All language subtitles for 98e56396fd124e1d99d610b55ba7f458_track3_eng

Narrator: JESUS CHRIST
IS THE KEY FIGURE

IN THE NEW TESTAMENT,
THE SON OF GOD.

THE STORIES OF HIS HEALINGS,
MIRACLES, AND EVEN ARREST

AND CRUCIFIXION ARE LEGENDARY,

BUT WHO WAS HE?

WAS HE REALLY
YESHUA BEN JOSEPH,

AND WAS HE THE KING OF THE JEWS
OR JUST A HUMBLE CARPENTER?

DID HE HAVE A RELATIONSHIP
WITH MARY MAGDALENE,

AND WHAT EVENTUALLY
HAPPENED TO JESUS?

WAS HE CRUCIFIED IN JERUSALEM,
OR AS SOME CLAIM,

WAS HE SMUGGLED OUT
OF THE CITY ALIVE,

AND ABOVE ALL,
WHAT HISTORICAL EVIDENCE

IS THERE THAT ANY OF
THIS ACTUALLY HAPPENED?

THE HISTORICAL JESUS
IS A COMPLETE ENIGMA.

IT'S ALMOST AS
IF HE DIDN'T EXIST.

WHAT WE HAVE IS A CHARACTER

THAT WAS CREATED
HUNDREDS OF YEARS LATER.

HE WAS A RELIGIOUS LEADER.

HE WAS THE MESSIAH PROPHESIZED
IN THE OLD TESTAMENT.

HE WAS THE SON OF GOD
WHO CAME TO BECOME

THE CENTRAL FIGURE
IN CHRISTIANITY.

THERE ARE TWO THINGS
TO REALIZE ABOUT JESUS.

ONE, HE REALLY EXISTED,

AND TWO, HE WAS NOT REMOTELY
LIKE THE JESUS OF THE GOSPELS.

ANY TRADITIONS ABOUT
THE HISTORICAL JESUS

WERE PURELY ORAL,

SOMETHING CHRISTIANS
MIGHT HAVE TALKED ABOUT.

THE GOSPEL WRITERS ALSO BORROWED
STUFF FROM OTHER RELIGIONS.

♪♪

♪♪

-- Captions by VITAC --
www.vitac.com

CAPTIONS PAID FOR BY
DISCOVERY COMMUNICATIONS

♪♪

THE JESUS OF THE BIBLE
IS WELL-KNOWN,

HIS HEALINGS, HIS MIRACLES,
HIS TRIAL, AND HIS CRUCIFIXION.

YOU WOULD PRESUME THAT
ALL OF THOSE EVENTS

WOULD BE PART
OF THE HISTORICAL RECORD,

BUT THE PROBLEM IS THEY AREN'T.

THE HISTORICAL JESUS
IS SOMETHING OF A MYSTERY.

Gough: JESUS WAS A JEWISH
RELIGIOUS LEADER

FROM 2,000 YEARS AGO.

THE CONVENTIONAL STORY IS THAT
KINGS ANTICIPATED HIS BIRTH.

HIS MOTHER DIDN'T HAVE SEX.

IT WAS
AN IMMACULATE CONCEPTION.

HE STARTS HIS MISSION AT 30.
HE'S QUITE A REBEL.

THE ROMANS GET A BIT, YOU KNOW,
WORRIED ABOUT HIM.

HE'S CRUCIFIED, DIED AND IS
RESURRECTED THREE DAYS LATER.

WELL, PERSONALLY, I WOULDN'T SAY
THAT THE JESUS AS WRITTEN

AND EVOKED IN THE BIBLE
DID EXIST IN THAT WAY

'CAUSE HE DID
ALL SORTS OF MIRACLES,

AND HE KIND OF FLOATED UP
TO HEAVEN AND BACK DOWN AGAIN.

I DON'T THINK ANY OF THAT
HAPPENED,

BUT I THINK WE CAN SAY
THAT THE HISTORICAL JESUS

AS IN SOMEONE FOR WHOM
THERE'S EMPIRICAL EVIDENCE

THAT HE ACTUALLY EXISTED
IS TRUE.

WHAT WE THINK WE KNOW
FROM THE GOSPELS

IS HE WAS
AN APOCALYPTIC PREACHER

FROM A PARTICULARLY ROUGH END
OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE, GALILEE,

GOT HIMSELF INTO TROUBLE
WITH THE PRIESTS IN JERUSALEM,

CRUCIFIED BY THE ROMANS
AND DIED,

AND THAT'S ALL WE KNOW
FOR CERTAIN

ABOUT THE HISTORICAL JESUS.

♪♪

Narrator: SO WHAT REFERENCES
TO JESUS ARE THERE

IN THE WRITINGS OF THE TIME?

WHAT ARE THE FACTS THAT A WHOLE
RELIGION HAS BEEN BASED ON?

THERE IS LITTLE HARD EVIDENCE.

FLAVIUS JOSEPHUS,

A JEWISH HISTORIAN
FROM THE TIME OF JESUS,

ONLY MAKES TWO REFERENCES
TO HIM,

AND ONE OF THESE IS DEBATABLE.

JOSEPHUS' WRITINGS COVER
A NUMBER OF FIGURES

FAMILIAR TO BIBLE READERS.

HE DISCUSSED JOHN THE BAPTIST,

JAMES, THE BROTHER OF JESUS,
PONTIUS PILATE,

THE HIGH PRIESTS
AND THE PHARISEES,

BUT JESUS, THE SON OF GOD,

IS AT BEST
ONLY MENTIONED TWICE.

HE WRITES ABOUT EVERYTHING,

EVERY LITTLE DETAIL
ABOUT LIFE IN JUDEA

AT THIS TIME EXCEPT JESUS.

ACTUALLY, HE DOES MENTION
THE WORD MESSIAH,

BUT EVEN THAT MENTION OF
THE WORD MESSIAH TELLS SCHOLARS

THAT'S NOT WHAT A JEWISH MAN
WOULD CALL THE CHRISTOS.

HE DOESN'T CALL IT
CHRISTIANITY,

SO IT'S AN INDICATION THAT IT'S
A FRAUD THAT WAS ADDED LATER.

THE JEWISH MESSIAH
WAS SUPPOSED TO BE PURE

AND SIMPLE
A GREAT MILITARY LEADER

WHO WOULD KICK THE ROMANS OUT,

AND OBVIOUSLY JESUS FAILED
ON THAT COUNT TOTALLY,

BUT THE WHOLE IDEA
OF BEING THE SON OF GOD

WAS GRAFTED ON BY HIMSELF

AND/OR THE EARLY CHRISTIANS.

♪♪

Narrator:
IN THE EPISTLES OF ST. PAUL

WRITTEN 25 YEARS
AFTER JESUS' DEATH,

IT'S CLAIMED THAT JESUS
WAS EXECUTED BY PILATE.

WE KNOW FOR A FACT
THAT PONTIUS PILATE DID EXIST,

AND THE ROMAN WRITER TACITUS
WROTE ABOUT A CHRISTOS,

BUT IT WOULD APPEAR THAT
ALL MENTIONS OF CHRIST OR JESUS

WERE ACTUALLY SECONDHAND
RETELLINGS OF OTHER ACCOUNTS.

NOTHING AT ALL WAS DIRECT.

Gough: THE ROMAN HISTORIAN
TACITUS IS INTERESTING

'CAUSE HE USES
THE RIGHT PHRASE, THE CHRISTOS,

BUT THE EARLIEST COPY
WE HAVE OF WHAT HE WROTE

IS THE 11th CENTURY.

THE FIRST REFERENCE OF HIS WORK
IS THE 15th CENTURY,

SO IT JUST ADDS TO THE BELIEF
THAT THIS IS, IN HINDSIGHT,

SOMEONE ADDING SOME ELEMENTS
TO HIS WRITING,

TALKING ABOUT CHRISTIANITY
THAT THEY HAD LEARNED

AND HEARD
ABOUT MUCH AFTER THE EVENT.

IT'S EXTRAORDINARY BECAUSE
RELIGION DEMANDS CERTAINTY,

AND THE ONE THING WE DON'T HAVE
ABOUT JESUS IS CERTAINTY.

THE STORY THAT WE NOW
HAVE WAS MANUFACTURED

DECADES AND HUNDREDS
OF YEARS LATER.

THE VERY FIRST REFERENCES
WE HAVE IN THE GOSPELS

DON'T COME UNTIL 60 YEARS
AFTER HIS DEATH,

AND THE TEXTS GO THROUGH MANY,
MANY EVOLUTIONS,

SO THE PROCESS OF MAKING JESUS
INTO CHRIST, THE GOD,

IS A LONG ONE HAPPENING ALL OVER
THE ROMAN EMPIRE FOR CENTURIES.

♪♪

Narrator: IF THE JESUS CHRIST
IN THE BIBLE

WAS ACTUALLY BASED
ON REAL PEOPLE AND REAL PLACES,

THEN THE SO-CALLED GARDEN TOMB
IN JERUSALEM

IS A GOOD PLACE TO VISIT.

INVESTIGATIVE REPORTER
JAMIE THEAKSTON

IS TRYING TO FIND THE TRUTH

ABOUT THE EXISTENCE
OF THE HISTORICAL JESUS.

DR. EYAL MIRON IS A LEADING
JEWISH SCHOLAR

AND HAS AGREED TO SHOW HIM
THIS HISTORICAL SITE.

♪♪

SO THIS IS THE GARDEN TOMB.
IS THAT RIGHT?

YES, INDEED.
THIS IS THE GARDEN TOMB,

AND ACTUALLY,
WHAT THEY HAVE HERE

IS A TOMB SUPPOSEDLY FROM
THE SECOND TEMPLE PERIOD

WHICH WAS PROBABLY THE TOMB
WHERE JESUS WAS BURIED IN.

RIGHT, SO THE TOMB ITSELF
PREDATES JESUS.

NOW IN ACTUALITY,

THE TOMB ITSELF BELONGS
TO THE FIRST TEMPLE PERIOD

WHICH IS MUCH, MUCH EARLIER
THAN THE TIME OF JESUS.

I'D SAY ABOUT 800 YEARS
BEFORE THE TIME OF JESUS.

RIGHT.

BUT IT HAS BEEN ALTERED
SINCE THEN.

WHAT YOU SEE IN FRONT OF YOU
AT THE MOMENT ARE THE CARVINGS

AND TOOLINGS OF THE BEDROCK DONE
DURING THE CRUSADER ERA

INCLUDING, FOR INSTANCE,
THIS BEAUTIFUL CHANNEL

WHICH IS ACTUALLY A TROUGH
USED BY THE CRUSADERS

FOR THEIR HORSES AND DONKEYS.

THERE WAS A STABLE HERE
IN THE 12th CENTURY.

YOU SEE, THIS IS KIND OF
HOW I'D IMAGINED

JESUS' TOMB TO LOOK LIKE.

-MM-HMM.
-BUT MAYBE WITH A BIG --

WAS THERE A ROCK THAT WAS ROLLED
IN FRONT OF THE TOMB?

WELL, YOU'D EXPECT TO HAVE
THE ROCK HERE, ROLLING STONE,

ACCORDING TO WHAT WE KNOW
ABOUT THE BURIAL

DURING THE SECOND TEMPLE
PERIOD,

AND THAT WAS AT LEAST NOT
A TYPICAL WAY OF BURIAL,

BUT YOU FIND IT IN SOME MAJOR
SITES, MAJOR BURIAL SITES.

Narrator:
THE GARDEN TOMB IN JERUSALEM

EXISTED IN JESUS' TIME.

IT EVEN HAD A LARGE
ROLLING STONE AT THE FRONT

TO CLOSE IT OFF,

BUT DO SCHOLARS BELIEVE
IT REALLY IS HIS TOMB,

AND WHAT DOES THIS TELL US
ABOUT THE EXISTENCE OF JESUS

AT THIS TIME IN HISTORY?

♪♪

Narrator:
MATCHING THE BELIEF IN JESUS

TO ACTUAL PHYSICAL SITES
IN JERUSALEM

IS A DIFFICULT TASK,
LIKE THE GARDEN TOMB

THAT IS BELIEVED TO BE
HIS POSSIBLE BURIAL SITE.

IT LOOKS RATHER GRAND.

IS THAT HOW A MAN OF JESUS'
STATURE WOULD HAVE BEEN BURIED?

WELL, ACTUALLY,
IT IS QUITE SMALL.

IGNORE THE FACADE HERE.

THIS WAS DONE MUCH,

MUCH LATER THAN THE TIME
OF THE BURIAL HERE.

DURING THE BURIAL PERIOD,
THAT WOULD BE A ROCK STOP,

AND THERE WOULD BE
A NICE LITTLE HOLE HERE OPENING

INTO A VERY SMALL
AND COZY CHAMBER FOR BURIAL,

AND THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT I'M
GOING TO SHOW YOU IN A MOMENT,

SO IT WAS ACTUALLY QUITE SMALL,
AND PEOPLE LIKE JESUS,

EVEN THOUGH HE WAS TRIED
AS A REBEL

AND EVEN THOUGH
HE WAS CRUCIFIED,

THEY WOULD BE TURNED OVER
TO THE FAMILIES

TO BE BURIED PROPERLY
ACCORDING TO JEWISH CUSTOM.

WE DO KNOW THAT BECAUSE WE HAVE
SUCH AN EXAMPLE IN ARCHAEOLOGY.

IN JERUSALEM IN THE 1970s,

THE SKELETON OF A JEW
CALLED JEHOHANAN,

THE SON OF HAGKOL,

WAS DISCOVERED IN
THE NORTH SIDE OF JERUSALEM,

AND AN 11-CENTIMETER NAIL

WAS ACTUALLY PIERCED
INTO HIS HEEL BONE.

THIS IS THE ONLY ARCHAEOLOGICAL
EVIDENCE OF CRUCIFIXION

THAT WE HAVE
IN THE ENTIRE WORLD,

AND HE WAS BURIED PROPERLY IN
A TYPICAL JEWISH BURIAL PLACE.

I'D EXPECT THAT THE SAME
HAPPENED WITH JESUS.

-CAN WE TAKE A LOOK INSIDE?
-YES, OF COURSE.

PLEASE BE MY GUEST.

Picknett:
THE GARDEN TOMB IS DEFINITELY

PART OF THE JESUS TOURISM,

THE THEME PARK
THAT IS JERUSALEM,

BUT IT HAS CERTAIN ELEMENTS
GOING FOR IT.

I MEAN, WE JUST DON'T KNOW

WHETHER IT WAS
JESUS' TOMB OR NOT.

I MEAN, IT COULD HAVE BEEN.

IT CERTAINLY DATES FROM
BEFORE HIS TIME.

IT COULD HAVE BEEN.

ONE MAJOR POINT, THOUGH,
WITH ALL OF THESE PLACES --

EVEN IF THEY'RE NOT GENUINE,

THEY ARE HALLOWED BY BELIEF
BY GENERATIONS OF BELIEVERS

WHO POUR THEIR FAITH
AND THEIR EMOTION INTO IT.

♪♪

SO WHAT WE ACTUALLY SEE HERE
IS ACTUALLY THE TOMB

FOLLOWING THE TIME OF JESUS
IN THE BYZANTINE ERA.

THAT'S ABOUT 3,
400 YEARS LATER,

AND THESE ALTERATIONS
MADE THE TOMB

LOOK THE WAY IT LOOKS TODAY

WITH THESE BATHTUBS OR TROUGHS
FOR THE BURIAL OF THE BODIES.

WE HAVE ONE HERE, TWO THERE,
THIRD ONE OVER THERE,

BUT ORIGINALLY, THE FIRST TEMPLE
TOMB WOULD LOOK A BIT DIFFERENT.

THERE WOULD BE SHELVES ON WHICH
THE BODIES WOULD BE PUT ON

JUST LIKE BED AT HOME.

IN YOUR OPINION,
IS THIS THE TOMB OF JESUS?

IT'S VERY HARD TO TELL.

THE TOMB EXISTED
IN THE TIME OF JESUS,

BUT ACCORDING TO
THE NEW TESTAMENT

IN THE GOSPELS,

IT SAYS THAT JESUS
WAS BURIED IN A NEW TOMB.

IN THE TIME OF JESUS, THIS TOMB
WAS ALREADY 800 YEARS OLD.

SO THE EVIDENCE OF
THE NEW TESTAMENT SUGGESTS

THAT THIS WASN'T JESUS' TOMB.

INDEED, INDEED.

THE GARDEN TOMB IS A FASCINATING
ALTERNATIVE

FOR A TRUE SITE POTENTIALLY
OF WHERE JESUS WAS BURIED,

AND YOU GO THERE TODAY,
AND IT JUST FEELS RIGHT,

AND IT'S JUST VERY UNDERSTATED.

THE PEOPLE WHO SORT OF TAKE YOU
AROUND THERE

AREN'T PUSHING IT DOWN
YOUR THROAT

THAT THIS IS THE SITE
WHERE HE WAS BURIED,

BUT IT'S THE KIND OF PLACE
THAT LOOKS LIKE,

YOU KNOW,
WHERE IT WOULD HAVE HAPPENED,

AND BURIALS HERE GO BACK TO
THE 5th CENTURY OR FURTHER B.C.,

SO IT REALLY TICKS
A LOT OF BOXES.

♪♪

Narrator: IF THE EVIDENCE IN
THE NEW TESTAMENT DOES, IN FACT,

RULE OUT THE GARDEN TOMB
AS JESUS' BURIAL PLACE,

PERHAPS THE NEXT LOCATION

THAT JAMIE INVESTIGATES

WILL PROVE MORE PROMISING.

MANY CHRISTIANS BELIEVE
THAT THE ACTUAL SITE

OF THE CRUCIFIXION
AND THE BURIAL OF CHRIST

CAN BE FOUND IN THE CHURCH
OF THE HOLY SEPULCHRE

RIGHT IN THE HEART OF JERUSALEM.

COULD JESUS' BODY REALLY
HAVE BEEN CRUCIFIED

AND ENTOMBED
ALL AT THE SAME LOCATION?

♪♪

-THIS IS IT.
-WELL, YES, JAMIE, INDEED.

THIS IS THE HOLY SEPULCHRE
CHURCH.

THEN YOU CAN SEE,
IT IS INDEED QUITE BUSY TODAY.

FOR MANY CHRISTIANS
ALL OVER THE WORLD,

THIS IS THE HOLIEST SITE
ON EARTH.

THIS IS THE PLACE
WHERE JESUS WAS CRUCIFIED.

THIS IS THE PLACE OF BURIAL,

AND IT IS ALSO
THE PLACE OF RESURRECTION.

-CAN WE GO AND TAKE A LOOK?
-BY ALL MEANS.

Narrator: SOME PEOPLE BELIEVE
THAT AT THE TIME OF JESUS,

THIS SITE WOULD HAVE BEEN
OUTSIDE THE MUCH SMALLER

WALLED CITY OF JERUSALEM.

IF TRUE, THEN THE LOCATION IS
SUPPORTED BY THE BIBLICAL CLAIM

THAT JESUS' TOMB WAS INDEED
SOMEWHERE OUTSIDE OF THE CITY.

WELL, BASICALLY, JAMIE, WHAT WE
SEE HERE IS THE UNCTION STONE.

ACCORDING TO THE GOSPEL OF JOHN,
ONCE THE BODY OF JESUS

WAS TAKEN DOWN FROM THE CROSS,
IT WAS LAID DOWN,

AND HIS DISCIPLES
PREPARED IT FOR BURIAL.

ACCORDING TO
THE LOCAL TRADITION,

THIS IS THE ACTUAL PLACE
WHERE THAT TOOK PLACE,

AND THESE PILGRIMS COMING IN
TOUCHING THE STONE,

RUBBING IT WITH ALL SORTS
OF SOUVENIRS

THAT THEY WILL TAKE BACK HOME
AS BLESSED SOUVENIRS.

MM-HMM.
OKAY, SO THEY WOULD TOUCH THIS.

YOU CAN TOUCH IT.
YES, OF COURSE.

AND PEOPLE WILL TRAVEL
ALL AROUND THE WORLD

TO DO THIS,
TO TOUCH THE STONE.

ABSOLUTELY.

IT'S THE PEAK OF THE EXPERIENCE
HERE IN JERUSALEM,

THE ENTIRE HOLY SEPULCHRE CHURCH
AND OF COURSE TOUCHING THE PLACE

WHERE THE BODY OF CHRIST
ONCE LAID.

AND WHAT WOULD IN ORDER TO MEAN
TO TOUCH THE STONE

OR TO RUB YOUR SOUVENIRS
ON THE STONE,

THAT IT BECOMES BLESSED OR...

IT BECOMES BLESSED, YES,
AND IT IS INDEED BELIEVED

ONE OF THE ONLY PLACES WHERE YOU
CAN ACTUALLY TOUCH HOLINESS.

Selwood: YOU HAVE TO REMEMBER
THAT THE ROMANS RAZED JERUSALEM.

JOSEPHUS SAYS THAT ANYONE
WHO WENT WOULD NEVER HAVE KNOWN

EVEN A CITY HAD BEEN THERE,

SO WHATEVER
ARCHAEOLOGICAL VESTIGES

THERE WERE OF JESUS' TIME
WERE GONE.

THE ROMANS WIPED THEM
OFF THE FACE OF THE EARTH.

WHEN WE'RE THINKING
ABOUT SITES NOW

THAT ARE THE HOLY SITES
OF JERUSALEM,

ONE HAS TO BEAR THAT
IN MIND AND REALIZE

THESE WERE RECOGNIZED LATER,

SO THE CHURCH OF
THE HOLY SEPULCHRE, FOR EXAMPLE,

IS A BYZANTINE CREATION
BY THE EMPRESS HELENA.

THIS COMES ALONG
IN THE 300s.

THAT'S THREE CENTURIES
AFTER JESUS.

THE GARDEN TOMB IS DISCOVERED
IN THE 20th CENTURY.

ALL OF THESE AREAS
HAVE TRADITIONS

THAT GROW UP AROUND THEM,

BUT FUNDAMENTALLY,
THEY ARE ALL LATER,

AND THEY ARE ADDED ONTO A CITY
THAT HAD BEEN THOROUGHLY ERASED.

Narrator: THE EXAMINATION OF
THE HISTORICAL EVIDENCE

VERSUS THE BELIEF
OF JESUS' DEATH IN JERUSALEM

CONTINUES IN THE HOLY SEPULCHRE

WHERE IT IS CLAIMED HE WAS
BURIED AND ROSE FROM THE DEAD,

BUT IS THIS LOCATION
THE REAL PLACE

ACCORDING TO LEADING
ARCHAEOLOGISTS?

♪♪

Narrator: THERE IS MUCH DEBATE
OVER THE HISTORICAL SITES

CONNECTED TO JESUS CHRIST
IN JERUSALEM.

BUT WHAT IS THE PROOF THAT
THE CHURCH OF THE HOLY SEPULCHRE

IS THE ACTUAL PLACE
WHERE HE WAS CRUCIFIED

AND THEN BURIED?

OKAY.
SO WHAT HAVE WE GOT IN HERE?

SO WE JUST ENTERED
THE CHAPEL OF ADAM.

ACCORDING TO MEDIEVAL
TRADITIONS, ON THIS ROCK,

THE ROCK OF GOLGOTHA,
JESUS WAS CRUCIFIED,

AND YOU CAN ACTUALLY SEE
THE ROCK ITSELF

PRESERVED
BEHIND THIS LITTLE WINDOW.

ACCORDING TO LEGEND,
THE SKULL OF ADAM

WAS ACTUALLY ENTOMBED
RIGHT UNDER THE CROSS,

AND A DROP OF BLOOD CAME DOWN
ON THE SKULL OF ADAM,

AND HE MOMENTARILY RESURRECTED.
-HANG ON.

I THOUGHT THAT JESUS WAS
CRUCIFIED ON CALVARY.

TRUE, CALVARY IS ACTUALLY
THE NAME OF THE SITE.

IT COMES FROM THE WORD
MEANING SKULL,

BUT WE ACTUALLY TALK
ABOUT A ROCK STOP

ON WHICH HIS CROSS
WAS POSITIONED,

AND THIS IS THE BASIS
OF THAT ROCK STOP.

IN A MOMENT, WE'LL BE ON TOP
OF THAT AT THE SITE OF CALVARY.

-RIGHT.
-BUT THAT'S ALSO CALVARY.

OKAY.

IT'S A CHAPEL
AT THE BASES OF CALVARY.

I THINK I UNDERSTAND,
AND WHAT HAVE WE GOT NEXT?

-THE ACTUAL SITE OF THE CROSS.
-SHOULD WE GO AND TAKE A LOOK?

YEP. LET'S GO.

Green: IT SEEMS RATHER
CONVENIENT AND SUSPICIOUS

THAT IT'S SUCH A COMPACT SITE.

I MEAN, IT'S ALMOST LIKE A KIND
OF DISNEY WORLD

FOR PEOPLE THAT BELIEVE
IN JESUS CHRIST.

YOU CAN GO THERE, GET YOUR FILL,

GET YOUR LITTLE SOUVENIRS
AND THEN LEAVE,

AND MUCH OF THIS DATES
BACK TO THE CRUSADES,

BUT THAT IN ITSELF WAS 1,000
YEARS AFTER THE EVENTS DEPICTED,

SO I THINK, YOU KNOW,
EVEN, YOU KNOW,

THE MOST KIND OF WELL
BELIEVING CHRISTIAN

WOULD BE ENTITLED TO FEEL
A LITTLE BIT OF DOUBT, LIKE,

"HOW DO WE KNOW
IT WAS THIS EXACT SPOT?"

♪♪

THIS IS QUITE SOMETHING,
SO WHAT'S THIS?

THIS IS THE TOP OF THE ROCK
WE'VE SEEN EARLIER

IN THE CHAPEL OF ADAM.

-RIGHT.
-RIGHT.

WE WERE AT THE FOOT
OF THE BEDROCK.

NOW WE'RE AT THE TOP
OF THE ROCK STOP,

AND ACCORDING TO TRADITION,

THIS IS THE PRECISE
LOCATION PLACE.

THIS LOOKS BEAUTIFUL, HUH?

YEAH, YOU CAN ACTUALLY SEE
JESUS IN THE MIDDLE.

YOU CAN SEE MARY, HIS MOTHER,

AND JOHN THE APOSTLE

AND THE INSCRIPTION
ON TOP OF HIS HEAD

BASICALLY THE TITLE
OF HIS CRIME.

RIGHT.

"CLAIMING TO BE THE KING
OF THE JEWS,"

IN GREEK
THAT'S IN AND HEBREW.

♪♪

McMahon: IDENTIFYING THE PLACE
OF CRUCIFIXION

IS COMPLETELY GUESSWORK.

IT'S TAKING SCRIPTURE AND THEN
TRYING TO BASICALLY CRAM

REAL PLACES INTO THE BIBLE,

AND WHEN YOU GO
TO THE HOLY SEPULCHRE,

YOU THINK,
"THIS DOESN'T LOOK LIKE

"WHERE JESUS WAS CRUCIFIED.
IT'S NOT EVEN ON A HILL.

IT'S INSIDE THE CITY WALL.
IT DOESN'T MAKE SENSE,"

BUT, YOU KNOW,
IT WAS ALL ABOUT FAITH.

♪♪

OKAY, JAMIE. WE ARE ENTERING
THE HOLY OF HOLIES.

WOW. THIS IS IT.

THE HOLY SEPULCHRE CHURCH,
THIS CHAMBER

IS THE CHAMBER OF THE ANGEL

WHERE THE WOMEN
WHO CAME TO JESUS' TOMB

AFTER THE RESURRECTION
SAW THE ANGEL WAITING FOR THEM,

AND THIS IS THE INNER SANCTUM.

THIS IS TRULY THE HOLY OF HOLIES
FOR MANY CHRISTIANS.

THIS IS JESUS' TOMB HERE.

THIS IS JESUS' TOMB.

OH, WOW. THAT'S AMAZING.

I KNOW IT DOESN'T LOOK MUCH
LIKE A TOMB

BECAUSE IT IS NOW COVERED
WITH THESE SLABS,

STONE SLABS WHICH ARE MUCH,
MUCH LATER THAN THE TIME OF

JESUS, BUT IT WAS TAKEN OUT
A COUPLE OF MONTHS AGO

BY AN ARCHAEOLOGICAL TEAM
FROM ATHENS,

AND YES,
THERE IS A TOMB UNDERNEATH,

AND IT IS A PART OF A CAVE
IN WHICH

THIS IS JUST ONE OF THE BENCHES
OR ONE OF THE PLACES

WHERE THE BODIES
WOULD BE PUT ON.

SO AS FAR AS THE BIBLE
IS CONCERNED

AND MILLIONS OF CHRISTIANS
AROUND THE WORLD,

THIS IS THE TOMB OF CHRIST.
-INDEED.

FOR US AS HISTORIANS,
ARCHAEOLOGISTS,

PEOPLE OF THE ACADEMY,

THIS IS A GENUINE JEWISH TOMB
FROM AROUND THE TIME OF JESUS.

SO THE ONLY EVIDENCE,

ONLY ARCHAEOLOGICAL EVIDENCE
WE HAVE OF JESUS' TOMB

IS THE FACT THAT IT WAS A TOMB
AT THE RIGHT TIME.

INDEED, AND IT'S NOT ALONE.

THERE ARE OTHER TOMBS AROUND US,
AND THEY ALL BELONG

TO A CEMETERY
FROM THE SECOND TEMPLE PERIOD.

REGARDLESS OF
THE HISTORICAL EVIDENCE,

IT'S STILL
AN EXTRAORDINARY PLACE.

-IT IS.
-IT FEELS...

-TRUE.
-YOU CAN'T HELP BUT FEEL...

-I TOTALLY AGREE.
-IT'S A SPECIAL PLACE, RIGHT?

IT IS INDEED, INDEED.

A RATIONAL MIND RESPECTFULLY
IS GONNA QUESTION

WHETHER OR NOT THE HISTORICAL
SITE IS WHAT IT SAYS IT IS.

IS IT REALLY THE SITE
OF THE CRUCIFIXION

AND THEN A FEW FEET
WHERE HE WAS LAID DOWN

AFTER THE CROSS
AND THEN BURIED?

IT IS UNCERTAIN WHEN THIS ALL
BECAME A BIT OF A PILGRIM SITE,

BUT IT APPEARS TO HAVE BEEN
A SYMBOLIC REPRESENTATION

FOR THE STORY
WHICH ITSELF IS ALLEGORICAL,

BUT IT'S
A SYMBOLIC REPRESENTATION

OF WHERE IT HAPPENED.

HISTORIANS TODAY WOULD TELL YOU,
"NO, IT DOESN'T MAKE ANY SENSE.

"THEY ALL WOULDN'T HAVE HAPPENED
IN THE SAME PLACE,

AND IT WOULD HAVE BEEN OUTSIDE
THE CITY WALLS, NOT WITHIN."

♪♪

Narrator: THE PROBLEM WITH
THE HISTORICAL JESUS IS,

WHERE IS THE EVIDENCE?

YES, THE LOCATIONS, THE PHYSICAL
PLACES THAT JESUS WAS SAID

TO HAVE VISITED DO EXIST,
BUT WHAT SUBSTANTIATION IS THERE

THAT HE WAS ACTUALLY THERE
AT THE RIGHT TIME?

MARTY FRIEDLANDER IS
A LOCAL GUIDE IN JERUSALEM

WHO HAS AGREED TO SHOW JAMIE
SOME OF THE KEY SITES THAT JESUS

IS SAID TO HAVE VISITED
ACCORDING TO THE NEW TESTAMENT.

SO WHEN WE LOOK AT THE BIBLICAL
EVIDENCE OF JESUS

IN THE NEW TESTAMENT,
WHAT DO THE GOSPELS TELL US

AND SPECIFICALLY IN TERMS OF
WHERE WE ARE NOW?

OH, FUNNY
YOU SHOULD MENTION IT.

JUST OVER THIS WALL
BEHIND THAT BUILDING

IS THE BETHESDA POOL WHICH IS
MENTIONED IN THE BOOK OF JOHN

WHERE JESUS PERFORMS HIS
FIRST MIRACLE HERE IN JERUSALEM.

HE RESTORES A --

WELL, HE TAKES
A HANDICAPPED GENTLEMAN

WHO HAS A HARD TIME
GETTING TO THE POOL IN TIME.

APPARENTLY, THERE'S A RIPPLE
OF THE WATER ONCE A DAY,

AND THE FIRST GUY WHO WAS ABLE
TO JUMP IN, HE'LL BE HEALED.

OKAY, BUT IF WE DISCOUNT

THE MORE MIRACULOUS STORIES
IN THE NEW TESTAMENT

BECAUSE I WANT TO FOCUS
MORE ON THE HISTORY.

-I WANT TO GET SOME PROOF --
-MM-HMM.

...OF JESUS' EXISTENCE,
WHAT ELSE?

WHAT OTHER PLACES NEARBY
WILL HELP US WITH THAT?

WELL, JUST OVER THAT WAY
IS WHERE THE TEMPLE STOOD,

AND THAT, THE PLATFORM

ON WHICH THE DOME OF THE ROCK
IS BUILT TODAY,

IT'S THE SAME PLATFORM ON WHICH
JESUS AND EVERY OTHER JEW

WHO WAS MAKING A PILGRIMAGE
UP TO JERUSALEM,

THEY WOULD HAVE WALKED ON.
THAT'S LEGIT.

IS THERE ANY ARCHAEOLOGICAL
EVIDENCE OF JESUS' EXISTENCE?

THAT'S A TOUGH ONE,

AND I WOULD SAY THE ANSWER
HAS GOT TO BE NO.

HAVE WE SCIENTIFIC PROOF THAT,

"YES, THIS IS THE CROSS
ON WHICH HE WAS CRUCIFIED"?

-NO.
-NO.

IT BOILS DOWN TO,
DO YOU BELIEVE IT,

AND IF YOU WANT TO BELIEVE IT,
THEN YOU'LL MAKE SURE

THAT YOU'LL WRAP
YOUR SCIENTIFIC MIND AROUND IT

AND SAY,
"YES, THIS IS PROOF."

VIRTUALLY EVERYTHING WAS LOST
BY THE ROMANS,

THE GREAT SUPPRESSION
AFTER THE REBELLIONS,

BUT THE ONE THING THAT REMAINS
PROBABLY ACCURATE

IS THE VIA DOLOROSA
WHICH IS WHERE JESUS

IS SUPPOSED TO HAVE CARRIED
THE CROSS FROM PILATE

TO THE SITE OF THE CRUCIFIXION.

THAT MUST BE ACCURATE
FOR THE SIMPLE REASON

IT'S THE ONLY DIRECT ROUTE
FROM THE TWO POINTS,

AND THE ROMANS USED IT.

Narrator: WAS JESUS ACTUALLY
PARADED DOWN VIA DOLOROSA

BEFORE BEING CRUCIFIED
AND BURIED IN JERUSALEM?

IF SO, WHERE DID HE RISE
FROM THE DEAD?

IF JESUS WAS INDEED EXECUTED
BY THE ROMANS,

WHAT FACTS SUPPORT
THE CRUCIFIXION AND DEATH

OF JESUS CHRIST,

AND IS THE HISTORY SUPPORTED
BY REAL PEOPLE AND PLACES?

EXPERT OPINION IS STILL DIVIDED.

SO IS THIS THE VIA DOLOROSA?
WE'RE ON THE --

YEAH, WE'RE ABOUT TO START
OFFICIALLY THE VIA DOLOROSA

AT THE FIRST STATION
OF THE CROSS.

OKAY, AND WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?

WHEN YOU TALK ABOUT STATIONS OF
THE CROSS, WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?

THESE ARE STATIONS ALONG THE WAY
OF THE SUFFERING OF JESUS.

FROM STATION ONE WOULD BE WHEN
HE'S BEING SENTENCED TO DEATH

CULMINATING IN STATION 13, 14

WHEN HE'S ALREADY
BEING PLACED IN THE TOMB

AT THE END OF THE LINE.

SO WHAT HAVE WE GOT
THROUGH HERE?

ENTERING THE SECOND STATION
OF THE CROSS.

OKAY, WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?

MEANS THE FIRST STATION,
JESUS WAS BEING SENTENCED.

YEP.

IN THIS CASE, LITERALLY RIGHT
ACROSS THE STREET

ACCORDING TO
THE CURRENT GEOGRAPHY,

AND THEN HE'S BEING HANDED
OVER TO THE ROMAN POLICE

WHO ARE GOING TO BE
EXECUTING THE SENTENCE.

-AND THAT'S HERE.
-THAT'S GOING TO BE HERE.

IT'S REALLY EASY FOR US
TO FORGET THAT THERE WERE DOZENS

AND PROBABLY DOZENS OF MESSIAHS
THAT CAME INTO JERUSALEM

KNOWING THAT THE OLD TESTAMENT
HAD PROPHESIZED

THAT A MESSIAH WOULD COME
AND RESCUE THE JEWS,

SO TIME AND TIME AGAIN,
HERE COMES A MESSIAH.

HE'S GOT A CROSS.
HE'S ON A DONKEY.

THERE'S PALM TREES.

HE HAS A CULT OF FOLLOWERS,
AND, YOU KNOW, THE JEWISH ELDERS

MUST HAVE BEEN
JUST ROLLING THEIR EYES.

"NOT ANOTHER ONE, REALLY?

"JESUS CHRIST,
THAT'S WHAT YOUR NAME IS?

OKAY, NEXT."

IF HE WAS THE PERSON
THAT BIBLE SAYS HE WAS,

THEN HE WAS
A POLITICAL AGITATOR.

AS A POLITICAL AGITATOR,

HE WOULD HAVE BEEN CRUCIFIED
BY THE ROMANS,

AND HIS BODY WOULD HAVE BEEN
EITHER LEFT TO ROT ON THE CROSS

OR THROWN ON THE RUBBISH
HEAPS FOR THE DOGS.

IF THERE WERE VARIOUS CHRISTIANS
THAT WROTE THE STORY,

AND IT WAS A MYTH, DO YOU NOT
THINK THEY WOULD HAVE COME UP

WITH A DIFFERENT METHOD
OF HAVING THEIR MESSIAH DIE

BECAUSE IT'S A PRETTY BRUTAL,
HORRIBLE WAY OF DYING?

NO, BECAUSE IT HAS --
IT'S GROUNDED IN THE FACT.

THE ROMANS DID, IN FACT,
CRUCIFY PEOPLE IN PUBLIC.

THERE WAS AN OSSUARY,
A LITTLE BONE BOX,

FOUND HERE IN JERUSALEM
AT A CONSTRUCTION SITE

THAT FOUND A HEEL BONE
WITH A NAIL STILL STUCK IN IT,

SO HE WASN'T
THE ONLY PERSON CRUCIFIED.

SO WE KNOW CRUCIFIXIONS
HAPPENED.

-YEAH.
-THAT'S A HISTORICAL FACT.

WE KNOW THAT THAT'S HOW
THEY USED TO KILL...

-[ SPEAKS INDISTINCTLY ]
-CORRECT, YEAH.

Green: THE ROMANS BELIEVED IN
UPHOLDING THE MOST STRINGENT,

RIGOROUS FORM OF DISCIPLINE.

THEY HATED ANYONE
THAT REPRESENTED

A THREAT TO LAW AND ORDER,

AND JESUS CREATED
DISTURBANCES IN THE TEMPLE,

AND HE WAS SEEN
TO BE GENERATING

A KIND OF
AN INDEPENDENT POWER BASE

BECAUSE PEOPLE
WERE LOYAL TO HIM AND HIM ONLY,

LIKE, ABOVE AND BEYOND
THE ROMAN EMPIRE,

SO THEY TREATED HIM
AS THEY TREATED SUCH PEOPLE

WHO TENDED TO CHALLENGE
THE STATUS QUO BRUTALLY,

AND THAT LED TO HIS ARREST

AND EVENTUALLY
HIS SAVAGE EXECUTION.

♪♪

I DON'T THINK THAT
THE JEWISH ASSESSMENT

HAD SUCH AN ISSUE WITH HIM.

I THINK HE WAS ONE OF MANY
AGITATORS

FROM THE STICKS
OR FROM THE CITIES,

BUT THEY CERTAINLY
WEREN'T GOING TO SAY,

"WE MUST PUT
THIS FELLOW TO DEATH."

THAT WAS NOT
THE JEWISH CHARACTER.

RIGHT.

BUT WHAT WAS CERTAINLY IN
CHARACTER WAS FOR THE ROMANS --

THE ROMAN EMPIRE
KEEPS ITSELF IN BUSINESS

BY BEING INCREDIBLY
VIOLENT AND MURDEROUS

AND PUTTING OUT
ANY SORT OF SPARK OF REBELLION

AT THE GET-GO,

AND THAT'S WHAT
HE REPRESENTED TO THEM.

Picknett: WHAT PEOPLE
DON'T REALLY GET IS

THAT JESUS WASN'T IMPORTANT
IN HIS OWN DAY.

HE WAS BARELY KNOWN,

AND TO PUT HIM
IN CONTEXT IN THE YEAR

THAT HE'S COMMONLY THOUGHT
TO HAVE DIED,

A.D. 33, PONTIUS PILATE
EXECUTED BY CRUCIFIXION

300 WOULD-BE MESSIAHS
IN JERUSALEM.

JESUS WAS JUST ONE OF THEM.

♪♪

Narrator: ACCORDING TO SOME,
THE CRUCIFIXION TOOK PLACE

WHERE THE CHURCH OF
THE HOLY SEPULCHRE STANDS TODAY

WHICH IN THE TIME OF JESUS

COULD HAVE BEEN ON THE EDGE OF
THE OLD JERUSALEM CITY LIMITS,

BUT ARCHAEOLOGISTS ARGUE
THAT CRUCIFIXIONS

ALWAYS TOOK PLACE
OUTSIDE OF THE CITY WALLS,

AND SOME BELIEVE
THAT THEY KNOW THE SPOT

NEAR THE MOUNT OF OLIVES,
A VERY REMOTE PLACE AT THE TIME.

DR. EYAL MIRON KNOWS
THE SITE WELL

AND HAS AGREED TO SHOW
JAMIE THE POSSIBLE LOCATION

WHERE JESUS WAS CRUCIFIED.

THIS BUSTLING BUS PARK
WOULD HAVE BEEN,

ACCORDING TO SOME,
THE ACTUAL CRUCIFIXION SITE

IN THE SECOND TEMPLE PERIOD,
AMAZINGLY AS IT LOOKS.

REALLY?

YES, THE NEW TESTAMENT
DOESN'T ACTUALLY SPECIFY

THE LOCATION
OF THE CRUCIFIXION.

IT JUST -- THE GOSPELS SAY
THAT IT WAS DONE

IN A PLACE
CALLED GOLGOTHA,

MEANING THE SKULL HILL
OR JUST A SKULL, ACTUALLY.

THIS IS THE HILL,
AND YOU CAN SEE

THAT THERE ARE TWO CAVES HERE
LOOKING LIKE EYES,

AND THEN YOU HAVE THE MOUTH
AND MAYBE A NOSE OVER HERE,

SO IT DOES LOOK LIKE
A SKULL AND --

AND THIS IS, IN THIS ROCK
FACE HERE, THE SKULL.

AND THAT'S EXACTLY IT,
SO HE SAID,

"MAYBE THIS IS THE SKULL HILL,
AND IF HE'S RIGHT,

THEN THE CRUCIFIXION MIGHT
HAVE TAKEN PLACE RIGHT HERE."

HAPPENED HERE.

AND THERE WOULD HAVE BEEN
CROSSES ALL THE WAY --

WELL, EITHER ALL THE WAY UP HERE
OR DOWN HERE FOR PEOPLE TO SEE.

YOU'D LIKE IT TO BE CLOSER
TO THE PUBLIC.

SO WOULD YOU SAY JESUS' CRIME
FITS THE PUNISHMENT AT THE TIME?

MOST SCHOLARS WOULD AGREE
THAT HE WAS CONSIDERED

TO BE A REBEL BECAUSE HE --

WHEN PILATE ASKS HIM,
"ARE YOU THE KING OF THE JEWS?"

HE REPLIES, "YOU SAID IT,"
MEANING HE DOESN'T DENY THAT,

SO IF SOMEONE CLAIMS
THAT HE'S THE KING OF THE JEWS

WHEN THERE'S AN EMPEROR
IN THE ROMAN EMPIRE,

THAT MEANS THAT HE'S A REBEL,

AND IN THAT CASE,
HE WILL BE CRUCIFIED.

Narrator: SO DO THE VARIOUS
SITES IN JERUSALEM

ADD CREDIBILITY
TO THE CRUCIFIXION

AND RISING
FROM THE DEAD OF JESUS CHRIST,

OR IS THE CONNECTION
STILL TOO LOOSE TO BE REAL?

♪♪

Narrator: JERUSALEM HAS BEEN
CONNECTED TO CHRISTIANITY

FOR MOST OF THE LAST
2,000 YEARS,

BUT CAN JESUS CHRIST

HISTORICALLY BE TRACED
TO THE CITY?

WHAT EVIDENCE IS THERE?

MANY OF THE SITES ASSOCIATED
WITH JESUS CHRIST TODAY,

PARTICULARLY THE ONES
THAT DRAW IN SO MANY VISITORS,

ARE OF QUITE
A SPURIOUS FABRICATION,

AND IT HAS A SENSE OF A SORT
OF A SITE OF PILGRIMAGE,

SO PEOPLE COMING IN
IN THEIR COACHES

TO SEE WHERE CHRIST
WAS CRUCIFIED,

WHERE HE WAS BURIED.

I QUESTION HOW THEY COULD
POSSIBLY KNOW

WHAT PRECISE SPOT ALL THESE,

YOU KNOW, EPOCHAL EVENTS
TOOK PLACE ON.

WHEN YOU'RE AT THE SITE
OF THE CRUCIFIXION,

THERE'S THESE BENCHES,
AND YOU SIT DOWN ON THE BENCHES,

AND YOU THINK, "OKAY,
I'M GOING TO FEAST MY EYES

"ON SOMETHING PROFOUND
AND SOMETHING REALLY MOVING,

"PERHAPS A RECREATION
OF THE THREE CROSSES

"AND PERHAPS, YOU KNOW,
A RECREATION OF MARY MAGDALENE

AND ALL OF THE MARYS
AND JOSEPH OF ARIMATHEA."

NO. ALL YOU SEE IS BUSES.

IT'S THE CRUDEST, UNSANCTIFIED
THING YOU CAN IMAGINE.

♪♪

Narrator: THE NEW TESTAMENT HAS
A NARRATIVE OF JESUS

BEING IN AND AROUND JERUSALEM
LEADING UP TO HIS CRUCIFIXION --

IN THE GARDEN OF GETHSEMANE,
IN THE LAST SUPPER ROOM

AND WALKING DOWN
THE VIA DOLOROSA,

BUT IN RECENT YEARS,
A DIFFERENT SITE

HAS INTERESTED
SCHOLARS AND EXPERTS.

IT'S A PLACE LOCATED
IN THE SUBURBS OF JERUSALEM

AND IS CALLED THE TALPIOT TOMB.

ON THE THIRD FLOOR OF THIS
UNASSUMING APARTMENT BLOCK,

THERE IS AN OUTDOOR TERRACE,

AND IT'S ON THIS TERRACE THAT
A REMARKABLE DISCOVERY WAS MADE.

♪♪

BENEATH THIS STONE SLAB
ARE 10 OSSUARIES,

SIX INSCRIBED WITH EPIGRAPHS

INCLUDING ONE WHICH WAS
INTERPRETED AS JESUS,

SON OF JOSEPH.

THE INSCRIPTION WAS
ONLY PARTIALLY LEGIBLE,

AND ITS TRANSLATION
AND INTERPRETATION

HAS BEEN WILDLY DISPUTED,

BUT WAS THIS THE TRUE TOMB
OF THE MAN CALLED JESUS?

♪♪

THERE ARE SO MANY TOURIST
SITES IN JERUSALEM

THAT WHEN YOU APPROACH
THIS TOMB, YOU EXPECT IT TO BE,

YOU KNOW, DECORATED LIKE
ALL OF THE REST, BUT IT'S NOT.

THERE'S CATS
CRAWLING ON TOP OF IT.

IT'S, YOU KNOW,
OPEN TO THE ELEMENTS.

THERE'S RAILINGS.

THERE'S NOTHING ABOUT IT
THAT SAYS, "WE VALUE THIS.

WE THINK THIS IS AUTHENTIC,"

AND NOT AT ALL WHAT YOU'D EXPECT
FROM SOMEBODY WHO HAS,

YOU KNOW,
BURIED THE SON OF GOD HERE.

♪♪

A CONTROVERSIAL DOCUMENTARY
FILM, "THE LOST TOMB OF JESUS,"

WAS PRODUCED IN 2007
BY DIRECTOR JAMES CAMERON

AND INVESTIGATIVE ARCHAEOLOGIST
SIMCHA JACOBOVICI.

IT GRABBED
THE WORLD'S ATTENTION.

THEY CLAIM THAT THIS WAS
THE JESUS FAMILY TOMB

AND THAT ONE OF
THE OSSUARIES CONTAINED

THE REMAINS
OF JESUS OF NAZARETH

AND THAT HE HADN'T RISEN
FROM THE DEAD.

THE CONTROVERSY WAS HUGE, MAKING
HEADLINES AROUND THE WORLD.

HAD THE TOMB OF JESUS
BEEN FOUND AT LAST?

♪♪

THIS COULD HAVE BEEN

THE GREATEST DISCOVERY
OF ALL TIME,

THE TOMB OF JESUS CHRIST
WITH JAMES CAMERON

AND ALL HIS CREDIBILITY
BEHIND IT, BUT NO.

IT ENDS UP BEING A FRAUD.

Selwood: YOU ONLY HAVE
TO GOOGLE JESUS TO REALIZE

THAT HE IS
ONE OF THE LARGEST INDUSTRIES

AND BUSINESSES ON THE PLANET.

WE LIVE IN AN AGE WHEN PEOPLE
REQUIRE PROOF OF THINGS,

SO IT'S NOT SURPRISING
THAT PEOPLE HAVE COME UP

WITH ALL SORTS OF BOGUS
ARCHAEOLOGY THAT PROVES JESUS.

THE WHOLE TALPIOT TOMB
PHENOMENON, REALLY,

SHOWS HOW DESPERATE PEOPLE ARE

TO PUNCTURE THE STORY
OF THE SON OF GOD,

TO LITERALLY BRING HIM
DOWN TO EARTH

BECAUSE THE IDEA
CHRISTIANS HAVE, OF COURSE,

IS THAT JESUS
WAS TAKEN BODILY INTO HEAVEN.

THEREFORE, THERE WOULD BE
NO BODY LEFT, NO BONES, NOTHING,

AND TO FIND A TOMB OR OSSUARY

WHICH HAS BITS OF BONE
IN IT BELONGING TO JESUS,

WELL, THAT SHOWS YOU HOW WRONG
THE CHURCH HAS BEEN, DOESN'T IT?

♪♪

Narrator: THE CURIOUS THING IS
THAT A NUMBER OF ACADEMICS

FROM ACROSS THE WORLD
CAN'T FIND HARD EVIDENCE

FOR THE EXISTENCE OF JESUS.

BEYOND FAITH, ARE THERE
ANY FACTS THAT CAN HELP

TO UNCOVER THE MYSTERY
AND CORROBORATE THE STORIES?

JAMIE GOT IN TOUCH WITH
AN AUSTRALIAN ACADEMIC

AND AUTHOR, RAPHAEL LATASTER.

SO, RAPHAEL, DO YOU THINK
THE MAN KNOWN AS JESUS

IN THE NEW TESTAMENT
ACTUALLY EXISTED?

I am actually
a Jesus agnostic,

but I do favor
the ahistoricity view.

I see that Jesus
probably did not exist

because the sources for Jesus,

I think there's a lot
of problems with them,

and an alternative theory
about Christian origins

I think is much more plausible.

BECAUSE PRESUMABLY SOMEONE HAD
TO START CHRISTIANITY, RIGHT?

Yes, and I think that someone
is someone like Paul,

not necessarily
Paul the apostle,

but someone like Paul.

Paul gives us the earliest
Christian sources.

He speaks of
the celestial son of man

which some Jews at the time
already believed in,

and this person, in my view,

evolved to become the Jesus
we know and love,

and I think someone
just like Paul

basically started
Christianity.

They thought they had visions
of the celestial son of man

just like Paul did.

Narrator:
ARE THERE AN INCREASING

AMOUNT OF SCHOLARS
AND ACADEMICS

WHO CAN'T FIND PROOF
OF THE EXISTENCE

AND DEATH OF JESUS CHRIST?

IF SO, WHY?

♪♪

Narrator: IT'S ONE OF THE BIG
QUESTIONS OF TODAY.

WAS THE STORY OF JESUS
IN THE NEW TESTAMENT

BASED ON FACT
OR JUST A POWERFUL STORY

WITH AN IMPORTANT MESSAGE,
AND IF IT'S TRUE,

IS THERE EVIDENCE
TO BE FOUND IN JERUSALEM TODAY?

♪♪

I THINK IT WOULD BE FAIR TO SAY
THAT YESHUA BEN JOSEPH

WAS A REAL, LIVING,
BREATHING HUMAN BEING,

PROBABLY NOT A GOD
OR NOT THE SON OF GOD

AS FAR AS WE KNOW.

HOWEVER, ABOUT 100
OR 150 YEARS LATER

WHEN PEOPLE CAME TO COMPILE
THE SORT OF DEFINITIVE VERSIONS

OF THE SCRIPTURES
OF THE NEW TESTAMENT,

THEY HAD THIS URGENT DEMAND,
THIS SORT OF URGENT IMPULSE

TO TRANSFORM THE MAN INTO A SORT
OF A DIVINE SUPERHERO

AND CRAFT A STORY,

A SERIES OF STORIES THAT
WERE COMPLETELY UNFORGETTABLE

AND WOULD HAVE SUCH
A TRANSFORMATIVE IMPACT

ON PEOPLE'S LIVES,
SO IT WAS THE LATER WRITERS

MYTHOLOGIZING THE REAL
SORT OF HUMAN BEING

FROM 150 YEARS EARLIER.

♪♪

SOME OF THE MORE MIRACULOUS
EVENTS IN THE GOSPELS,

TURNING WATER INTO WINE,

I THINK WE CAN
KIND OF DISCOUNT THOSE,

BUT IT SEEMS TO ME FEASIBLE
THAT A MAN EXISTED

AND WAS CAUSING PROBLEMS
FOR THE ROMANS,

AND IT DOESN'T SEEM
THAT UNLIKELY TO ME.

Regarding miracles and claims
about Gods,

yes, these things
almost certainly didn't happen

with our current naturalistic
understandings of science

and how the world works,
but you're right.

The idea of historical Jesus,

it shouldn't
seem that implausible.

However, when you really look
at the evidence,

and you see that
there's a lot of problems

in the writings of Paul,
who's one of the --

who actually is the earliest
Christian author,

and you see him not talking
about the historical Jesus,

and you see the best sources
that we have are the gospels,

and there's plenty of questions

about the reliability
of those sources,

you start thinking,
"Okay, there's problems here."

♪♪

Narrator: JERUSALEM AND ITS
RELATIONSHIP WITH JESUS CHRIST

IS CLEARLY FUNDAMENTAL
TO CHRISTIANS.

THE MASSES FLOCK TO SEE
THE BIBLICAL SITES

WHERE THEIR MESSIAH
ONCE STOOD,

BELIEVING WITHOUT A DOUBT
HE DID PREACH HERE,

DID AGGRAVATE THE ROMANS
AND WAS INDEED CRUCIFIED

SOMEWHERE IN THIS CITY.

Selwood: THROUGHOUT HISTORY,
WE'VE HAD ONE JESUS.

FASCINATINGLY,
NOW WE HAVE TWO.

PEOPLE LOOK AT JESUS
THE RELIGIOUS FIGURE

AND JESUS
THE HISTORICAL FIGURE,

AND THAT'S NOW
INGRAINED AND ACCEPTED.

Picknett: CHRISTIANS
CAN'T HAVE IT BOTH WAYS.

THEY SAY, "I KNOW IN MY HEART
THAT JESUS IS THE SON OF GOD,

"AND HE LOVES ME, ETC,
BUT LOOK.

"IF YOU LOOK IN THE BIBLE,
HE WENT THERE,

"AND HE DID THIS AT THIS TIME,

"AND LOOK WHO WAS EMPEROR
AT THE TIME,

AND YOU CAN PIN IT DOWN
HISTORICALLY, CAN'T YOU?"

BUT ACTUALLY,
MOST OF THE TIME, YOU CAN'T,

AND THEY'RE CONFUSING
THEIR EMOTIONS WITH FACTS,

BUT THE MAN WHO LIVED
WAS JUST A MAN.

IT SOUNDS A BIT HARSH TO SAY
WE HAVE BEEN HOODWINKED,

BUT WE HAVE.

THERE WAS A CHARACTER
THAT THEY WANTED TO MAKE OUT

TO BE VERY, VERY SPECIAL
THAT WE COULD LOOK UP TO,

A CHARACTER THAT WAS
A CONDUIT TO GOD,

BUT THAT CHARACTER
NEVER EXISTED.

IN A COURT OF LAW,
NO JURY WOULD SAY,

"YES, THE HISTORICAL
EVIDENCE PROVES IT."

ON THE CONTRARY, AND OVER TIME,
THE INSTITUTIONS KIND OF SAID,

"HMM, PEOPLE BELIEVE
THIS HAPPENED.

YOU KNOW, WE CAN USE THAT."

PEOPLE FORGOT IT WAS ALLEGORY.

IT WAS SACRED,
BUT IT WASN'T HISTORICAL.

♪♪

Narrator: THEY ARE TWO OF
THE GREAT QUESTIONS TODAY.

DID JESUS CHRIST REALLY EXIST,

AND WAS HIS INCREDIBLE STORY
ACTUALLY TRUE?

♪♪

IT'S THE BASIS OF
THE NEW TESTAMENT

AND FUNDAMENTAL
TO CHRISTIANITY.

WHILE THE CITY OF JERUSALEM
AND ALL OF ITS SITES

ARE THERE FOR EVERYONE TO SEE,

THERE IS LITTLE TANGIBLE
PHYSICAL EVIDENCE

THAT A MAN KNOWN AS
YESHUA BEN JOSEPH WAS EVER HERE.

♪♪

THERE ARE A FEW
HISTORICAL REFERENCES TO HIM,

BUT MOST WRITTEN REPORTS
START AT LEAST A CENTURY

AFTER HIS DEATH.

AND AS A RESULT,
THE QUESTIONS REMAIN.

PERHAPS WE SHOULD ADD
A THIRD QUESTION --

DOES ACTUALLY PROVING
HIS EXISTENCE,

HIS LIFE AND HIS DEEDS
REALLY MATTER,

OR IS FAITH ENOUGH?