New finds have been made after archaeologists opened up what is believed to be the tomb of Jesus where Jerusalem’s Church of the Holy Sepulchre now stands in the Old City’s Christian Quarter.
Shocking discoveries were made over a 60 hour period in which researchers had unprecedented access to the area of the tomb, National Geographic has reported. The discoveries include what appear to be remnants of what was the original tomb. The location is the single holiest site to all Christians of the numerous demonstrations around the world.
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Take a look at what researchers found while examining the holiest site in Christianity https://t.co/AyDmxAHx9t
— National Geographic (@NatGeo) October 31, 2016
So there is at least proof now that there is some sort of tomb underneath the church. And why is this significant? Well the faithful wish to find proof that Jesus was actually buried in this location which would in turn lend credence to some of the stories recounted in the Gospels of the New Testament.
But who knows who was actually buried there? That is a question that the scientists could not possibly answer.
This was a fact that made the entire plot of “The Da Vinci Code” so silly. Not to spoil the plot for anyone who has yet to see the film or read the book, lets just say that there was no way possible to prove that the remains in questions belonged to who they were supposed to be even if DNA testing could prove that the woman in question was in fact a descendant of the 2, 000 year old bones.
As of today, all that can be proven is that not only is there a tomb on this location dating back roughly 2, 000 years, but that it seems to have been prepared in accordance with what was known to be the custom among wealthier Jews in Israel in the Late Second Temple Period.
The archaeologists gained access because the area was opened up six months ago for renovations.
A team of researchers from the National Technical University of Athens began their work on October 26. They uncovered a cover layer of marble and discovered underneath a marble slab with a cross carved into its surface. The researchers also found that the original limestone burial bed was still intact.
Chief Scientific Supervisor Professor Antonia Moropoulou, who is directing the conservation and restoration of the Edicule, told National Geographic, “This is the Holy Rock that has been revered for centuries, but only now can actually be seen.”
And Fredrik Hiebert, National Geographic’s archaeologist-in-residence, said, “I’m absolutely amazed. My knees are shaking a little bit because I wasn’t expecting this. We can’t say 100 percent, but it appears to be visible proof that the location of the tomb has not shifted through time, something that scientists and historians have wondered for decades.”
But why is he so excited. Again, all we know is that a tomb is still in the place where it was supposed to be. But we still have no evidence whatsoever as to who was buried there, except that he was probably a Jew. And even if it really is the burial site of Jesus, this in no way proves that hat it says about him in the New Testament was true.
So Christians should leave the champagne bottles on ice and put the celebrations on hold for now. And both Jews and Muslims have little if anything to fear for their faiths from whatever the final results of this new excavation may be.
