The View-Point

• "New scientific evidence [...] suggests a 2,000-year-old Jerusalem tomb could have once held the remains of Jesus of Nazareth and his family. The findings also suggest that Jesus and Mary Magdalene might have produced a son named Judah...."
  
  "'Mariamene, or Mariamne, probably was the actual name given to Mary Magdalene.' [...] Although not included in the Bible, the 'Acts of Philip' mentions the apostles and Mariamne, sister of the apostle Philip...."
  
  "Since tombs normally contain either blood relations or spouses, Jacobovici and his team suggest it is possible Jesus and Mary Magdalene were a couple. 'Judah,' whom they indicate may have been their son, could have been the 'lad' described in the Gospel of John as sleeping in Jesus' lap at the Last Supper...."

• Along the lines of the "Da Vinci Code" comes the next assault on the foundations of the Christian faith: a Discovery Channel so-called 'documentary' titled, "The Lost Tomb of Jesus".
  
  All of this comes from "Academy Award-winner" (and therefore expert on everything) James Cameron. The so-called 'documentary' will be shown on the Discovery Channel on March 4 at 9pm.
  
  Question: Why don't we see any serious effort put towards trashing other religions (e.g. Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, Atheism, Materialism, Positivism, etc.)? Why must the assault unilaterally be against Christianity, in either its Catholic or Protestant forms?

• Archaeologists, Scholars Dispute Jesus Documentary
  (CNN.com, 2/26/2007; Thanks to BC)
• Bones of Jesus & son uncovered in Jerusalem? Airing new evidence
  (israelity bites, 2/23/2007; Thanks to KW)
• ‘Lost Tomb of Jesus’ documentary claims unfounded, hype, archeologist says
  (Catholic News Agency, 2/26/2007)
• Prelate's Assault on "Tomb of Jesus" - Archbishop Forte Says Discovery Is False
  (ZENIT.org News Agency via EWTN, 3/1/2007)
  

Follow-up Commentary:

• Now that this 'documentary' has aired, it seems to have come Dead-On-Arrival. (Full disclosure: I did not watch it.) Leading up to the 'exclusive' Discovery Channel showing, I saw about 3 stories refuting these ridiculous claims for every 1 promoting or supporting them. And a quick Google News search on 3/6/2007 presents the following sample of headlines:
  
  'Lost Tomb of Jesus' doesn't shake the foundations (Siftings Herald, AR)
  The Jesus Tomb: Find of the Century or Publicity Stunt? (Emediawire - press release)
  Biblical Documentary Producer Challenges "The Lost Tomb of Jesus" (WDC Media News)
  India won't air 'Jesus Tomb' documentary (Spero News)
  'Tomb' can't keep Christianity down (Los Angeles Times, CA)
  
  Note to James Cameron: You are known for producing high-quality fiction. What made you think you would be taken seriously with this 'documentary'? People are predisposed to expect high production-value fiction from you, and that is what they got. As for you, you've earned a reputation for shamelessly profiteering off of the sacredness of religion & religious belief -- and, no doubt, some extra punishment in your eternal rest.

The Discovery Channel Recants:

• Is Discovery Burying 'Lost Tomb'? Net Pulls Repeat, Declines to Tout Ratings
  (TVWeek.com, 3/8/2007)
  
  "Departing from normal procedures, the cable network didn't tout its big ratings win. The network also scheduled a last-minute special that harshly criticized its own documentary, and has yanked a planned repeat of 'Tomb.'
  
  "'This is not one where you necessarily beat the drum, from a business perspective,' said David Leavy, executive VP of corporate communications at Discovery. 'It's not necessarily about making money, or making ratings, or shouting from the highest office building. Sometimes having some maturity and perspective is more important than getting picked up in all the ratings highlights.'"

Scholars Backtrack on 'Documentary' Claims:

• Jesus tomb film scholars backtrack
  (Jerusalem Post, 4/11/2007)
  
  "Several prominent scholars who were interviewed in a bitterly contested documentary ... have now revised their conclusions, ... a new study on the fallout from the popular documentary shows.
  
  ... dramatic clarifications, compiled by epigrapher Stephen Pfann of the University of the Holy Land in Jerusalem in a paper titled 'Cracks in the Foundation: How the Lost Tomb of Jesus story is losing its scholarly support,' ..."

Labels: commentary, news

posted by Jason  # 5:10 PM