The home of Jesus? Could it be true?

[Philip]

Came across this, and it's really interesting but inconclusive. This archaeologist believes this ancient home in Nazareth is Jesus' childhood home and likely built by his father Joseph. What makes it interesting is that a first century church with elaborate mosaics was build adjacent to it - as if there were some great significance about the house site. And later, in the fifth century, a larger church was built over both the first century one and the house. So, it's certainly interesting that that first century house was considered so important that two early churches were built on that site. Very likely, per the events of the Resurrection, and after which Jesus was recorded to have been seen alive by a large number of people, many of them would have well-remembered the site of the family home.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech ... hrist.html


The photo shows the house entranceway

It's further interesting because why would a first century Christian church have been built in a backwater like Nazareth - an unremarkable place at the time, except for its connection to Jesus. And especially that it just happened to be next to a well-known first century house. Whatever the truth of the matter, it's pretty fascinating that (especially) those who built that first church (as well as the second one) considered that house to be of such great significance, in such a small village.

[Challenger007]

Perhaps this is really the house of Jesus, or maybe a local hermit or healer lived in this village, such people were respected in ancient times. Why were churches built there? Well, here's the solid rocky soil. Churches were built for centuries and usually somewhere on a hill. You drive through the towns, and even better, through the villages of Eastern Europe - everywhere there churches stand apart and a little on a hill. I say this not because I do not want everything to turn out really as you say, but because there are so many charlatans in the world now. And imagine what will happen if in fact this is a false place, but believers will be convinced that this is the place where Jesus lived. Imagine how much money dishonest people make on honest believers.

[Philip]

Challenger007: And imagine what will happen if in fact this is a false place, but believers will be convinced that this is the place where Jesus lived.

Skepticism is good - especially with archaeological finds that the truth will likely have to remain murky.

What makes it interesting is that the Byzantines carefully chose the sites where they would build churches - as historical information reveals they chose them based upon sites they considered connected to the Gospels. And the 5th Century church is built over and preserved the house underneath. So we know the site was important to the builders and that it was no small village church, as its decorations included elaborate mosaics and marble column capital columns - and it was the largest Byzantine church in Nazareth during that era. And as the article notes, there is "only one other Byzantine church of the many built in the Holy Land that was constructed over to preserve a first-century house – the church above the supposed house of St. Peter at Capernaum, which is another site associated with Jesus and the Gospels."

So the question becomes, why did the Byzantines consider this cave house so important - enough to build a large, elaborate church designed to preserve it - and in an obscure village in ancient Palestine? We'll likely never know the answer to that.