Did the Virgin Mary and Joseph have any other children besides Jesus?

Answer 1

Yes.

According to some people, Bible phrases, like: "the Lord's brother", prove that Mary had other children besides Jesus. Even though The Bible indicates that Mary remained a virgin with the birth of Christ (Matt. 1:23, Luke 1:27, 23:53), they claim that she had other children. Since Mary had other children, she did not remain ever-virgin. Therefore, the doctrine on her Perpetual Virginity is false, and the Catholic Church is wrong for calling her the Blessed Virgin Mary. But do such Bible phrases definitively prove that Mary had other children?

The names of four brothers of Jesus are actually listed in the Gospels. According to Matthew: "Is not this the carpenter's son? Is not his mother called Mary? And are not his brothers James and Joseph and Simon and Judas? And are not all his sisters with us?" [Matt. 13:55-56; RSV]. A similar list of names can be found in Mark's Gospel: "Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary and brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon and are not his sisters here with us?" [Mark 6:3; RSV] These lists agree with each other apart from the minor difference between "Joseph" in Matthew and "Joses" in Mark. Later in both Gospels, the names of those, who followed Jesus to His crucifixion, are recorded. These lists contain family information on two "brothers." According to Matthew, the women, who followed Jesus, were "Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James and Joseph, and the mother of the sons of Zebedee." [Matt. 27:56; RSV] Mark's list includes: "Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James the younger and of Joses, and Salome,... and also many other women." [Mark 15:40; RSV] The same name variation is observed in both lists: Matthew refers to "Joseph"; whereas, Mark refers to "Joses". This variation supports their connection to the names of Jesus' brothers. According to both texts, James and Joseph (or Joses) are the sons of Mary. But this Mary is not referred to as the mother of Jesus. This would be an odd omission, if she were also the mother of Jesus. John's Gospel has a similar list of women: "...standing by the Cross of Jesus were His mother, and His mother's sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene." [John 19:25; RSV] According to John, Mary the mother of Jesus was present at the Cross, but John also records another Mary other than Mary Magdalene. Comparing lists, it appears that James the younger and Joseph (or Joses) were the sons of the other Mary. Elsewhere, Matthew actually calls her "the other Mary." [Matt. 28:1] This other Mary is said to be the "sister" of Jesus' mother. Therefore, James and Joseph (or Joses) are Jesus' cousins and not His siblings. Now since both Marys share the same name, it is unlikely that they were siblings. Instead they were most likely members of the same clan. It would be confusing for parents to name their children with the same name. This is an example of "sister" being used in the wider sense as cousin. One small problem still remains: In Acts 1:13 and Matt 10:3, the younger James, an Apostle, is also said to be the son of Alphaeus. Perhaps the other Mary was married twice, or Alphaeus was also called Clopas (not uncommon in the Bible, e.g. Israel vs. Jacob, Simon vs. Peter, Paul vs. Saul...), or Clopas was not the name of her husband but her father, birthplace or whatever. The last explanation is supported by the Douay-Rheims translation: "Mary of Cleophas" [John 19:25]. The Bible text shows that Mary, mother of James, and Mary, mother of Jesus, are different women. The case of two Marys can cause confusion today as perhaps with the crowds of Jesus' day.

Mary the wife of Clophas in John 19:25 is not the mother of James and Joses. James and Joses, in Mark 6:3; were the sons of Mary the mother of Jesus to Joseph her husband. Remember that in Mark's and Matthew's account of the Crucifixion there is a mention of "many women" (Mark 15:41, Matt. 27:55). Mary the mother of James and Joses, together with others, were looking "from afar" (Matt 27;55 Mark 15:40) while this Mary wife of Cleophas "stood by the cross of Jesus" (John 19:25). This Mary, Cleophas' wife, was much nearer from the cross compared to the distance of the Mary the mother of James and Joses who looked "from afar", but it is to be noted and remembered that Mark and Matthew earlier Chapters report that Mary the mother of Jesus had other offspring/s that were half-sibs of Jesus and among them were James and Joses. So, it is interesting to note that Mary the mother of James and Joses the same Mary the mother of Jesus, while "looking afar" (Mark and Matt's accounts) together with "many other women" (Mary Magdalene, Salome, Mary the wife of Cleophas included, etc.) somehow, through the thick assembly of the crowd amidst pushing and shoving and the commotion thereof, found their way through it and then standing "by the cross of Jesus" with John (John 19:25).

Mary the mother of James and Joses the same Mary the mother of Jesus is the "other [Mary]" with regards to Mary Magdalene who shares the same name [Mary].

It is imposible for Mary to have had other children, Jewish tradition has it that the eldest son takes care of there elderly parents and that is what Jesus did till his death on the cross. who has the task of taking care of Mary after Jesus's death apostle john has that task, where did all these brothers and sisters go they all fall off the face of the earth but there is a reason for that they never existed in the first place

MY VIEW

I do see a variety of answers to this question. I my self believe the answer is yes, Jesus did have half-brothers and sisters. Matthew 12:46, "WHILE HE (JESUS) WAS STILL TALKING TO THE MULTITUDES, BEHOLD, HIS MOTHER AND BROTHERS STOOD OUTSIDE, SEEKING TO SPEAK WITH HIM" This is speaking of Mary, the mother and MATTHEW clearly connects them (brothers) with Mary, indicating they were not Joseph's son's from a previous marriage or cousins, but actual brothers of Jesus. This along with other Scripture mentioned leads me to believe Jesus had other brothers (and sisters). See also Matthew 13:55-57
Catholics believe the Virgin Mary's only child was Jesus. Some Protestants believe, based on Matthew 13:55-56, that Mary also had four other sons, named James, Joseph, Simon, and Judas, as well as an unspecified number of daughters.

In Matthew 13:55-56 the names referred to were cousins of Our Lord and not children of Mary. In the Hebrew tradition (as well as others) cousins were referred to as brothers and sisters. These 'brothers and sisters' of our Lord were most likely children of Salome or Mary wife of Cleopas, or both.

Answer 2

The Bible mentions four brothers-Joses (presumably the eldest of his brothers as named after Joseph), James (a disciple?), Simon (not a disciple I don't think) and Judas (ditto). No sisters are mentioned.

Catholic Answer:

Since the Hebrew and Aramaic languages had no words to describe extended family (cousins, in laws, etc.) all were called brethren (brothers or sisters). Mary was a perpetual virgin and had no other children. The names mentioned in scripture would have been cousins.

Jews had, at the time of Jesus and Mary, a rule that the eldest child in the family was responsible for caring for the surviving parents in their old age. If that person died before the parent passed away, the responsibility fell to the next oldest. If Jesus had brothers, why did he appoint Saint John as the guardian for his mother? This would have been a violation of Jewish law as well as an insult to any siblings.

Answer 3

No, she only had her beloved son Jesus who died for our sins so that we could all go to heaven.

Catholic AnswerThe Blessed Virgin Mary had no other children other than Our Blessed Savior, Jesus Christ. Many modern protestants assume that there were other children from an uncritical reading of the Scriptures, not understanding the terms used, but we know from the constant teaching of the Church since the time that Our Blessed Lord was alive that the Blessed Virgin Mary lived her entire life and died as a perpetual virgin. This belief is upheld by all the first protestants, Martin Luther, John Calvin, and Henry VIII all vigorously defended Mary's perpetual virginity.

from

A Biblical Defense of Catholicism, by Dave Armstrong, Sophia Institute Press, © 2003

The Perpetual virginity of Mary

Pope Paul IV, in his Constitution, Cum Quorumdam Hominum, of 1555, expressed the constant teaching of the Catholic Church concerning both the virgin birth of Jesus Christ and the perpetual virginity of Mary:

We question and admonish all those who . . . have asserted, taught, and believed . . . that our Lord . . . was not conceived from the Holy Spirit according to the flesh in the womb of the Blessed Mary ever Virgin, but, as other men, from the see of Joseph . . . or that the same Blessed Virgin Mary is not truly the mother of God and did not retrain her virginity intact before the birth, in the birth, and perpetually after the birth. (In Neuner and Dupuis, The Christian Faith, 217. See CCC, pars 484-486, 496-498, 502-506, 510, 723 (for the virgin birth); pars 499-501, 507, 510, 721 (for the perpetual virginity of Mary))

The Greek word for brother in the New Testament is adelphos. The well-known Protestant linguistic reference An Expository Dictionary of the New Testament Words defines it as follows:

1. Male children of the same parents . . .

2. Male descendants of the same parents, Acts 7:23, 26; Hebrews 7:5 . . .

4. People of the same nationality, Acts 3:17, 22; Romans 9:3 . . .

5. Any man, a neighbor, Luke 10:29; Matthew 5:22, 7:3;

6. Persons united by a common interest, Matthew 5:47;

7. Persons united by a common calling, Revelation 22:9;

8. Mankind, Matthew 25:40; Hebrews 2:17;

9. The disciples, and so, by implication, all believers, Matthew 28:10; John 20:17;

10. Believers, apart from sex, Matthew 23:8; Acts 1:15; romans 1:13; 1 Thessalonians 1:4; Revelation 19:10 (the word sisters is used of believers, only in 1 Timothy 5:2) . . . . (Vine, An Expository Dictionary of New testament Words, Vol. 1, 154-155.)

It Is evident, therefore, from the range of possible definitions of adelphos, that Jesus' "brothers" need not necessarily be siblings of Jesus on linguistic grounds, as many commentators, learned and unlearned, seem to assume uncritically. Be examining the use of adelphos and related words in Hebrew, and by comparing Scripture with Scripture ("exegesis"), one can determine that most sensible explanation of all the biblical date taken collectively. Many examples prove that adelphos has a very wide variety of meanings:

In the King James Version, Jacob is called the "brother" of his Uncle Laban (Gen. 29:15; 29:10). The same thing occurs with regard to Lot and Abraham (Gen. 14:14; 11:26-27). The Revised Standard Version uses "kinsman" at 29:15 and 14:14.

Use of brother or brethren for mere kinsmen: Deuteronomy 23:7; 2 Samuel 1:26; 1 Kings 9:14, 20:32; 2 Kings 10:13-14; Jeremiah 24:9; Amos 1:9).

In Luke 2:41-51, ... it is fairly obvious that Jesus is the only child....

Jesus himself uses brethren in the larger sense: Matthew 23:8, 23:1; 12:49-50.

The term Firstborn means pre-eminent and nowhere assumes later siblings, etc.

Answer:

1. In Giving Birth: No, just Jesus - she gave birth supernaturally to Jesus, after previously conceiving supernaturally, and thereafter remained ever-virgin.

2. In Binding Motherhood: Yes, eight besides Jesus - as recorded - On betrothal to Joseph, she became step-mother to his elder sons Justus and Simeon; and to his fostered younger sons from his nephew Alphaeus - Judas and James the Less; and to his daughters, Assia and Lydia.

She was the foster mother of John son of Zebedee, and by extension James son of Zebedee.

Ref: Infancy Gospels; Assumption Gospels; History of Joseph the Carpenter; John 19:26 .

Answer 4

NO she didn't...

Another thought:

Jesus was said to be Mary's 'First Born'(Luke 2:7) obviously indicating that more followed, and Joseph had no intercourse with her until she gave birth to this son (Matthew 1:25). Later, Jesus was recognized by neighbors as the 'son of Mary' and 'brother of James and Joseph and Judas and Simon'(Mark 6:3) (Matthew 13:55-56)

Answer 5

.

Catholic AnswerYes and no. The Blessed Virgin Mary remained a Virgin her entire life, and the only child that she bore was Our Blessed Savior, Jesus Christ. However, from the cross, Our Blessed Savior gave her to every Christian as their mother, so we are all her children.

Answer 6

none! Is what the Roman Catholic Church teaches but the bible clearly states he had four brothers, two sisters. The argument that Mary was a perpetual virgin is not based on scripture.