Reply #33: A couple suggestions

[okasha]

1. Baigent--run away screaming. Holy Blood, Holy Grail is mildly entertaining, but it's about as informative as your average edition of Midnight Globe.

2. Hugh J. Schonfield--a Jewish professor of Bible and New Testament studies, caused a major, major upheaval forty years ago with The Passover Plot, which postulates that Jesus meant to survive his crucifixion. His injuries proved worse than expected, though, and he succumbed. Schonfield also raises the possibility that Jesus may have been married to Mary Magdalene, based not on Da Vinci's paintings but upon her behavior as described in the gospels. His other books are worth a read, too, including his translation of the NT.

Otherwise, there are some interesting early traditions that it was actually Thomas "the Twin" who was crucified, and others that substitute Judas Iscariot.