Is James the lesser the brother of Jesus?

Answer 1

The relationship between James and Jesus is the subject of much speculation and tradition. What we do know is that Paul called James the brother of Jesus. However, some scholars believe that, for Paul, 'brother' was an honorary title to indicate James' leadership of the Jerusalem Church. Certainly, there is no suggestion in the epistle that James was an elderly man when Paul met him. The gospels then refer to the brothers of Jesus as James, Joses, Simon and Judas, and that he had sisters.

The gospels tell us that Mary was a virgin when Jesus was conceived, and the Catholic Church, in particular, has held that she remained a virgin. In this case, James could not have been the younger brother of Jesus. On this basis, James could have been a half-brother - the son of Joseph by a previous wife. The difficulty with this is that the nativity stories make no mention of Jesus' siblings, who would have needed to travel from Galilee or to Egypt with the family.

On the evidence, James would more likely be the younger brother of Jesus.

Answer 2

No. The Catholic Church not only believes that Mary was a virgin at the time of Jesus' birth, but that she remained a virgin. James is sometimes seen as a cousin, sometimes as an older half-brother, son of Joseph but not of Mary, and sometimes as a a bishop titled 'Brother' but not related to Jesus by birth.

In fact, the evidence of Paul's epistles suggests that the James whom Paul met in Jerusalem, was not related to Jesus but that 'brother' was an honorific title for the most senior member of the Jerusalem Church.

Answer 3

no he is not