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THE JESUS DYNASTY is a book authored by a highly credentialed writer. Chair of the Department of Religious Studies at the University of North Carolina, James Tabor's doctorate emphasized Christian Origins and ancient Judaism. His passion includes delving into the lives of John the Baptist, Jesus and his brother James, and Paul. Archeological expeditions in the holy land provide him the beginning research into the little-understood lives of Jesus's family. The reverence felt in seeing documents 2,000 years old, such as the Dead Sea Scrolls, lures Tabor to search for evidence of Jesus's human family and its impact on today's world.
Tabor introduces THE JESUS DYNASTY with the story of a "dig" with his students in the Hinnom Valley near Jerusalem, in June 2000. On a break, an Israeli archeologist took them to a hillside covered with ancient rock-hewn burial tombs, dating back to the time of Jesus. At dusk, they discovered an open tomb entrance marked by scattered broken ossuaries. The ossuaries were stone boxes that housed the bones of the deceased. Tomb robberies were a common occurrence, and this one was fresh. Deep into the layered tomb, they discovered pieces of fabric, presumably a burial shroud, remaining intact as covering for a person buried there. Later, carbon dating concluded that the shroud was from the first half of the first century A.D. Tabor called his find "the Tomb of the Shroud." Additional discoveries, ancient inscriptions on the ossuary boxes, propelled his research into the family heritage and dynasty of Jesus.
From a collector, an ossuary inscribed in Aramic with "James son of Joseph brother of Jesus" had surfaced in Jerusalem. Tabor's curiosity gives us a carefully documented and masterful study of Jesus's human side. THE JESUS DYNASTY does not dispel the divinity associated with Jesus but examines the time when he lived and his place in society. The Talpiot Tomb, where Jesus's family ossuaries may have been housed, provided Tabor the base for his exciting research and conclusions. THE JESUS DYNASTY could well have been titled "A Tale of Two Tombs."
Interior chapters examine the royal lineage of Jesus, from the biblical line of David. His mother, Mary, is found to be descended both from the line of David and Levi, a priestly lineage. The Dead Sea Scrolls substantiate Tabor's findings here. Next, he examines Jesus's standing as Messiah. Much detail is given to the Jewish tradition of messianic succession. Teacher, priest and savior are labels associated with messianic hope. Jesus fulfills the dream and the prophecy. But Tabor is quick to point out that Jewish law prevailed at the time and that Jesus likely was a strict adherent to laws in the Torah. Scripture from the four gospels of the New Testament relate directly to statements in the Old Testament books that prophesy a Messiah for the Jews.
Jesus's entire life is chronicled in relationship to his Jewishness, his closeness to family and his ability to connect with non-Jews. Roman rule encircles Jewish life in his times. Tabor traces the final days of Jesus with innate details, gleaned from compiled ancient writings. His sources include little-read books such as the Gospels of James, Thomas, Q (a book found in Germany thought to intervene between two gospels), the Dead Sea Scrolls and the Bible itself.
His conclusions are thought-provoking and should pique the reasoning power of any reader, theological or secular. Numerous photographs throughout the book illustrate the incredible detail his research traversed. Paul is his final resource, from the book of Acts. Jesus's claim to divinity appears to be Paul's interpretation and strays from the Jewish messianic tradition that James preached. Whatever one's conclusions, THE JESUS DYNASTY is a compelling study of the historical Jesus.
--- Reviewed by Judy Gigstad
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