2007-05-01 18:10:33 · 16 answers · asked by realchurchhistorian 4 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
The word brethren is a translation as the New Testament was written in Greek, the word that most often is translated as "brethren", or "brothers" (or "Brothers and Sisters" in some translations) is adelphoi the plural of brother (adelphos). The word for sister was adelphe, the plural male form was generally used for a mixed group of men and women as brothers and sisters was a bit awkward to say (adelphoi kai adelphai). Contextually the word could mean brothers and sisters in the same family or in the much broader sense to describe a Christian community. If we are talking about its use to describe Jesus' family in the Gospel narratives it would most likely mean physical brothers and sisters, as the word has the connotation of born from the same mother. There is a separate word in Greek for cousin.
2007-05-01 18:45:21 · answer #1 · answered by SW28fan 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
This is a 'peach', Rome has got itself tied up in knots over this bit of dogma for centuries, so much so that I am surprised that, with all the other 'house-cleaning' the Vatican has done in recent years, that they didn't address this troublesome thorn.
As several have pointed out, Yashua bin Jusef did have several brothers and sisters, fortunately for Church dogma Yashua does seem to have been the oldest.... but very unfortunately he most probably had a twin brother, Thomas Didymus, in fact the name 'Thomas' means twin. For reference sake check the Nag Hammadi library, and find the Gospel of Thomas, one of several excluded from the 'New Testament', it makes interesting counterpoint reading.
I am quite sure that the references in the 'New Testament' gospels with regard to Yashua's 'brethren' are exactly, semantically and literally, what they say they are, his mother, brothers and sisters.
Over the years the 'orthodox' arguments have included most of what you see from the chorus above, and even get so bankrupt as to suggest that Mary, the mother of Yashua, had an sister .... wait for it ... called Mary, and that she was the mother of all of these 'brothers and sisters', who were all thus shifted to the status of cousins, at the stroke of a pen !
The Douai Bible does not hold these omissions and corrections, and as such is a somewhat more reliable source.
2007-05-01 18:46:07 · answer #2 · answered by cosmicvoyager 5 · 0⤊ 2⤋
Brethren means brothers. It is used of family members (Gen. 47:1), people of the same nationality (Ex. 2:11), and those who have a spiritual kinship (Acts 20:32).
Also, it can mean kinsman, nephew, or cousin, fellow man, of the same faith.
In Scripture, 3 men name James are mentioned:
James the son of Zebedee (disciple) (Mark 1:20)
James the Lord's brother (Matt 13:55-56), one of the children of Joseph and Mary.
James the son of Alpheus (Clopas) (John ) Apostle
2007-05-01 18:23:02 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 3⤊ 0⤋
The word Brethren could mean cousin but in this instance it means brother!
2007-05-01 18:15:52 · answer #4 · answered by zoril 7 · 2⤊ 2⤋
I don't know of any word in the Bible (save for some very uncommon words like "leviathan") that ALWAYS mean the same thing every time it's said/written.
2007-05-01 18:25:02 · answer #5 · answered by Christian #3412 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
I Aramaic the same word was used for brother as for cousin. Actually any male relative was a brother.
2007-05-01 18:19:47 · answer #6 · answered by Shirley T 7 · 2⤊ 1⤋
It means fellow Christians
2007-05-01 18:24:45 · answer #7 · answered by clbinmo 6 · 0⤊ 1⤋
brethren is like a spiritual Brother
2007-05-01 18:13:10 · answer #8 · answered by Kristenite’s Back! 7 · 2⤊ 3⤋
Bretheren can refer to brother, cousin or other close relative.
God bless,
Stanbo
2007-05-01 18:14:59 · answer #9 · answered by Stanbo 5 · 2⤊ 2⤋
Mary was a virgin when Jesus was born. But after that, she and Joseph had several children together. She did not die a virgin.
2007-05-01 18:18:35 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 3⤋