Jews, Not Christians, Apparently Started Burials in Catacombs

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From Jewish Catacomb Predates Christian Ones :

Scholars have long believed that early Christians were the first to bury their dead in Roman catacombs. But Dutch experts from Utrecht University who dated organic material from a Jewish catacomb in the city say it appears that early Christians inherited the practice from Jews.

"Perhaps it doesn't clinch the argument, but it makes it very likely," said Leonard Victor Rutgers, an antiquities professor who led the university's team.

This bit of news, while interesting to those who follow early Christian history, seems to have no real impact on historical Christianity. Am I wrong?

Comments

Layman said…
If anything it reinforces the connection between early Christianity and ancient Judaism. If memory serves, cremation was the preferred funerial rite for the pagans. That Christians chose to bury their dead like the Jews is likely a result of their common belief in the resurrection of the body.
7/21/2005 11:26:00 AM
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