A Jesus Discovery

The other day, I came across an online article about a "Jesus Discovery." I thought this article came at a perfect time, for it provides an opportunity for our class to ponder more about the historical Jesus and his existence. 


According to the article, "Jesus was born, lived, and died in the land of Israel. Most scholars agree he was born around
 5 BCE and died around 30 CE."


Authors and archaeologists James D. Tabor and Simcha Jacobovici wrote The Jesus Discovery: The New Archaeological Find That Reveals the Birth of Christianity. 

The archaeologists believed certain tombs they have been investigating in Jerusalem are the tombs of Jesus' family: " We believe a compelling argument can be made that the Garden tomb is that of Jesus of Nazareth and his family. We argue in this book that both tombs are most likely located on the rural estate of Joseph of Arimathea, the wealthy member of the Sanhedrin who according to all four New Testament gospels took official charge of Jesus' burial."


The Garden tomb is supposedly the "Jesus son of Joseph's tomb," which was first discovered in 1980. It's namesake is due to its placement beneath a garden in a condominium complex. 

Another tomb is the Patio tomb, which is located beneath an apartment in the Jerusalem suburb East Talpiot. The tomb was first discovered by construction workers in 1981. 

Some archaeologists are unsure about the tomb's credibility, for they are certain that "nothing of this sort has survived, not a single site, inscription, artifact, drawing, or text mentioning Jesus or his followers, or witnessing to the beliefs of the earliest Jewish Christians either in Jerusalem or in Galilee."

Do you believe these tombs are the tombs of Jesus' family? I was confused about the Garden tomb, for what does the author mean by "Jesus son of Joseph's tomb?" Did he have a son named Joseph?

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/02/28/jesus-discovery-jerusalem_n_1305355.html#s732486&title=The_Resurrection_Tomb

The book might be worth checking out!
http://www.amazon.com/Jesus-Discovery-Archaeological-Reveals-Christianity/dp/145165040X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1330385122&sr=8-1