Why is it that whenever someone asks a question on here about Mary being eternally a virgin?

Question

evangelicals say: "she had other children, she wasn't God!"
Being a virgin for the rest of her life would make her God? That makes no sense. I ask this because I've seen this about 4 times in responses to marys virginity.

Answer 1

Mary did remain a virgin after the birth of Jesus -- and she was virgin prior to his birth as well.

Most other cultures outside of the American and western European ones are very clannish -- all males relatives are called brothers and female relatives are called sisters. Don't forget they were very tribal and did not need to get into specifics: aunt, sister-in-law, second cousin once removed or first cousin twice removed! A friend of mine here in the U.S. who recently came over from Africa brings her son to a fellow African home for daycare. I asked what the other woman's name was...she said, "We just call her Sister". She has no idea of the woman's name.

Mary's perpetual virginity ALSO symbolizes two important things: she maintained the status of virginity to show the purity of her relationship with God throughout her life and also to show that no-one is to follow after Jesus....he is, as he himself says, the "Alpha and the Omega" ....the first and the last. No-one came before him and no-one is to come after him -- both biologically and in terms of his divine Sonship/messiahship.

"I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End" (Rev. 22:13).

Answer 2

The first error commonly made is that they believe Roman Catholics worship Mary, hence the second clause.

In the first, it is because they interpret Scripture outside Tradition. They mistakenly read the words "brothers" and "sisters" as we would in English. The overlook the fact that they are already reading it as "half-brother." If it meant "brother" like English, then it would mean Jesus was Joseph's son. So, then, there is a starting point. It proceeds next to the fact that Greek had no word for "step-brother" or "step-sister" either, and the word can be used for that just as readily as it can for "half-brother."

This renders those Scripture's inconclusive, and there is not a single direct reference to Mary having other children. Yet, Christ on the cross, entrusts Mary to the Apostle John. Why do that if she had other children?

At this point, the Protestant objects that the books themselves object make clear that Jesus was not St. Joseph's Son, but do not make any like declaration about Mary. To this, I may respond that it didn't need to if its readers would already know the fact. For instance, in Jesus' beating, why did Matthew neglect to mention that Jesus was blindfolded before being asked to prophesy? It makes no sense without that detail. The answer is that the audience already knew it. This gravitates for the Ever-Virginity of Mary, because no Christian claimed she had other children before the fifth century, and then only a wild street preacher.

This leaves them with no answer but dogmatism. In the end, it is not Scripture or anything of the sort we oppose, but the tradition of Evangelicalism and anti-catholicism, and that tradition is as binding and dogmatic to them as is Holy Tradition. We Orthodox and you Roman Catholics just admit it. At this point, our discussion is at an impasse. They cannot supply further evidence, we have the weightier side, but until they are willing to say that the Catholic position might be right, the debate can never go further than "Uh-huh" and "Uh-uh." Very few will do this.

Answer 3

This is a common disagreement between Catholics and Protestants particularly the `Brothers of Christ`.
Catholics argue that Mary was and is a perpetual virgin and had no other children but Jesus.
Protestants however point to a few passages in scripture to argue that She did.
As a Catholic I put forward this proof against the Protestant arguement, brother in the Bible does not necessarily mean brother in our English sense of the word, in fact in Greek which is a far more accurate language brother denotes a not only a brother but a near kinsman or in the plural it denotes a community based on identity or origin of life.
People of the same nationality even today use the term brother for one another,Portugal comes to mind here,it is also used to describe persons united by a common interest or belief.
The Old Testament is full of examples where men are called brothers but are clearly not actual brothers,(Gen:11:26-27, 14:14, 29:10,29:15) also Deut:23:7, Sam:1:26 and kings: 9:13, 20:32, and many more besides.
You can argue that Jesus had brothers but the reality of the scripturial word` Brother` has to be taken into consideration; in Matthew 12:49-50, 23:1 and 23:8 we see that Jesus refers obviously to non-brothers as brethren.
Further it is also true that James and John were not the blood related brothers of Jesus but were actually the sons of Mary of Clopas,Mark;15:40, John:19:25 and Matt:27:56, it is much more likely that Mary`s husband and Joseph were related making James and John cousins and not brothers at all.
Mary and Joseph were both consecrated virgins and Mary in particular was a Temple virgin and to this we must add the fact that in Hebrew law when the Father died the oldest Son took over and if this was not possible then this passed to the next eldest, but Jesus gave His Mother to John to look after and in the law you only did this if you had no other brothers.
Another fact is that after the resurrection Jesus told Mary Magdalene to report to His brethren, but if Jesus had blood brothers then Mary clearly disobeyed this command by going to the Apostles instead.
No Jesus may well have had cousins, nephews etc, but no brothers other than His disciples whom He called brethren.

Sorry this took so long but I am the worlds slowest typist.

Answer 4

OK, so here's the story, and it is the absolute truth.
In That place at That time, being a virgin simply meant one who was pure in thought. It didn't mean what it means today, that she never had sex.
This is why she remained a virgin throughout her life (if she even existed) She led a pure and thoughtful life, a mindful life. I hope that this helps to explain this issue.
So many time people get caught up in words that have very different meanings now then they did centuries ago. Just look at how quickly the meanings of words change today.
The times they are a changin' (and so do the meaning of words)

Answer 5

Mary was a virgin after the birth of Jesus her and Joseph had other children. On Dec. 25--many tell the story of Jesus birth. A virgin shall conceive and bare a son. At that point in time she was a virgin.--when recounting the birth of Jesus is is a virgin--on Mothers day--she is a mother

Answer 6

I think what they are trying to say is that Mary was human, and while she may have been Christ's mother, that's pretty much the extent of it.

Actually the status of Mary's virginity has a long and interesting history. There was no mention of it in early Christianity, and it didn't come into play until maybe around 500 AD. Since then Mary has been seen by many people in many different ways.

Answer 7

i had asked questions about Mary and i got the exact answers. who ever said she was God? i dont see anywhere it said she had other kids, why isnt it possible for someone to be a virgin to serve God? her and joseph did love each other but decided that God came first because they saw the truth. during that time sex was a way to reproduce, not for carnal pleasure. so she decided to give her life to the Lord by staying pure. I dont know why people have to attack simple questions.

Answer 8

God chose Mary, because she was righteous in His eye, the way He often uses some of us to get what He wants done, Mary had never been with a man, and God chose her to bear the birth of Jesus, the Messiah. The seed of birth was planted by just His word, it was not any sexual act. After Jesus was born, Mary married Joseph, and they had other children. If God chooses to use me for something, don't make me a God.

Answer 9

Mary was chosen only because of her bloodline to the throne. She in fact was a virgin when the Holy Sprit came upon her and planted the seed (Jesus). She had not been with a man until after she had Jesus. And in fact did have other children. She was not God as you have stated, just a person like everyone else. She was merly a vessel used by God then, just like we are used by God today(thus being baptised with the Holy Spirit) example........Why she is refered to as The Virgin Mary? She is no longer a Virgin.

Answer 10

Maybe their talking about mary's virgin birth. Some protestants think that to say mary was born without original sin would make her equal to Jesus. Since Jesus was God, that would make her God too.