1 00:00:00,520 --> 00:00:04,800 Speaker 1: Crime Alart, hourly update, breaking crime news Now, I'm Jackie Howward. 2 00:00:04,960 --> 00:00:08,640 Speaker 1: Christians around the world celebrate December twenty fourth as Christmas Eve, 3 00:00:09,080 --> 00:00:11,960 Speaker 1: the day before the Christ Child is born. The birth 4 00:00:12,000 --> 00:00:14,960 Speaker 1: of Christ for many, however, remains a myth, a story, 5 00:00:15,360 --> 00:00:21,239 Speaker 1: despite ancient writings and artifacts pointing to Jesus's historical presence. Today, 6 00:00:21,360 --> 00:00:24,560 Speaker 1: on Crime Stories, Nancy and her panel of experts investigate 7 00:00:24,840 --> 00:00:28,320 Speaker 1: whether it's possible to prove that Jesus did walk the earth. 8 00:00:28,840 --> 00:00:33,280 Speaker 1: The New Testament clearly states Jesus had four brothers, James, Jude, Joseph, 9 00:00:33,280 --> 00:00:37,199 Speaker 1: and Simon. It also states Jesus had sisters plural, but 10 00:00:37,320 --> 00:00:42,479 Speaker 1: doesn't name them. After Jesus's death, burial, and resurrection, James 11 00:00:42,520 --> 00:00:45,680 Speaker 1: became an early leader of the church in Jerusalem until 12 00:00:45,720 --> 00:00:48,159 Speaker 1: he was martyred by being thrown off the temple and 13 00:00:48,240 --> 00:00:51,800 Speaker 1: clubbed to death or stoned. Jude, Joseph, and Simon were 14 00:00:51,800 --> 00:00:55,960 Speaker 1: all married and all became traveling evangelists. The sisters of 15 00:00:56,040 --> 00:00:59,240 Speaker 1: Christ are not named, nor is there any specific information 16 00:00:59,440 --> 00:01:03,440 Speaker 1: provided about them. Crime on Lines Drew Nelson says Roman 17 00:01:03,600 --> 00:01:06,840 Speaker 1: history has many references to Jesus's siblings. 18 00:01:06,920 --> 00:01:09,520 Speaker 2: Two of the most important works of the Roman Jewish 19 00:01:09,600 --> 00:01:14,440 Speaker 2: historian and military leader Flavius Josephus, are Jewish war recounting 20 00:01:14,480 --> 00:01:17,880 Speaker 2: the Jewish revolt against Roman occupation and Antiquities of the 21 00:01:17,959 --> 00:01:20,640 Speaker 2: Jews that documents the history of the world from a 22 00:01:20,680 --> 00:01:23,440 Speaker 2: Jewish perspective and was written for a mostly Greek and 23 00:01:23,520 --> 00:01:27,959 Speaker 2: Roman audience. Josepha's historical works provide an independent account of 24 00:01:28,000 --> 00:01:32,440 Speaker 2: individuals mentioned in biblical texts, such as Ponscious Pilot, Herod 25 00:01:32,480 --> 00:01:35,280 Speaker 2: the Great, John the Baptist, as well as documenting that 26 00:01:35,360 --> 00:01:37,880 Speaker 2: James was the brother of Jesus of Nazareth and that 27 00:01:38,000 --> 00:01:39,600 Speaker 2: Jesus was called the Christ. 28 00:01:40,200 --> 00:01:44,000 Speaker 1: Billy Halliwell, TV host at CBN News tells Crime Stories, 29 00:01:44,160 --> 00:01:49,040 Speaker 1: He agrees there is much documentation for Jesus having siblings. 30 00:01:48,560 --> 00:01:51,000 Speaker 3: James the brother of Jesus, who was called the Christ. 31 00:01:51,040 --> 00:01:54,040 Speaker 3: That is a line that is not disputed, right, And 32 00:01:54,080 --> 00:01:55,560 Speaker 3: so what I make of that is that you have 33 00:01:55,720 --> 00:01:58,800 Speaker 3: people speaking at the very same time or very nearby 34 00:01:58,920 --> 00:02:01,840 Speaker 3: the time of Jesus. And you have to add into 35 00:02:01,880 --> 00:02:05,120 Speaker 3: that as well all of the manuscripts you mentioned. You know, 36 00:02:05,160 --> 00:02:07,320 Speaker 3: we take things at face value that are hundreds of 37 00:02:07,440 --> 00:02:10,399 Speaker 3: years old. When you look at the manuscripts and least 38 00:02:10,400 --> 00:02:14,639 Speaker 3: strobel various Sutee said this, You have five thousand Greek 39 00:02:14,800 --> 00:02:19,160 Speaker 3: New Testament fragments out there that back up precisely what 40 00:02:19,200 --> 00:02:21,680 Speaker 3: we see in scripture. So the Bible is actually the 41 00:02:21,680 --> 00:02:25,400 Speaker 3: most backed up literature that we have, ancient literature that 42 00:02:25,440 --> 00:02:28,080 Speaker 3: we have, and people act as though that evidence isn't 43 00:02:28,120 --> 00:02:29,520 Speaker 3: there when it very clearly is. 44 00:02:29,840 --> 00:02:33,760 Speaker 1: But religious teachings often contradict themselves. Here's crime on lines 45 00:02:33,840 --> 00:02:34,400 Speaker 1: Dave Mack. 46 00:02:34,720 --> 00:02:37,880 Speaker 4: Is it possible that blood descendants of Jesus Christ brothers 47 00:02:37,960 --> 00:02:42,840 Speaker 4: and sisters exist today? Maybe it depends on the denomination. Catholics, 48 00:02:42,880 --> 00:02:47,520 Speaker 4: absolutely not other Christian denominations. Maybe Joseph was not jesus 49 00:02:47,600 --> 00:02:51,320 Speaker 4: biological father, but Mary is his biological mother. Each of 50 00:02:51,360 --> 00:02:53,680 Speaker 4: his blood brothers was a half brother, and each of 51 00:02:53,720 --> 00:02:57,080 Speaker 4: their children would have been a partial blood relative of Jesus. However, 52 00:02:57,400 --> 00:03:01,160 Speaker 4: following the natural family tree, all humansmans come from Adam 53 00:03:01,160 --> 00:03:03,880 Speaker 4: and Eve, and in that regard we are all related. 54 00:03:04,160 --> 00:03:07,359 Speaker 1: The Catholic Church teaches that Mary remained a vergent, never 55 00:03:07,400 --> 00:03:11,200 Speaker 1: having any other children, only Jesus. To explain passages in 56 00:03:11,240 --> 00:03:14,600 Speaker 1: the Bible that talk about Jesus' brothers and sisters, Some 57 00:03:14,680 --> 00:03:20,480 Speaker 1: denominations interpret Biblical passages referring to Jesus's brethren to mean cousins, 58 00:03:21,080 --> 00:03:24,640 Speaker 1: using the Greek word adelphos, which is translated as brother 59 00:03:24,720 --> 00:03:28,880 Speaker 1: in the Bible, can also refer to stepbrothers, half brothers, nephews, 60 00:03:29,000 --> 00:03:31,600 Speaker 1: or cousins. It can also be used to refer to 61 00:03:31,639 --> 00:03:34,200 Speaker 1: a group of men who are close and follow Christ. 62 00:03:34,680 --> 00:03:38,760 Speaker 1: Half brothers or stepbrothers. Involves Joseph being a widower with 63 00:03:38,920 --> 00:03:41,520 Speaker 1: sons and daughters with his first wife that are now 64 00:03:41,640 --> 00:03:50,520 Speaker 1: stepbrothers of Jesus. More after this, a well known religious 65 00:03:50,560 --> 00:03:53,640 Speaker 1: relic is the Shroud of Turin, believed to be the 66 00:03:53,640 --> 00:03:57,480 Speaker 1: burial cloth of Jesus Christ. Here again crime on lines 67 00:03:57,520 --> 00:03:58,080 Speaker 1: Drew Nelson. 68 00:03:58,200 --> 00:04:00,480 Speaker 2: The Shroud of Turin is believed to be the burial 69 00:04:00,520 --> 00:04:03,520 Speaker 2: cloth of Jesus Christ. The shroud first appeared in the 70 00:04:03,520 --> 00:04:06,680 Speaker 2: hands of a medieval knight, jeffreud Is Sharnee in France 71 00:04:06,760 --> 00:04:09,360 Speaker 2: in thirteen fifty four, but there is no record of 72 00:04:09,400 --> 00:04:12,120 Speaker 2: how he came into possession of the cloth. The linen 73 00:04:12,120 --> 00:04:15,080 Speaker 2: measures fourteen feet three inches long and three feet seven 74 00:04:15,120 --> 00:04:18,400 Speaker 2: inches wide and seems to portray two faint brownish images, 75 00:04:18,640 --> 00:04:20,360 Speaker 2: those of the back in front, of a man who 76 00:04:20,400 --> 00:04:23,039 Speaker 2: is between five foot seven and six foot two inches tall, 77 00:04:23,200 --> 00:04:26,120 Speaker 2: with shoulder lengthd hair and a beard. He suffered crucifixion 78 00:04:26,120 --> 00:04:29,520 Speaker 2: in the Roman fashion. The image contains marking specific to 79 00:04:29,560 --> 00:04:32,640 Speaker 2: wounds suffered by Jesus, including thorn marks on the head 80 00:04:32,839 --> 00:04:35,160 Speaker 2: and lacerations on the back that appear to have been 81 00:04:35,160 --> 00:04:38,440 Speaker 2: caused by flogging, as well as bruises on the shoulders 82 00:04:38,440 --> 00:04:39,839 Speaker 2: and various stains of blood. 83 00:04:39,920 --> 00:04:42,080 Speaker 1: The Shroud of Turin has been the source of argument 84 00:04:42,120 --> 00:04:45,040 Speaker 1: and studies since it was first on display in thirteen 85 00:04:45,160 --> 00:04:48,840 Speaker 1: eighty nine. In twenty twenty two, researchers in Italy, using 86 00:04:48,839 --> 00:04:53,000 Speaker 1: a new dating technique known as wide angle X ray scattering, 87 00:04:53,440 --> 00:04:56,479 Speaker 1: indicated that the shroud was about two thousand years old. 88 00:04:56,760 --> 00:04:59,440 Speaker 1: The shroud is kept in a climate controlled case in 89 00:04:59,440 --> 00:05:02,360 Speaker 1: the Cathedra of Saint John the Baptist inter in Italy. 90 00:05:02,680 --> 00:05:05,880 Speaker 1: The shroud is only rarely delayed to twenty fifteen, but 91 00:05:06,040 --> 00:05:09,040 Speaker 1: it is expected to be on public display next year 92 00:05:09,160 --> 00:05:12,839 Speaker 1: as part of Jubilee twenty twenty five holy year. What 93 00:05:12,960 --> 00:05:14,760 Speaker 1: other historical references are there? 94 00:05:14,839 --> 00:05:17,400 Speaker 4: Researchers have pointed out that there are no records for 95 00:05:17,480 --> 00:05:19,280 Speaker 4: ninety nine percent of the people that served in the 96 00:05:19,360 --> 00:05:22,920 Speaker 4: Roman Empire. But there is evidence of Jesus found in 97 00:05:23,000 --> 00:05:28,040 Speaker 4: an ancient piece of graffiti known as Alexaminos Graffito, carved 98 00:05:28,080 --> 00:05:30,760 Speaker 4: into the wall of a room near the Palatine Hill 99 00:05:30,839 --> 00:05:34,040 Speaker 4: in Rome somewhere between the first and third centuries AD. 100 00:05:34,120 --> 00:05:36,839 Speaker 4: The drawing is of a man worshiping a donkey headed 101 00:05:36,880 --> 00:05:39,800 Speaker 4: man hanging from across with the message that translates to 102 00:05:40,160 --> 00:05:44,120 Speaker 4: alex Aminos worships his God. A leading authority on archaeology 103 00:05:44,120 --> 00:05:47,160 Speaker 4: of early Christianity, doctor Jonathan Reed, tells The Daily Mail, 104 00:05:47,400 --> 00:05:50,520 Speaker 4: the earliest evidence we have in the archaeological record for 105 00:05:50,640 --> 00:05:55,200 Speaker 4: Christians is someone making fun of Jesus being crucified. And 106 00:05:55,240 --> 00:05:58,560 Speaker 4: then there's this, located beneath the floor of an Israeli prison, 107 00:05:58,640 --> 00:06:02,400 Speaker 4: an eighteen hundred year old mosaic featuring the first written 108 00:06:02,440 --> 00:06:06,279 Speaker 4: declaration of Jesus as God. The mosaic is five hundred 109 00:06:06,279 --> 00:06:08,799 Speaker 4: and eighty one square feet and decorated the world's first 110 00:06:08,839 --> 00:06:11,560 Speaker 4: prayer haul in two thirty eight deep. It contains the 111 00:06:11,640 --> 00:06:15,960 Speaker 4: ancient Greek phrase the god loving Aceptus has offered the 112 00:06:16,040 --> 00:06:20,640 Speaker 4: table to God Jesus Christ. As a memorial. Carlos Kampos 113 00:06:20,680 --> 00:06:23,360 Speaker 4: the CEO of the Museum of the Bible, which recently 114 00:06:23,400 --> 00:06:26,960 Speaker 4: exhibited the Mosaic, hailed it as the greatest discovery since 115 00:06:27,040 --> 00:06:28,320 Speaker 4: the Dead Sea Scrolls. 116 00:06:28,680 --> 00:06:32,480 Speaker 1: Watch the prosecution's case for Christ today six and nine 117 00:06:32,560 --> 00:06:36,039 Speaker 1: pm Eastern on Merit TV. Check your local listings for 118 00:06:36,120 --> 00:06:40,000 Speaker 1: channel assignments, or follow and subscribe to the Crime Stories 119 00:06:40,000 --> 00:06:44,320 Speaker 1: with Nancy Grace podcast on your favorite podcasting app with 120 00:06:44,440 --> 00:06:46,359 Speaker 1: this crime alert, I'm Jackie Howard.