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HISTORICAL JESUS |
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Was Jesus Married?
Who Was Mary Magdalene?
by
ATRI Staff Writer |
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…Jesus as a married man makes infinitely more sense than our
standard biblical view of Jesus as a bachelor… Because Jesus
was a Jew… the social decorum during that time virtually
forbid a Jewish man to be unmarried. According to Jewish
custom, celibacy was condemned, and the obligation for a
Jewish father was to find a suitable wife for his son. If
Jesus were not married, at least one of the Bible’s gospels
would have mentioned it and offered some explanation for His
unnatural state of bachelorhood. 1
—Dan Brown, The Da Vinci Code, p. 245.
The greatest cover-up in human history. Not only was Jesus
Christ married, but He was a father. My dear, Mary Magdalene
was the Holy Vessel. She was the chalice that bore the royal
bloodline of Jesus Christ. She was the womb that bore the
lineage, and the vine from which the sacred fruit sprang
forth. 2
—Dan Brown, The Da Vinci Code, p. 249.
Was
Jesus "required" to be married?
First, it must be stated that there is simply no evidence from
Scripture that Jesus was married. Dr. Darrell Bock explains:
It
has long been believed that Jesus was single. Every detail of
Scripture indicates this. When he was in ministry, there is no
mention of a wife. When he was tried and crucified, there is
no mention of his having a wife. After his death, there is no
mention of a wife. Whenever Jesus’ family is referred to, it
is his brothers and sisters who are mentioned, but never a
wife. Nor is there any indication that he was widowed. 3
So, at best, we are
dealing with an argument from silence. But what about the
argument that "virtually every Jewish man in Jesus’ day did
marry, especially those who were considered to be Rabbis"4?
Well, as Mark Roberts points out, "One major problem with this
argument, among several, is that it makes no room for an
exception. Jesus was not required by law—either governmental or
religious—to marry. And, though he was in many ways a normal
Jewish man…, in other ways he was utterly unusual."5
Unusual indeed. Furthermore, whether or not Jewish custom
"required" marriage for rabbis, there are two important reasons
why this does not apply to Jesus. Darrell Bock explains:
…
two factors make this argument weak. First, Jesus was not
technically a rabbi, nor did he portray himself as one. The
apostles addressed him as such to say he was their teacher,
not because he held any kind of official Jewish office. The
Jews asked Jesus "by what authority" he did certain things
because he did not hold any kind of formal office within
Judaism. He did not have an official position that would have
permitted him to do things like act within the temple (Mark
11:28). As far as the Jewish leaders were concerned, Jesus had
no recognized role within Judaism.…
Second, the example of the call to be "eunuchs for the
kingdom" appears, in part, to be rooted in Jesus’ own
commitment and example not to be married (Matthew 19:10-12).
In fact, the rationale for the Roman church’s later view that
priests should not be married partially stems from the view
that Jesus was not married.
So
if we ask what the hard evidence is that Jesus was married,
there really is a very short answer. There is none. 6
On
the other hand, many people did see Jesus as a "prophetic
figure." James Holding points out that:
The Jewish atmosphere of Jesus’ day clearly had a tradition of
celibacy for those who devoted their lives to God, as
exemplified by the unmarried prophets Jeremiah and Elijah and
as expressed by New Testament-era groups such as the Essenes
and figures such as John the Baptist and Banus the prophet
(Josephus, Life 2.11). Celibacy and singleness were
indeed exceptional, but contrary to Brown, they were not
forbidden by any "social decorum." 7
Michael Gleghorn agrees and points out that, although "most
Jewish men of Jesus’ day did marry… by the first century there
were recognized, and even lauded, exceptions to this general
rule." He continues,
The first century Jewish writer, Philo of Alexandria,
described the Essenes as those who "repudiate marriage… for no
one of the Essenes ever marries a wife." Interestingly, the
Essenes not only escaped condemnation for their celibacy; they
were often admired. Philo also wrote, "This now is the
enviable system of life of these Essenes, so that not only
private individuals but even mighty kings, admiring the men,
venerate their sect, and increase… the honors which they
confer on them." Such citations clearly reveal that not all
Jews of Jesus’ day considered marriage obligatory. In fact,
those who sought to avoid marriage for religious reasons were
often admired rather than condemned. 8
All
in all, the evidence would indicate that Brown’s assertion that
"According to Jewish custom, celibacy was condemned," simply is
not true—or at least not in every single case. Clearly, Jesus
was not only exceptional, but, in this case, an exception.
Who
was Mary Magdalene?
For
those who assume Jesus was married, their top candidate for His
wife is Mary Magdalene. What can we find out from the Scriptures
about this woman?
The
first time we read about Mary Magdalene is in Luke 8:1-3:
Now it came to pass, afterward, that He went through every
city and village, preaching and bringing the glad tidings of
the kingdom of God. And the twelve were with Him, and
certain women who had been healed of evil spirits and
infirmities—Mary called Magdalene, out of whom had come
seven demons, and Joanna the wife of Chuza, Herod’s
steward, and Susanna, and many others who provided for Him
from their substance. (NKJV)
There is nothing in this passage that could be taken as evidence
that Mary was a prostitute, so how did that idea come about?
Bible scholar Ben Witherington explains:
It
is important to stress where she first appears in the Gospels,
because by the Middle Ages there had long been a confusion
about who she was. The anonymous sinner woman mentioned in Lk.
7, who anointed Jesus’ feet in the house of Simon the
Pharisee, was assumed to be Miriam of Magdala. This is a
serious mistake, and it really only became possible to make
this mistake once manuscripts of the New Testament began to
appear with separations of words, sentences, paragraphs, and
then chapters and verses. That process first happened in the
early Middle Ages. 9
For
once it would appear that Dan Brown got his facts right!
According to the biblical record, we have no reason to believe
that Mary Magdalene was a prostitute. It was the timing of her
first mention in Luke’s historical record that caused the
confusion:
Here Brown makes a statement that is close to being correct.
Mary was not a prostitute, but this was not a deliberate
attempt by the church to deceive people, it was most likely a
mistake that was overlooked. The first mention of Mary as a
prostitute comes from a sermon delivered by Pope Gregory the
Great in 591 AD. In all likelihood, the notion of prostitution
resulted from confusion concerning passages in the gospel of
Luke. Here is how the error likely occurred:
In
Luke 7:36, an unnamed sinful woman anointed Jesus at the house
of Simon the leper (Luke 7:36-50). The text does not label
this woman as a prostitute, but we can conclude that her sin
involves sexual immorality. The next text is Luke 8:1-3, where
Mary Magdalene is named. Her exorcism is mentioned but there
is no mention of her anointing Jesus. Luke does not connect
Mary to the sinful woman from the previous passage.
However, people made the error of assuming Mary Magdalene was
the sinful woman in Luke chapter 7. 10
The next time we
see Mary Magdalene in Scripture is when she is at the cross
along with several other women (Matthew 27:55-56; Mark 15:40;
John 19:25). As a group, they are seen ministering to Jesus and
to the disciples. Mary is not singled out in this group. In
fact, as one writer points out, "The gospel writers also point
out the connections several of the women had to recognized male
characters. If there had there been a connection between Mary
and Jesus, it is very likely the writers would have indicated
such a relationship."11
Mary
is also among those who witnessed the burial of Jesus (Matt.
27:61; Mark 15:40). And finally, on Easter Sunday morning, Mary
and several other women go to complete the burial ritual, and so
become the first witnesses to the resurrection (Matt. 28:1; Mark
16:1; John 20:11-18).
Mary is a prominent figure in one passage of scripture, John
20:11-18. This is the only place in the New Testament that
Jesus and Mary Magdalene were alone together. In this passage
she clings to Jesus and He tells her to let go. Public
displays of affection between non-related individuals were not
common in Jewish culture. However, her reaction is
understandable given the excitement of the moment. There is no
sexual intimacy implied in this scene and the story concludes
with her leaving the scene in great joy and excitement. 12
Ben
Witherington summarizes the New Testament evidence regarding
Mary Magdalene:
The New Testament tells us nothing more of the story of Miriam
[Mary Magdalene]. Later conjecture about her seems to have
little or no historical basis. But we have more than enough to
say that she was an important early disciple and witness for
Jesus. And we can say with equal certainty that there is
absolutely no early historical evidence that Miriam’s
relationship with Jesus was anything other than that of a
disciple to her Master teacher. 13
What
is the evidence that Mary Magdalene was Jesus’ wife?
Regardless of the lack of biblical evidence, there are some who
insist that Mary and Jesus were indeed married—and that the
evidence can be found in the Gnostic Gospels, so conveniently
concealed (and recently rediscovered) at Nag Hammadi!
It
should be remembered that these Gnostic Gospels are dated to the
2 nd or 3rd
century, a good 100-200 years or more after the time of Jesus.
Clearly, then, the writers were not apostles or disciples. Nor
were the writers of these documents eyewitnesses or acquaintance
of eyewitnesses to the events in Jesus’ life.
Nevertheless, Dan Brown explains in The Da Vinci Code
that, "any gospels that described earthly aspects of
Jesus’ life had to be omitted from the Bible. Unfortunately for
the early editors, one particularly troubling earthly theme kept
occurring in the gospels. Mary Magdalene… More specifically, her
marriage to Jesus Christ." 14
Mark Roberts has
done a study of the several of these non-canonical gospels. He
chose to focus on the ones that were named for disciples of
Jesus, including the one named for Mary Magdalene. However, he
points out that it is important to remember, "these disciples
had nothing to do with the actual writing of the extra-biblical
gospels."15
But
what do these Gospels tell us about Mary, and more particularly,
what is the evidence they give for her marriage to Jesus?
The Gospel of Thomas
Mary plays a tiny role in the Gospel of Thomas, asking
Jesus a question about the disciples: "Whom are your disciples
like?"… This is the only place she speaks. She is mentioned at
the end of this gospel in a most curious passage, which reads:
Simon Peter said to them, "Let Mary leave us, for women are
not worthy of Life." Jesus said, "I myself shall lead her in
order to make her male, so that she too may become a living
spirit resembling you males. For every woman who will make
herself male will enter the Kingdom of Heaven." (section 114)…
So, one who is looking for evidence of a secret marriage
between Jesus and Mary will be disappointed by the earliest of
the non-canonical gospels. The Gospel of Thomas, in its
peculiar way, simple underscores what we know of Mary from the
biblical gospels. 16
The Gospel of Peter
Mary Magdalene appears only on Easter morning, when she and
her women friends come to the tomb of Jesus to weep for him.
She is described as "a female disciple [Greek mathetria]
of the Lord" (section 50,). At the tomb, Mary and her friends
see an angel who announces the resurrection of Jesus, and they
run away frightened (section 56-57).
In
the Gospel of Peter we find no evidence whatsoever for
a marriage between Mary and Jesus. But, once again, Mary is
portrayed as a female disciple of Jesus. 17
The Dialogue of the Savior
Although Mary is one of the frequent interrogators of the
Savior, at one point she makes an observation. The text
explains, "This word she spoke as a woman who knew the All"
(Section 139, trans. Harold Attridge). In other words, Mary
has special knowledge of spiritual reality.
There is no hint in The Dialogue of the Savior of a
marriage between Jesus and Mary (or the Savior and Mary). 18
The Sophia of Jesus Christ
Twice in this gospel Mary asks questions of Christ, such as
"Holy Lord, where did your disciples come from, and where are
they going, and (what) should they do here?" (section 114,
trans. Douglas M. Parrott). Mary is not singled out further,
nor is there a suggestion of a marriage to Jesus. 19
The Pistis Sophia
Mary is praised in The Pistis Sophia as one "whose
heart is more directed to the Kingdom of Heaven than all [her]
brothers"…. Jesus says that she is "blessed beyond all women
upon the earth, because [she shall be] the pleroma of all
Pleromas and the completion of all completions" (section 19).
In other words, Mary will have the fullness of knowledge and
therefore spiritual life within her. So impressed is Jesus
with Mary’s spiritual excellence that he promises not to
conceal anything from her, but to reveal everything to her
"with certainty and openly" (section 25). She is the blessed
one who will "inherit the whole Kingdom of the Light" (section
61).
From The Pistis Sophia we see the growing interest in
Mary among Gnostic Christians, who valued knowledge (gnosis
in Greek) above all. She has come to be regarded as a
source of hidden revelation because of her intimate
relationship with Jesus. Nothing in this gospel suggests a
marriage between them, however. 20
The Gospel of Mary
The Gospel of Mary, written in the
second century, goes even further than The Pistis Sophia
in portraying Mary as a source of secret revelation
because of her close relationship to the Savior. At one point
Peter asks, "Sister, We know that the Savior loved you more
than the rest of women. Tell us the words of the Savior which
you remember—which you know but we do not nor have we heard
them"….
Ah, at last, here’s fuel for the fire of a secret marriage
between Mary and Jesus. She is the recipient of his secret
revelations and private speeches. The Savior, who is not
called Jesus in The Gospel of Mary, even preferred Mary
to the other disciples, loving her more than them. Mary’s
relationship with Jesus has clearly entered a new dimension we
have not seen before.
But there is nothing here to suggest that Jesus and Mary were
married. Jesus’ love for Mary leads him to reveal special
truth to her, not to take her as his wife. Nothing in The
Gospel of Mary points to a sexual or spousal relationship
between Jesus and Mary. 21
The Gospel of Philip
Finally we come to The Gospel of Philip, the last of
the extra-biblical gospels to mention Mary Magdalene, and the
one that excites proponents of her marriage to Jesus more than
any other ancient document….
Two passages refer to Mary Magdalene, who plays a tiny role in
this gospel.
The first of these passages reads, "There were three who
always walked with the Lord: Mary his mother and her sister
and Magdalene, the one who was called his companion" (section
59). Much has been insinuated about the word companion,
which, in the Greek original is koinonos. But, contrary
to the wishful thinking of some, this word doesn’t mean spouse
or sexual consort. It means "partner", and is used several
times in the New Testament with this ordinary meaning (for
example, when Paul refers to himself as Philemon’s koinonos
in the Philemon 1:17).
The second passage in The Gospel of Philip that
concerns Mary is the most suggestive: "And the companion of
the Savior is Mary Magdalene. But Christ loved her more than
all the disciples and used to kiss her often on her mouth. The
rest of the disciples were offended by it and expressed
disapproval. They said to him, ‘Why do you love her more than
all of us?’ The Savior answered and said to them, ‘Why do I
not love you like her?’ When a blind man and one who sees are
both together in darkness, they are no different from one
another. Then the light comes, then he who sees will see the
light, and he who is blind will remain in darkness" (sections
63-63).
Two
important points need to be made about this passage from The
Gospel of Philip. The first deals with Brown’s emphasis on
the meaning of the word "companion":
Notice that the first line refers to Mary as the companion
of the Savior. In the novel, Teabing clinches his argument
that Jesus and Mary were married by stating, "As any Aramaic
scholar will tell you, the word companion, in those
days, literally meant spouse" (246). This sounds like
pretty strong evidence. Might Jesus have been married after
all?
It’s important to note that this gospel was originally written
in Greek. Therefore, what the term "companion" meant in
Aramaic is irrelevant. Even in the Coptic translation found at
Nag Hammadi, a Greek loan word (i.e. koinonos) lies
behind the term translated "companion". Darrell Bock observes
that this term can mean "wife" or "sister" in a
spiritual sense, but it’s "not the typical or common term for
‘wife’" in Greek. 22
Craig Blomberg
agrees, and adds that, "It is also worth pointing out that no
Aramaic or Hebrew words for ‘companion’ normally mean spouse!"23
The
second point deals with the phrase "Christ… used to kiss her
often on the mouth":
First, this portion of the manuscript is damaged. We don’t
actually know where Christ kissed Mary. Indeed, some
believe that "she was kissed on her cheek or forehead since
either term fits in the break." Second, even if the text said
that Christ kissed Mary on the mouth, it wouldn’t necessarily
mean that something sexual is in view. Most scholars agree
that Gnostic texts contain a great deal of symbolism. To read
such texts literally, therefore, is to misread them.
Finally, regardless of the author’s intention, this gospel
wasn’t written until the second half of the third century,
more than two hundred years after the time of Jesus. Thus, the
reference to Jesus’ kissing Mary is almost certainly not
historically reliable. 24
Mark
Roberts makes one more important point:
Even if we suppose that this passage, which appears in no
other document, and which was written two centuries after the
biblical gospels, conveys historically accurate information,
the passage itself seems to disprove Jesus’ marriage to
Mary. Surely if Jesus had been married to Mary then his
special affection for her wouldn’t have been an offense.
And surely Jesus could have satisfied the disciples’ question
by explaining that Mary was his wife. But he doesn’t do this.
Instead he explains his special affection for Mary by pointing
to her ability to see the light, that is, to have knowledge…. 25
Conclusion
In
light of the above, we must conclude that there is simply no
reliable historical evidence to indicate Jesus was married—to
Mary Magdalene or anyone else. Nor is there any evidence that He
was engaged in any type of extramarital sexual intimacy with
Mary Magdalene or anyone else.
Craig Blomberg suggests one place where such a relationship
would certainly have been mentioned, had it existed:
Specifically, there is not a shred of historical evidence that
Jesus ever married Mary Magdalene (or anyone else) or ever
fathered children. As Darrell Bock points out in his recent
Christianity Today review (January 2004, 62), such
information would certainly have been included in 1
Corinthians 9 where Paul appeals to the fact that Peter and
various other apostles had wives when they received material
help from the churches. In supporting his right to receive
such help, Paul would have wanted to appeal to an even more
convincing example—Jesus—if it were available. 26
There’s one more
factor, one more piece of evidence, that should be mentioned in
this regard. Dr. Erwin Lutzer points out in his book, The Da
Vinci Deception, that someday Jesus will be married.
He is already engaged to His Bride, the Church. As Christians,
we eagerly anticipate the day when we shall be invited to the
Marriage Supper of the Lamb (Rev. 19:7-9). Lutzer says, "Given
this larger perspective, Jesus’ obvious celibacy was both
necessary and proper."27
Notes
1 Dan Brown, The Da
Vinci Code (New York: Doubleday, 2003), p. 245.
2 Ibid., p. 249.
3 Darrell L. Bock,
Ph.D., "Was Jesus Married?" http://www.leaderu.com/theology/wasjesusmarried.html
4 Mark D. Roberts, "Was
Jesus Married? A Careful Look at the Real Evidence," http://www.markdroberts.com/htmfiles/resources/jesusmarried.htm
5 Ibid.
6 Bock, "Was Jesus
Married?"
7 James Patrick
Holding, A SUMMARY CRITIQUE - THE DA VINCI CODE:
Revisiting a Cracked Conspiracy, www.equip.org
8 Michael Gleghorn,
"Decoding the Da Vinci Code," www.probe.org
9 Ben Witherington III,
"Mary, Mary, Extraordinary," http://www.leaderu.com/theology/maryandjesus.html
10 "Discerning Fact from
Fiction in The Da Vinci Code," http://www.evidenceandanswers.com/,
emphasis added.
11 Ibid.
12 Ibid.
13 Ben Witherington III,
"Mary, Mary, Extraordinary," http://www.leaderu.com/theology/maryandjesus.html,
emphasis added.
14 Brown, p. 244.
15 Mark D. Roberts, "Was
Jesus Married? A Careful Look at the Real Evidence,"
http://www.markdroberts.com/htmfiles/resources/jesusmarried.htm
16 Ibid.
17 Ibid.
18 Ibid.
19 Ibid.
20 Ibid.
21 Ibid.
22 Michael Gleghorn,
"Decoding the Da Vinci Code," www.probe.org
23 Craig Blomberg,
review of The Da Vinci Code in Denver Journal - An Online
Review of Current Biblical and Theological Studies,
http://www.denverseminary.edu/dj/articles2004/0200/0202.php
24 Michael Gleghorn,
"Decoding the Da Vinci Code," www.probe.org
25 Mark D. Roberts, "Was
Jesus Married? A Careful Look at the Real Evidence," http://www.markdroberts.com/htmfiles/resources/jesusmarried.htm,
emphasis added.
26 Craig Blomberg,
review of The Da Vinci Code in Denver Journal - An Online
Review of Current Biblical and Theological Studies,
http://www.denverseminary.edu/dj/articles2004/0200/0202.php
27 Erwin W. Lutzer,
The Da Vinci Deception (Wheaton, IL: Tyndale, 2004), p.
57.
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