The Search For Jesus Tomb

Examination of current claims regarding the location of Jesus’ Tomb and why these claims are not credible

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Over the course of history, many historians, archeologists, and folk tales had a different take on where exactly Jesus’ Tomb is. Based on recent studies, there are mainly five locations that claim to be Jesus’ Tomb. They are The Holy Sepulcher tomb in Jerusalem, the Garden tomb in Jerusalem, the Talpiot tomb located five kilometers south of Jerusalem, Roza Bal in Kashmir, and Kirisuto no haka in Japan.

Let us examine each of these claims.

The Holy Sepulcher Tomb.

The Tomb in the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem cannot be the actual resting place of Jesus since the Tomb is only about twenty feet away from the site of the three crosses where Jesus and the two convicts were crucified.

The Romans would not construct three crosses in the middle of a Jewish graveyard for Jesus and the two other convicts. If they did this, they would cause a riot among the Jewish people since the Jewish graveyard is sacred ground, and no killing can occur inside them. The Romans would have chosen an empty field to construct these crosses where they could execute convicts without breaking any local Jewish customs.

The Garden Tomb.

Located just outside Jerusalem, The Garden Tomb is one of the five possible locations where the event of crucifixion took place. The place holds great religious and historical significance as millions of worshippers from all over the world come to this place to have a beautiful, peaceful and spiritual experience. However, this place cannot be Jesus’ Tomb because the Tomb is already dated to the 7th-8th century AD by archeologist Gabriel Barkay.

The Talpiot Tomb.

Discovered in the 80s, the Talpiot Tomb is a rock-cut tomb east of Jerusalem. To this day, visitors can visit the site and witness various human remains and carvings on the wall indicating that this was once a heritage place. However, Joseph Arimathea’s Tomb was outside the walls of Jerusalem, not five kilometers south of Jerusalem. Therefore, it cannot be Jesus’ Tomb.

Rosa Bal Tomb.

This is perhaps the most controversial of all the places where Jesus’ Tomb could be found. The place is located outside Srinagar and received never-like-before publicity until Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (founder of the Ahmadiyya movement) wrote extensively about the Tomb belonging to Jesus of Nazareth. There is no way Jesus’ mother and brothers will allow his body to be taken and buried thousands of miles away in an unknown location. This would be contrary to Jewish customs.

Kirisuto no haka

Kirisuto no haka is Japanese for Tomb of Christ, and it is said that Jesus escaped crucifixion and his brother took his place. Jesus then escaped to northern Japan, changed his name to Torai Tora Daitenku, and lived the rest of his life as a garlic farmer. It is also said that Jesus married a woman in Japan named Miyuko, with whom he had three children. However, the place is no exception when it comes to being one of the five possible locations, as the same argument for the Rosa Bal tomb is valid for this one.

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