If Mary was a virgin but she was married to Joseph...then by law....?

Question

they weren't really married if the marriage wasn't consummated? Or was this not a requirement back in the day?

Answer 1

All too inconsistent isn't it!!!!! It's a fairy tale.

Actually I think that when she got up the duff, they were only engaged, thus they made up the angel story. "Oh mum, dad, I'm pregnant- but Joe and I haven't had sex. HONEST! It was a miracle- an angel came to me in my sleep." No wonder their kid grew up thinking he was god.

Answer 2

Jesus' Family--Who Were They?
http://watchtower.org/library/w/2003/12/15/article_01.htm

They came to include both brothers & sisters.
That is evident from the question asked about Jesus:

"Is this not the carpenter's son? Is not his mother called Mary, and his brothers James and Joseph and Simon and Judas? And his sisters, are they not all with us?"
(Matthew 1:25; 13:55, 56; Mark 6:3;
see also: Luke 8:19, 20; John 2:12; 7:3, 5)

So, it is evident that their marriage was eventually consummated.

Answer 3

A marriage is not a marriage if it was not consummated was a civil law(modern law). As long as the couple is married in the eyes of the Lord, they are married in the eyes of the public! Since Mary and Joseph are married in the tradition custom(in the eyes of the Lord), they are officially married!

Answer 4

When Mary became pregnant she was only engaged to Joseph. Basicially, the central part of the wedding was a procession taking the bride from her fathers home, to the home of her husband. Where it would be consummated.

Matthew 1:18
But the birth of Jesus Christ was in this way. During the time his mother Mary was promised in marriage to Joseph, she was found to be pregnant by holy spirit before they were united


Incidently, did you know that the reason Mary fell pregnant as a virgin, was to show that Jesus didn't come from Mary and Joseph. Showing that Jesus was born as a perfect human (the same as Adam and Eve were), and therefore not inheriting sin.

Romans 5:12
That is why, just as through one man sin entered into the world and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men because they had all sinned

1 Corinthians 15:45
It is even so written: “The first man Adam became a living soul.” The last Adam became a life-giving spirit.

Answer 5

She was a virgin before having Jesus, and she was marries to Joseph however after she had Jesus then she could have had sex with Joseph. She was only for sure a virgin up until Jesus was born so they could have still consummated the marriage just slightly later then most people do.

Answer 6

or maybe she was abducted and probed by an alien...

all a myth my friends jesus was a man no more no less... a great man maybe but still a man

as for the wonder of xmas, you think if it was a miracle she wouldnt have given birth of had labour or any of the other unplesantness associated with pregnancy, now that would have been a miracle..... lol

seriously the bible is a great read as a story, chinese wispers is a great game the bible just proves it to be true that you never hear the same thing 20 people later down the track not to mention 1000 odd years down the track....

Answer 7

At the time of the conception of Mary's one and only child she was not married and claimed to be a virgin despite the suspicions of the people around her. Joseph married her primarily to protect her from the percussion and perhaps stoning she would have faced having a child out of wedlock. Few people believed Mary's story. They wouldn't believe her today either.

Answer 8

Jesus was a historical figure who was a prophet with divine gifts, similar to Buddha, Mohammed, David, Abraham and others. I suppose some will disagree, but God sends a messenger to Earth now and then to remind us of His presence. This is why belief and faith, to me, are more important than what one chooses to follow. We should be believers, but not blindly follow corrupt religious and political leadership. That was the problem with Christianity before the Enlightenment.

I am not bothered by someone preferring Judaism, a moderate Islam, Baha'ism or any other belief system. Who am I to judge or blindly reject something? I do not know the nature of the universe. That is why there have been artists, philosophers, scientists, psychologists, metaphysicists, spiritual leaders, and other intellectuals, attempting to sort out what the true nature of the world is.

Mary probably got pregnant and was blessed by the Lord. Joseph, obviously, was the natural father. Jesus came as a prophet and Messiah. I would pay no mind to claims that he is the son of God as a result of immaculate conception. I would not assume the Earth was designed in seven days, either. To believe in rationalism and evolution doesn't preclude a personal belief in a Higher Being.

Answer 9

She was not married to Joseph when she became pregnant with Jesus, that is why she was a virgin.
At first Joseph did not want to be with her, but then an Angel told him she was a virgin and that she was pregnant with God's child.
He then married her.

Answer 10

Mary wasn't married top Joseph when they found that she was pregnant. She was his fiancee at that time. Also, the old word that is translated as "virgin" actually referred to any unmarried woman who was of marriageable age. These days, it would refer to any woman who isn't married and is over 18. These days, the word "maiden" might be a better translation.

Answer 11

I think the marriage was consummated after the birth of Jesus. There is a fair amount of evidence Jesus had younger siblings. I think she was quite young at the time of her marriage as well. And, that Joseph was previously married.