Beneath the shroud of Jesus

By FIONA RAE

Jesus, eh? He was an interesting bloke. We know this for sure now, because we've got science on our side.

BBC science, that is, where virtual 1st-century cities can sprout like daisies around Son of God presenter Jeremy Bowen as he explains in three parts Jesus' birth, life and death.

Bowen spent five years as the BBC's Middle East correspondent, a time that he says did not make him religious.

"But it made me realise that the actions of a human being 2000 years ago still cast a giant shadow over us, whether we believe or whether we don't," he says.

Like a super-duper version of a BBC Report, the $5.25 million series (a co-production with Discovery and France 3) uses historical, archaeological and scientific evidence to construct Jesus' life and times, including computer-generated depictions of Bethlehem, Jerusalem and Nazareth.

The series keeps us hanging until the last episode to see the much-publicised likeness of Jesus' face. A medical artist at the University of Manchester gives flesh to a 1st-century Jewish skull, while a historian gives him hair and skin tones.

It isn't the real face of Jesus, of course, but "how he is likely to have looked, given the scientific information we've got," says Lorraine Heggessey, the controller of BBC1.

"That's what people from that area of the world looked like at that time."

A couple of sources confirm that the 1st-century fashion was for short hair and beards, although surprisingly the series doesn't follow its own evidence and an actor portraying Jesus in the series has long hair in a style we might recognise.

Heggessey describes the series as a "landmark" for BBC1, which answers criticism in the UK that the corporation has marginalised religious debate. The series also performed, as the Guardian put it, a "small miracle" for the BBC's Sunday night ratings.

The series begins with the Early Years, and firm evidence for the existence of Jesus. It explores the circumstances of his birth, his childhood years with his six siblings and, most importantly, why he began his mission and chose the path he did.

Evidence is also given that there could have been a star in the sky on the night of his birth (which was actually 6 BC) and that three men travelling around at that time could have been carrying frankincense, myrrh and gold - common in those days.

The second episode, Jesus and the Kingdom of God, explains the political situation at the time and the hope of the Jewish people that there would be a messiah to rescue them from the invaders.

There were others then who also claimed to be the messiah, but Jesus went about his mission differently, gathering around him 12 assorted fishermen and civil servants, rather than an army of fighting men.

He didn't bother with living in caves like other rebels, instead set up headquarters in the fishing town of Capernaum, where Peter is likely to have had a boat.

Bowen describes the way the high priests of the Jewish Temple lived and how Jesus believed them to be corrupt. His work as a healer and his consorting with undesirables and prostitutes made him an enemy of the religious authorities.

In an openly messianic and deliberately provocative act, Jesus rode into the city on a donkey, as written in the old scriptures.

In The Final Days, the Last Supper is covered - including the seating plan and a new theory that maybe Judas doesn't deserve the bad rap.

Archaeological evidence is given about the exact nature of crucifixion (the Romans were very good at it) and some theories are offered about the resurrection, although in the end, Bowen can only say that "you either believe it or you don't."

Bowen says that before the project he hadn't thought it possible to understand the existence of Jesus as an activist and hero without believing in God.

Even though the series is called Son of God, "it is not about belief, it's about fact," he says "and the historical fact is that there was a bloke called Jesus who was a dissident living in Palestine who was put to death about 2000 years ago."

Son of God

TV1, Saturday, 9.10 pm