Jesus and the Ossuaries: What Jewish Burial Practices Reveal about the Beginning of Christianity

by Craig A. Evans

Overview

In Jesus and the Ossuaries, Craig A. Evans helps all readers, expert and layperson alike, understand the importance this recent find might have for the quest for the historical Jesus and any historical reconstruction of early Christianity. Evans does this by providing an overview of the most important archaeological discoveries before examining nine other inscriptions (six on ossuaries, three on stone slabs) that pertain in one way or another to the historical Jesus. He then surveys the arguments for and against the authenticity and identification of the recently discovered James Ossuary. Evans concludes his volume with a measured consideration of the historical value of the archaeological data afforded by the several inscriptions.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781481314596
Publisher:	Baylor University Press
Publication date:	12/15/2020
Pages:	178
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.52(d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

CRAIG A. EVANS is the Payzant Distinguished Professor of New Testament at Acadia Divinity College, Nova Scotia, Canada. He is the author or editor of more that 30 books on the New Testament and its Jewish backgrounds. His recent publications include Who Was Jesus? (2001) and The Missing Jesus: Rabbinic Judaism and the New Testament (2003).

Table of Contents

Preface
Introduction

1. Jewish Burial Practices in Late Antiquity
2. Inscriptions-Non-Burial
3. Burial Inscriptions-Themes
4. Burial Inscriptions-Names
5. Significant Ossuaries for Research in the Historical Jesus
Conclusion

Abbreviations
Bibliography
Index of Biblical Literature
Index of Modern Writers

What People are Saying About This

'If my disciples were silent,' said Jesus, ‘the very stones would cry out.' In this excellent book, they do exactly that. Evans' clear and thorough presentation emphasizes the need to read stone as well as papyrus, to do archaeology as well as exegesis, and to understand that incarnation involves both flesh as well as spirit.

John Dominic Crossan

'If my disciples were silent,' said Jesus, 'the very stones would cry out.' In this excellent book, they do exactly that. Evans' clear and thorough presentation emphasizes the need to read stone as well as papyrus, to do archaeology as well as exegesis, and to understand that incarnation involves both flesh as well as spirit.

Editorial Reviews

An important contribution to the study of the material culture of biblical times... The volume is informative, well written, well organized, and easy to read... Highly recommended.

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