Family Names, Mary Magdalene, The James Ossuary, And Dna
FAMILY NAMES, MARY MAGDALENE, THE JAMES OSSUARY, AND DNA
Photo: Getty Images
The Talpiot Hypothesis began to circulate and gain attention, popularized by the initial news conference, the Discovery Channel documentary, the book by Jacobovici and Pellegrino, and the seemingly countless interviews, articles, and news items. Most of the major news television networks and news periodicals reported the arguments, pro and con. Biblical scholars entered the discussion at a torrid pace. Interestingly, much of the response came from non-evangelical scholars who plainly set themselves against the Talpiot claims.1
Entrance to the Talpiot Tomb. Photo: Professor Amos Kloner, Courtesy of Israel Antiquities Authority via Getty Images.
In this chapter we will address several of the major portions of the Talpiot Hypothesis. Here we will concentrate on the issues regarding the family names, the possibility of a Mariamene/Mary Magdalene identification, the “other” ossuary, and the DNA testing. Our format will be to isolate the key questions, as set out in chapter 2, and then provide lists of the scholarly counter-arguments. Endnotes provide a wide variety of sources for these responses. Hopefully, the reader will then be in a position to judge the strength of each claim and response.
How common are the names found in the Talpiot Tomb?
Virtually all commentators, including those who agree with the Talpiot thesis, agree that most of the names in the tomb were very commonly found in first-century Jerusalem.
Tal Ilan, compiler of the Lexicon of Jewish Names “disagreed vehemently” with the view that the Talpiot Tomb was Jesus' burial place, and said that these names “are in every tomb in Jerusalem...you could expect to find them everywhere.”2
Ossuaries found on the grounds of Dominus Flevit on the Mount of Olives. Photo: HolyLandPhotos.org.
Stephen Pfann argues from L.Y. Rahmani's A Catalog of Jewish Ossuaries, that every one of the names for Jesus' family members is found in the list of the most popular 16 male and female names.Four of those names (Simon, Mary, Joseph, and Judas) are among the top five male and female names in frequency and comprise 38 percent of the entire list! Jesus is the seventh most common male name.3
Richard Bauckham notes that the name Joseph is found on 45 ossuaries, while the name Jesus is found on 22 ossuaries. “Mary” is found on 42 ossuaries.4
Even the particular congruence of names in the Talpiot Tomb is not absolutely unique. Near the Mount of Olives, another burial tomb reportedly lists a number of ossuaries also inscribed in Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek. The names include Jesus, Joseph, Mary, Martha, and Matthew.5
Can we even be sure of the name “Jesus” on the Talpiot ossuary? In the first place, it's not even clear that the name on the ossuary is “Jesus.” Here is a facsimile of the inscription:
One can make out the words “son of Joseph” but the initial name on the right is like a child's scrawl with a crayon on the wall. It may not be “Jesus” at all.
James Charlesworth, cited in the Talpiot presentation, states that the name “Jesus” before that of “Joseph”on that particular ossuary “is the most difficult name to read among all the names in the tomb.” He adds, “The scribbling is not an inscription, it is sloppy graffiti.”6
Pfann is not sure that the name is Jesus. He thinks that “it's more likely the name ‘Hanun.”’7
Steve Caruso argues that “I cannot be even 10 percent conclusive about anything else in this inscription other than the name ‘Joseph.”’8
Tabor even acknowledges that the name “Jesus” is “nearly illegible.”9
Virtually all commentators, including those who agree with the Talpiot thesis, agree that most of the names in the tomb were very commonly found in first-century Jerusalem.
Tal Ilan, compiler of the Lexicon of Jewish Names “disagreed vehemently” with the view that the Talpiot Tomb was Jesus' burial place, and said that these names “are in every tomb in Jerusalem...you could expect to find them everywhere.”2