One of the Most Significant Archeological Finds in the Last 2,000 Years

To muted press, one of the most significant archeological finds in the last 2,000 years was recently announced. If authentic, this find represents a giant blow to atheists and skeptics around the world. Anti-Bible skeptics who claim there is no evidence for the Biblical account of Jesus and the early Christian church could be scraping the egg off their face for centuries to come (of course this can't be a new feeling for them).

As reported in the November/December 2002 issue of Biblical Archaeology Review, an ossuary (bone box) was recently discovered by scientists in a private collection. The inscription on the box reads (in perfect Aramaic), "James, son of Joseph, brother of Jesus." Like many such ossuaries from the first century, the box is empty but the contents of the box, by all accounts, once contained the remains of the very brother of Jesus, who was also one of the leaders of the early Christian church!

The article "The Burial Box of James the Brother of Jesus" in Biblical Archaeology Review details the conclusions drawn from careful analysis of the box and inscription. The box is made from limestone from the Jerusalem area and has been dated to anywhere from 20 BC to 70 AD. The inscription has been determined to be authentic and dates from sometime in the last few decades before 70 AD. This fits the accepted time of death of James, the brother of Jesus, mentioned in the Bible.

One might suppose that there were a lot of people named James whose father was named Joseph and bother was named Jesus from that time but, as the article points out, statistically the chances are remote, especially when mentioning a brother on an ossuary was rare. It looks like this could be the real thing.

Of course, skeptics will be coming out of the woodwork in the next few weeks and months to do damage control. Nothing could be worse for their claims against the Bible than to produce extra-Biblical archeological evidence for the Bible's reliability. For years they've been demanding contemporary extra-Biblical evidence for Jesus and this is a huge gift, wrapped up nice with a bow on top.

But don't get too excited. Biblical archeology has been proving the Bible correct and skeptical (or "minimalist") claims incorrect for years, time and time again. Do you think this will change anything in the Minimalist camp? Not a chance. It seems more a religion to them then a science. And will they let this discovery stand? Not a chance. Already claims are surfacing from skeptics to the effect that the wording on the ossuary sounds too much like modern Christian doctrine to be authentic, without even looking at the artifact in question.

For a more detailed account of this discovery and its analysis, I highly recommend you pick up a copy of Biblical Archaeology Review, you won't be disappointed.

Mark Harpt
Editor
e-mail: wwcw@wwcw.org

Notes

1. For a detailed argument that supports this conclusion, please read the WWCW articles entitled, Argument for the Existence of God from Order and Who is the Orderer of the Universe?

I want to learn more about how I can have a relationship with the creator of the universe.

Return to the Editor's Page