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"The bone-box is original; the first inscription, which is in Aramaic, 'Jacob son of Joseph,' is authentic. The second half of the inscription, 'brother of Jesus,' is a poorly executed fake and a later addition," writes Rochelle I. Altman in the online magazine Jewsweek (a more scholarly version of her analysis is available at the IOUDAIOS-L discussion list she coordinates).

Robert Eisenman, author of James the Brother of Jesus and a professor of Middle East religions and archeology at Cal State Long Beach, is upset with the Associated Press summary of his critical remarks of the James ossuary, but the Los Angeles Times gave him an op-ed to explain himself. "This box is just too pat, too perfect. In issues of antiquities verification, this is always a warning sign," he says.

Stephen Phann, president of the University of the Holy Land in Jerusalem, tells the news service, "This is up there at B-plus, or fairly certain."

Elections:

• Last weekend push for Fisher, Rendell | Polls and pundits have declared the Pennsylvania gubernatorial race over, but the candidates hit the churches hard on Sunday (The Philadelphia Inquirer)
  
  
• Tennessee to vote on lottery | While their hopes of defeating Tuesday's referendum depend heavily on a grass roots Christian army, opposition leaders purposely avoid casting the vote as a sin issue, instead treating it as a policy and economic matter. (Associated Press)
  
  
• Religious activists spar over voters guides | The evangelical-based Christian Coalition has distributed its national voters guides this year by Internet, and the rival Interfaith Alliance is campaigning to urge churches not to circulate them. (The Washington Times)
  
  
• Faith issues taking a back seat this year in politics | Some say candidates are too focused on economy, taxes—and bad-mouthing rivals. (The Dallas Morning News)
  
  
• Calls prompt charge of dirty tactics | Thousands of likely Democratic and independent voters received election-eve phone calls from a Republican firm claiming that Gov. Jeb Bush is the only candidate for Florida's governor who supports ''traditional'' families, suggesting that Democratic challenger Bill McBride supports gay marriages (The Miami Herald)

Life ethics:

• Liberty, equality, dignity | Leon Kass challenges the scientific project (Andrew Ferguson, The Weekly Standard)
  
  
• Embryos made easy | Abortion is a tough question for most people, but the related issue of embryos and medical ethics can be a lot easier (Michael Kinsley, Slate.com)
  
  
• Kan. court rules on unborn monument | A monument for unborn babies must be removed from a public cemetery because it violates land use laws that set aside the space for burying human remains, the Kansas Supreme Court has ruled (Associated Press)
  
  
• Pro-life progressive no more | The strange journey of Dennis Kucinich (Timothy P. Carney, National Review Online)

Persecution and violence:

• Killing Christians | The underreported story of Islamist violence around the world (Amitai Etzioni, The Weekly Standard)
  
  
• Priest clashes with riot police in South Korea | Fighting broke out in South Korea during a service demanding the withdrawal of US troops from the Korean peninsula (Ananova)
  
  
• Genocide: Sudan found guilty | A law punishing slavery now (Nat Hentoff, The Village Voice)
  
  
• Americans in Jordan try to keep low profile after slaying of U.S. diplomat | "There's a feeling generally that things are changing and not being quite sure what the outcome will be," says the Rev. Malcolm White of the Arab-Episcopal Evangelical Church in Amman (Associated Press)

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November (Web-only) 2002, Vol. 46