Cameron's Documentary: The statistical question

[mschrank]

The claim is that the combination of these names together (matthew, Jesus, two marys, Joseph) makes it statistically most probable that these are the people of the Bible.

Possibility 1, devils advocate) Cameron is right
Possibility 2) It’s not as improbable as it seems
Possibility 3) The names aren’t actually who the documentary people say they are

Does anyone know what the real story is on the stats if hypothetically the names have been identified correctly?

 

[Faith1960]

The claim is that the combination of these names together (matthew, Jesus, two marys, Joseph) makes it statistically most probable that these are the people of the Bible.

Possibility 1, devils advocate) Cameron is right
Possibility 2) It’s not as improbable as it seems
Possibility 3) The names aren’t actually who the documentary people say they are

Does anyone know what the real story is on the stats if hypothetically the names have been identified correctly?

Some of the names together wasn’t surprising; what made it most improbable was when Mary Magdaline (I think it was her name, I may be wrong) was added to the mix.

 

[2shelbys]

Cameron’s enitire claim is based on this and it is an undeniably bogus claim. First of all, the archaeologist who was in charge of the site at the time of it’s discovery over 25 years ago has always said that the claim is “impossible” and “nonsense”. He has also stated that the ossuary Cameron is interpreting as that of Jesus actually bears the name Hanun, not Yeshua. That alone trashes Cameron’s claim right off the bat. All of the serious scholars directly associated with the site agree that the claim is nonsense and many of them are Jewish and therefore have no ulterior motive to protect Christianity. Even if the name on the ossuary was Yeshua, there would still be no accurate way to calculate the probability of finding these very names in one tomb without the most important piece of information needed to make such a calculation: the exact numerical information on just how common those names were in that place at the time in question. Unless Cameron has an authentic, accurate census of the residents of Jerusalem and the surrounding area from the time in question his “statistics” are nothing more than a wild guess. How can you make such a calaulation if you do not know how many residents there were in the area and how many of those residents had the names in question? Simple, you can not do it, period. Cameron’s claim is nothing more than sensationalism with absolutely no scientific backing. You also need to keep in mind that his partner in this fantasy was a major player in the last fake Jesus-related ossuary fiasco.