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But add up to what? Shanks takes a fairly restrained approach. He argues, sensibly, that the ossuary is the first archaeological verification of the existence of Jesus of Nazareth and James the Just. Evans adds that the ossuary "proves" four things that were already believed by modern scholars: 1) James and family spoke Aramaic; 2) James continued to live in or near Jerusalem; 3) James probably died in or near Jerusalem; 4) James continued to live as a Jew—proving that the decisive break between Christianity and Judaism did not come until later in the first century.

Witherington, for his part as the author of the last two-thirds of The Brother of Jesus, calls for a reassessment of Jewish Christianity and a reevaluation of the much-neglected figure of James, a leader in the Jerusalem church who authored the wonderful little book that Martin Luther wanted to burn. He also intentionally steps on the insoles of the group whose nerves have been the most frayed by this discovery: Catholics. The plain text of the Bible, says Witherington, indicates that James was the younger brother of Jesus by Mary and Joseph. Other interpretations amount to "arguments from silence."

Scott McKellar, professor of religious studies for Redeemer Pacific College, begs to differ. If it is accepted as authentic, he says, the ossuary will likely lead to a revision in the Catechism to accommodate the Epiphanian view of Jesus' family. That is, rather than being seen as "cousins," as in current popular Catholic understanding, Jesus' "brothers and sisters" would be understood to be Joseph's children from a previous marriage—a view accepted by many church fathers and believed by most Orthodox to this day.

The paternity of James is but one combustible issue opened by the ossuary. Don't expect the debate to die down anytime soon.

Jeremy Lott is a contributing editor to Books & Culture. He lives in Washington State.

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Books & Culture Corner appears Mondays at ChristianityToday.com. Earlier Books & Culture Corners and Book of the Week include:

Vanity Fair  | A chronicler of religion plays the straight man. (March 10, 2003)

Diagnosing "The Doctor" | A new assessment of Martyn Lloyd-Jones, preacher. (March 3, 2003)

Taken Prisoner | Stories from the far-flung frontiers of the British Empire, 1600-1850, challenge our preconceptions. (Feb. 24, 2003)

Another Third Way? | The mixed record of Catholic social thought. (Feb. 17, 2003)

Divine Numbers | Can you say "Christian" and "mathematics" in the same sentence? (Feb. 10, 2003)

Getting Beyond Victimology | A provocative collection of essays for "the black silent majority." (Feb. 3, 2003)

Strange Bedfellows | Christopher Hitchens and Christopher Caldwell collaborate on a collection of political writing. Has the millennium arrived unnoticed? (Jan. 27, 2003)

Encounters of the Gods | Christianity and Native American religion in early America. (Jan. 20, 2003)

Books Present, Books Past, and Books to Come | Plus: A new format for this column. (Jan. 13, 2003)

Double Indemnity Meets Dead Souls | A conversation with novelist Richard Dooling. (Jan. 6, 2003)

Books of the Year | The top ten. (OK—make that twelve.) (Dec. 30, 2002)

Entertain Us | Nirvana, Pearl Jam, and the rapture of distress. (Dec. 16, 2002)

Boys Will Be Boys | A new book by a leading Christian feminist scholar inadvertently reveals the flawed assumptions underlying much talk about "flexibility" in gender roles. (Dec. 9, 2002)

Street Cred | Dave Eggers: The portrait of an artist as a … what? (Dec.2, 2002)

Epicurus'—and Darwin's—Dangerous Idea | How we became hedonists. (Nov. 18, 2002)

Weird Science? | A Darwinian debate continues. (Nov. 11, 2002)

Of Moths and Men Revisited | A Darwinian debate. (Nov. 4, 2002)

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March (Web-only) 2003, Vol. 47