'Tis the Season for Controversy: The Sensationally Spun "Lost Tomb of Jesus" Documentary

It is lint and Easter and spring are upon us. Once again we have the steadfast believers, the one who is seeking a profit, the angry mob, and this year starring Ted Koppel as Pontius Pilate (he will mediate the debate to follow the Discovery documentary "The Lost Tomb of Jesus"). Two thousand years later the stage is set in similar fashion and everyone is again waiting to see if Jesus will die as a man or if He will rise as a God.

James Cameron and Simcha Jacobovici announced this week they have discovered what may be the "Tomb of Jesus Christ". You will remember James Cameron as the man behind films like "Terminator" and "Titanic". His Hollywood roots leave many scratching their heads about his involvement in archeology, but Cameron has spread himself around quite a bit in fields of discovery. He is working with NASA to send a camera on the 2009 expedition to Mars, and has plans to write and produce some pieces regarding the "Human to Mars Movement". Also, he is working on a 3D film that will explore the deep sea. Simcha Jacobovici who is also a film maker not an archeologist is no stranger to this territory either; last Easter season's "James, brother of Jesus tomb" that was later proved to be a fake was also his documentary. This "Tomb of Jesus" project is not the first collaboration of the two. They also did a film called Exodus Decoded in which they explain away all of the events of The Exodus by natural phenomenon.

For all the money they can invest and interest they can express in the field of discovery and archeology they are in fact still film makers. The actual archeologist who originally discovered the tomb, Dr. Amos Kloner, has cautioned against the claims that the two have made "significant discoveries". Joe Zias, the former curator of the Rockefeller Museum of Jerusalem who personally worked with the ossuaries in question, told Newsweek, "He's [Jacobovici] pimping off the Bible ... He got this guy Cameron, who made 'Titanic' or something like that-what does this guy know about archeology? I am an archeologist, but if I were to write a book about brain surgery, you would say, 'Who is this guy?'"

The tomb in question does indeed contain ossuaries (ancient Jewish caskets) bearing biblical names; Jesua, son of Yosef, two versions of the name Mary, and Judah, son of Jesua. However, there are not necessarily implications of "Da Vinci Code" proportions. They DNA between the Jesua and one of the two Marys may not match, but it does not mean that they were married; it means that their connection is not matrilineal. They could be related through fathers. The names on the ossuaries were very common in first century Jerusalem; it is unlikely that the tomb of Jesus the Nazarene would be in Jerusalem and not Nazareth. There are various ways to attack the sensational and superficial marketing spins placed on the tomb in question -but, I am a Religious Scholar working on my degree and not a film maker, what do I know about marketing a documentary?

This film will more than likely not prove the existence of God, whether Jesus was resurrected or married, but it will add another chapter to the gospel of the "Controversy Cult" to which many open their minds and wallets.