah, from the 10-9th centuries BCE). During the course of the excavations, a section of...

In a rare find, remnants of an ancient Israelite city that dates back three thousand years have been uncovered during excavations in the Israeli Arab village of Kfar Kana in the Lower Galilee, Israel's Antiquities Authority announced Monday. The area, located north of Nazareth, is revered by Christians as the site where Jesus is said to have performed his first miracle. The settlement being unearthed existed at the time of the United Kingdom of King Solomon and the Kingdom of Israel following the split between Israel and Judah, in the 10-9th centuries BCE. A section of the ancient city wall...

Ancient Jewish Town Discovered Beneath Arab Village in Galilee Monday, March 13, 2006 / 13 Adar 5766 An ancient Jewish town from the time of King Solomon has been uncovered beneath the Arab village of Kafr Kana, north of Nazareth, in the Galilee. The discovery, unearthed by Israel’s Antiquities Authority, also includes remnants of Jewish settlement during the Roman period. Among the findings are underground tunnels excavated by Jews who defended the city against Roman legions during the Great Revolt of the year 66 CE. During the course of the excavations, a section of the city wall and remains of...

JERUSALEM, July 22, 2005 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Israeli police have put under house arrest, Oded Golan, the owner of the so-called "James Ossuary", the fake ossuary that attempted to promote the idea that Jesus Christ had brothers casting doubt on the virgin birth of Christ.. The trial has begun. The next session, will be held in Jerusalem, September 4, 2005. A 27-page indictment in a Jerusalem court was based on a two-year investigation involving the Jerusalem police and the Israel Antiquities Authority. Golan was among the five charged with 17 counts of antiquities forgery and fraud in January 2005. If they...

From the news... A limestone burial box, almost 2,000 years old, may provide the oldest archeological record of Jesus of Nazareth. Of interest in the news today, the announcement of an archaeological find of potentially great significance: an ossuary (stone box) bearing the inscription "James, son of Joseph, brother of Jesus". The practice of transferring bones from expensive tombs into ossuaries existed from around 20 B.C. to 70 A.D., and the inscription on the newly recovered ossuary was in a form of written Aramaic used only between about 10 A.D. and 70 A.D. Other scientific tests affirm the antiquity of...

Experts advised world museums to re-examine their Bible-era relics after Israel indicted four collectors and dealers on charges of forging items thought to be some of the most important artifacts discovered in recent decades. The indictments issued Wednesday labeled many such "finds" as fakes, including two that had been presented as the biggest biblical discoveries in the Holy Land - the purported burial box of Jesus' brother James and a stone tablet with written instructions by King Yoash on maintenance work at the ancient Jewish Temple. Shuka Dorfman, the head of the Israel Antiquities Authority, said that the scope of...

JERUSALEM - Just in time for Christmas, Israeli archeologists unveiled ancient sites where Jesus is believed to have performed two of his most celebrated miracles. In Jerusalem, the pool where Jesus is said to have cured a man's blindness has been found under several yards of dirt. According to John's Gospel, Chapter 9, verses 1-12, Jesus performed this miracle at the Siloam Pool in the City of David just south of the Temple Mount. Archeologists revealed yesterday they found an impressively paved assembly area and water channel that brought rainwater to the Siloam Pool in the Second Temple period when...

CANA, Israel (AP) - Among the roots of ancient olive trees, archaeologists have found pieces of large stone jars of the type the Gospel says Jesus used when he turned water into wine at a Jewish wedding in the Galilee village of Cana. They believe these could have been the same kind of vessels the Bible says Jesus used in his first miracle, and that the site where they were found could be the location of biblical Cana. But Bible scholars caution it'll be hard to obtain conclusive proof - especially since experts disagree on exactly where Cana was located....

The Steilacoom woman pointed to biblical stories as evidence: Mary anointed Jesus in a wedding nuptial and was the first person the resurrected Christ appeared to. "I believe that the Gospels portray Jesus and Mary Magdalene as a couple," Starbird said. "They were married."

<p>And was Mary Magdalene his wife?</p> <p>Apparently, a lot of people will be upset if the answer to both these questions is yes.</p> <p>As explained in tonight's "Jesus, Mary and Da Vinci" - a new ABC News prime-time special inspired by the best-selling novel, "The DaVinci Code" - proof that Jesus of Nazareth was a married man enjoying conjugal relations with his wife would upset the apple cart, so to speak, of all of Christianity since Jesus' divinity has been based for so long, at least in part, on the notion that he was celibate.</p>

ABC asks (but in the wee hours): Was Jesus married? The Associated Press     NEW YORK -- ABC News correspondent Elizabeth Vargas concedes her network is stepping into a theological minefield with its one-hour exploration of whether Jesus Christ had a wife.     The ABC News special, "Jesus, Mary and DaVinci," is scheduled to air Tuesday, November 3rd, at 3:35 a.m. (The prime time slot on Monday is occupied by Monday Night Football.)     "You can't talk about this subject without intriguing people or offending people," Vargas said earlier this week. "We're trying to do it as respectfully as we...

A leading US TV news reporter has said her network is taking a risk with a news special which asks whether Jesus Christ had a wife. ABC's Elizabeth Vargas said Jesus, Mary and Da Vinci, to be shown in the US on Monday night, was being made "as respectfully as we can". But she admitted: "You can't talk about this subject without intriguing people or offending people." The programme is partly based on the best-selling novel The Da Vinci Code. The book alleges Mary Magdalene - a biblical figure widely thought to have been a prostitute - was actually Jesus's...

NEW YORK — ABC News correspondent Elizabeth Vargas concedes her network is stepping into a theological minefield with its one-hour exploration of whether Jesus Christ had a wife. The ABC News special, "Jesus, Mary and DaVinci," is scheduled to air Monday at 8 p.m. ET. "You can't talk about this subject without intriguing people or offending people," Vargas said Thursday. "We're trying to do it as respectfully as we can." ABC screened the special for some reporters and religious leaders on Thursday. The program is based on the best-selling novel, "The DaVinci Code," which claims to be partly grounded on...

Before the “Left Behind” series catapulted to the top of the bestseller list, the idea that Christians could be lifted bodily into the clouds during the Rapture was an idea that only obscure theologians studied. These days, of course, lots of people believe that's what will happen the day the world ends. Now a new novel is forcing people to confront another biblical puzzle. The DaVinci Code, a thriller by Dan Brown, tells the story of a Harvard professor summoned to the Louvre Museum after a murder there to examine cryptic symbols relating to DaVinci's work. During the course of...