In the fall of 2002, after almost 2,000 years of almost complete obscurity, James made front page headlines across the globe when it was announced that the ossuary in which James's bones had been buried had been discovered. An ossuary is a limestone box into which, according to 1st century Jewish burial practices,  the disassembled bones of the deceased were placed after the flesh had decayed. Built in size to accomodate the longest bone, the femur, Jewish ossuaries are literally about the size of a bread box. What makes this particular ossuary unique is that it bears the fascinating inscription: "James, son of Joseph, brother of Jesus." If this inscription is genuine, it's greatest significance would be that it would represent the first archaeological evidence of the existence of Jesus. And it would put to rest the arguments of those who argue that Jesus never existed.

Another debate it would put to rest is the question of whether Jesus indeed had siblings. As the esteemed Roman Catholic New Testament Scholar, John P. Meier, noted after the announcement of the discovery, if the ossuary is genuine it will be the final nail in the coffin for Jerome's theory that James and the other siblings were actually Jesus' cousins. (See: Objections to the Evidence)

 

But the burning question is: Is it genuine? The most recent major development is the arrest of the ossuary's owner, Oded Golan, by Israeli authorities on charges of forgery. The Israeli Antiquities Authority has declared that the inscription on the otherwise genuine 1st century ossuary, is at least partly forged. The consensus of most of the skeptics is that the first half of the inscription — "James, Son of Joseph" — is genuine, but the second half — "brother of Jesus" — was added by Golan. Ever since the announcement of the charges against Golan, the widespread assumption has been that the verdict is in. But that is most certainly not the case. The ossuary still has supporters in high places, most notably the man who is widely considered the foremost epigrapher in the world today — Andre Lemaire of the Sorbonne.  Other staunch supporters include Ada Yardeni, one of Israel's leading experts in ancient inscriptions, Hershel Shanks, editor of Biblical Archaeology Review, and James D. Tabor, chair of the religious studies department at the University of NorthCarolina. The ongoing charges and counter-charges have rocked the archaeological world and shaken up the Israeli Antiquities Authority. As of this date, the ossuary's owner, Oded Golan, has yet to go to trial.

 

One final caution: even if the inscription does turn out to be genuine, this would still not proove that the ossary belonged to James the brother of Jesus. As skeptics are quick to point out, Jesus, James, and Joseph were three of the most common names among 1st century Jews. So the ossuary could very well have belonged to another James with a brother names Jesus and a father named Joseph.

 

There is obviously a lot at stake here. If the ossuary turns out to be genuine, it would be the greatest archaeological discovery of all time. For the latest findings, check out the website of the popular journal Biblical Archaeology Review