Was Mary ever virgin?

Question

If I was Joseph I would have left her alone. How about you?

I am Catholic.

Did you know that the original language of the books of the bible where it mentions Jesus has brothers and sisters that the word of "cousin" wasn't in use?

And many time all those who followed Him were allowed in His family as brothers and sisters.

Also, the word "until" you read in your english version of the Bible did not have the same conotation in its original language.

Answer 1

the correct term is eternally virgin. Contrary to all the know-it-alls the bible does not "say" Mary had other children it also doesn't deny it. It has been Christian tradition for over 2000 years that Mary was a virgin and stayed one her entire life. This idea of Jesus 'brothers being Mary's sons also is a very poor understanding of bible transliteration. English was not the first bible language or the tongue of those who wrote the NT in Greek like Matthew and John with the exception of Luke.

see : http://www.catholic.com/library/Brethren_of_the_Lord.asp
for a better understanding.

Finally for all those anti-catholics who want to claim this is a Catholic belief alone learn your history. All first Protestants taught Mary was eternally virgin Luther, Calvin, Zwingli and even J Wesley later on. The ancient Churches of the Orthodox and Coptic believe it as do the Armenians. Get with the program and do more than a bible study in English.

Joseph was an older man, a protector you proably would have left Mary but not me because after knowing I'd be helping to raise the God man Jesus what could be better than that.

Volunteerteacher you don't actually believe the crap your writing do you? please see my sources and actually start to learn the bible from an orthodox authority Good Lord.

Answer 2

Yes. She was ever Virgin. How could an Angel come to you in your dreams and tell you she was having a child of Gods and then turn around and sleep with her? You could not. Joseph was very familiar with the Scriptures too and he would have known that the book of Esther spoke of the Queen being taken care of by the Eunuchs so he would have known what was expected of him and he would have felt a huge obligation and he would have been privileged to care for her. She was known as the new Ark of the Covenant too, now I don't know if Joseph thought of that but, he very well may have, and he would have thought about what the rules were for touching the Ark ... death.

Answer 3

Mary was a virgin, but because all things are possible when it comes to God, she became pregnant. She was engaged to Joseph. In those days, if you were engaged and broke off the engagement, it was the same as getting a divorce. At first Joseph didn't know that Mary had remained true to him and wasn't sleeping around. But he still loved her very much, so he decided to divorce her quietly. But one night, as he was sleeping, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and told him that Mary was going to give birth to God's son, and that she had not been unfaithful to Joseph. The angel told Joseph that this was to fulfill the prophecy that a virgin would be with child and give birth to a son who would save the people from their sins. So Joseph decided to stay with Mary. Caesar ordered that a census be taken, and that every man would go to his hometown to register. So Joseph went to Bethlehem, and Mary went with him. I'm not sure how many Christmas plays you've been to, but much of what is presented in them are not true, or are assumptions. Mary gave birth to Jesus, and laid him in a manger, an animal's feeding trough. Shepherds, who were told of Jesus' birth by the same angel that visited Joseph and Mary, came to see Jesus. The magi (wise men) probably didn't visit Jesus until much later, after the shepherds had left. By then, Mary and Joseph were living in a house. If you have any more questions about the Biblical story of Jesus' birth, send me an email.

In answer to your question about what i would have done if i were in Joseph's place, I don't think i would have left her. Because I would know what the angel had told me, and if I were as dedicated to the Lord as Joseph was (which I try to be) I would do my best to do the Lord's will.

Answer 4

Yes. Mary was a virgin when she was told that she would conceive and give birth to Jesus. (Luke 1:26-31) And her husband Joseph did not have intercourse with her until after Jesus was born.

It is true that Jesus called his followers brothers and sisters, but he also had fleshly half brothers and sisters. (Matthew 13:53-56;Acts 1:14)

Mark 3:31-35 "His mother and brothers now arrived and, standing outside, sent in a message asking for him. A crowd was sitting round him at the time the message was passed to him, 'Your mother and brothers and sisters are outside asking for you'. He replied, 'Who are my mother and my brothers?' And looking round at those sitting in a circle about him, he said, 'Here are my mother and my brothers. Anyone who does the will of God, that person is my brother and sister and mother.'"

Here a clear distinction is drawn between Jesus' natural brothers and his spiritual brothers, his disciples. No one claims that the reference to Jesus' mother means anything different from what it says. Is it consistent, then, to reason that his natural brothers were not that but were perhaps cousins? When what is meant is not brothers but relatives, a different Greek word [syg·ge·non´] is used, as at Luke 21:16.)

Notice also this interesting thoughts:

The secular historian Josephus, says that during the interval between the death of Governor Festus, about 62 C.E., and the arrival of his successor Albinus, the high priest, Ananus (Ananias), "convened the judges of the Sanhedrin and brought before them a man named James, the brother of Jesus who was called the Christ, and certain others. He accused them of having transgressed the law and delivered them up to be stoned."-Jewish Antiquities, XX, 200 (ix, 1).


The New Catholic Encyclopedia (1967, Vol. IX, p. 337) admits regarding the Greek words a·del·phoi´ and a·del·phai´, used at Matthew 13:55, 56, that these "have the meaning of full blood brother and sister in the Greek-speaking world of the Evangelist's time and would naturally be taken by his Greek reader in this sense. Toward the end of the 4th century (c. 380) Helvidius in a work now lost pressed this fact in order to attribute to Mary other children besides Jesus so as to make her a model for mothers of larger families. St. Jerome, motivated by the Church's traditional faith in Mary's perpetual virginity, wrote a tract against Helvidius (A.D. 383) in which he developed an explanation . . . that is still in vogue among Catholic scholars."

Answer 5

I don't think she was born sexually active.
I believe Joseph as mentioned in the Bible was going to "put her away" with a bill of divorcement until he was convinced of God that Mary had conceived of the Holy Spirit. That settled it for him.

Answer 6

lol, if you are catholic then you know that its the accepted belief is that Mary remained a virgin for life and into eternity. So, Joseph pretty much left her alone. Besides, all us Marys and Maggies and Moms and girls were BORN virgins, so this question basically makes no sense. NOT A CATHOLIC BUT KNOWS

Answer 7

Yes, Mary was a virgin until she was married. The Catholic church does not see marriage until it has been consummated. So, after they were married they were not only allowed but EXPECTED to have sex.

But, then again, they were Jewish. I can honestly say I don't know what the views on sex after marriage are in the Jewish religion. Sorry.

Answer 8

In the time of Jesus, "virgin" meant "young girl". It actually was not decided until 300 years later that Mary was a "virgin" in the modern sense of the word, because the early Christians were "competing" with another religion that also had a "virgin birth". Early Christians "borrowed" a lot of concepts from other religions, including resurrection - Christians who think it showed up in their religion first are mistaken.

Answer 9

No - commonly-used metaphor to describe the enlightenment experience. It has nothing to do with mothers or Mary. It was used to describe both Jesus' and the Buddha's enlightenment.

Answer 10

uummm no I wouldnt have....an angel came to God in a dream and told Joseph that Mary was a virgin and that the baby she was carrying was the child of God....yes she was a virgin....Jesus loves u!