A Titanic Easter

Recently there has been a great deal of ‘buzz’ surrounding a documentary by James Cameron who directed Titanic and Simcha Jacobovici a Canadian documentary maker. They claim that they have ten ossuaries (small coffins for bones) of Jesus and his family. It almost makes one feel that we are in for a Titanic Easter where two people have proven that Jesus was not raised from the tomb. At least bodily. I had the impression as I watched these two individuals on the Today Show that they wanted to disrupt Easter for people. It was like “We have found Jesus’ bones!!! We have the smoking gun!!!”

I’m taking the claim of James Cameron and Simcha Jacobovici with the same seriousness I would take a Saturday Night Live skit. Despite their claims otherwise, this is a sad joke.

James Cameron and Simcha Jacobovici are film makers. Jacobovici has done some interesting and controversial films mostly around Judaism. He made a film on the ossuary of James, brother of Jesus which many people said was historically and theologically inaccurate.

Cameron is mostly famous for two Terminator movies and Titanic. Titanic was a visually stunning movie and it very aptly demonstrated the final moments of that great ship and the terror of people involved. Cameron does seem to demonstrate his theology of Heaven at insipid vision that “Heaven” was being back on the ship uniting two people who had been together for a fling on their journey. Ugh.

These ossuaries were found in 1980 and have been examined by theologians and archeologists alike who have pretty much universally stated that they are nothing particularly special. It wasn’t until these two film makers got together and decreed to the world that they had found Jesus’ bones. And, to prove this, they produced statisticians to prove that these names were more rare than people believed.

The fact that most archeologists said that what Cameron and Jacobovici said were names, were, in fact scratches that may have remotely appeared to look like writing if one had a very fertile imagination.

Cameron has stated, “I'm not a theologist. I'm not an archaeologist. I'm a documentary film maker."

For the record, I’ve never met a theologist in my life. His ignorance of people who study theology demonstrates what is wrong with this film.

But it also speaks to wider issues.

First, there often seems to be a serious diminishment of those who seriously study theology, the Bible, and these ancient times. Whether you liked it or not, Mel Gibson’s The Passion of the Christ had some major historical inaccuracies and was not consistent with Gospel accounts. I recall teaching one of the accounts of Jesus’ crucifixion and I was called to task for disagreeing with Gibson. Actually, it was Luke and Matthew who disagreed, not me, but, oh well.

The thing is, serious study is serious study. I don’t agree with every theologian I have ever read. To be blunt, I think many of them are off the wall. (Unless a theologist is an off the wall theologian!) I do appreciate the fact that there are serious people doing serious research and serious study of both theology and archeology. When two film makers come to a vastly different conclusion from all the experts, I’m putting my money on the people who are the experts. Sadly, Cameron and Jacobovici have, whether intentionally or not, put themselves out there like experts and have made fools of themselves. Of course, they are making a lot of money for this so they might not be so dumb! But prostituting one’s self may be profitable, but it doesn’t make it right.

But, even more profound, the resurrection of Christ is about faith. It cannot be historically proven to have taken place or to have not taken place. Jesus appeared to believers. He didn’t pop in on Herod and Pilate and decree, “I’m back!” He appeared only to those close to him. And it was their faith that enabled them to see who was in their midst.

Faith is believing in things unseen and unproven. It is ultimately about belief.

As for me, I am angry at James Cameron and Simcha Jacobovici. Their carelessness and thoughtlessness, and pitiful research will lead to many people questioning their faith during a very holy season. For some, faith is very difficult and it is easier to embrace what they can see than it is to believe what cannot be seen.

Faith is based on belief and cannot be proven. And that is the joy and the adventure of walking with Christ. So invest yourself with Jesus this Easter, and do not sink to the level of these clowns and embrace their nonsense.