Did Jesus have sisters and brothers or step brothers/sisters?

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ConstantLearner said:
The passage only seemed to indicate that he might have after Jesus’ birth
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It really doesn’t. Matthew’s concern here were the rumors being planted that Joseph was Jesus’ natural father. Matthew is attempting to demonstrate that there was no way that this was the case. If I’m trying to defend your reputation as a moral person, such that there was no way that you robbed a bank on 1/8/18, I might say, “@ConstantLearner had always obeyed the law up to January 8th”. That wouldn’t imply that you broke the law on the 9th… just that I’m saying something about your conduct up to a certain point.
 
I don’t have the Dr. Pitre review of Ehrman but here is a link to Trent Horn’s critical review of Bart Ehrman’s book… How Jesus Became God. He gives examples of why Ehrman is not a trustworthy source.

www.catholic.com

How Jesus Became God: A Critical Review

Bart Ehrman’s thesis is that the divide between human and divine in the ancient world was not as clean cut and “uncrossable” as it is for modern religious believers.
www.catholic.com www.catholic.com

There are 3 additional links at the bottom of this page which I haven’t read yet.

Hope this helps
 
Yeah it does but i’ll have to look at them in slow time. What i’d say is that Ehrman gives valuable research that defends other Catholic beliefs. Obviously he doesn’t represent the entire Catholic belief spectrum, but it’s best not to write him off as lacking credibility because then you open the door to discrediting all his work (e.g. the most comprehensive rebuke of the Christ-myth theory). In an age when the average guy on the street even doubts Jesus actually lived because a bunch of Marxists taught that he didn’t, it’s best not to throw the baby out with the bathwater. As i skim read the first link, they did make some nuances like “when he talks about x he’s good, but less so on Y” and i think that’s how he should be treated.
 
I studied under Bart Ehrman several years ago. His views didn’t change my beliefs. No one can do that. But they did challenge them and give me pause for thought.
 
lilypadrees said:
I studied under Bart Ehrman several years ago. His views didn’t change my beliefs. No one can do that. But they did challenge them and give me pause for thought.
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I studied theology in college, but never met Ehrman, Lily. I feel the same as you, though, after reading and studying his books.
 
Words have meaning, but they also have context. The bible does nowhere say “siblings” or “children of Mary” It says “brothers” and “sisters” - do you know what that meant 2,000 years ago in Israel? We are not talking Amurrican culture, English culture or even European culture. We are talking ancient Hebrew culture. Please do not add to scripture. Catholics dare not touch God’s sacred word.

If your bible has the Book of Tobit, it is an illuminating read. If your bible does not have the Book of Tobit, please consider obtaining one that does.

Tobit 7:16 And Rag′uel called his wife Edna and said to her, “Sister, make up the other room, and take her into it.”

Tobit 8:4 When the door was shut and the two were alone, Tobi′as got up from the bed and said, “Sister, get up, and let us pray that the Lord may have mercy upon us.”

Tobit 8:7 And now, O Lord, I am not taking this sister of mine because of lust, but with sincerity. Grant that I may find mercy and may grow old together with her.”

Brothers and sisters in ancient Isreal were those of your same tribe - the 12 tribes of Israel.

All - 100% - of the reformers believed absolutely in the perpetual virginity of Mary.

Q: What, or who has infiltrated into bible Christianity since the reformation?
 
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Struggling with exactly same questions.
Asking myself i love catholics but if other denomination is right…I donr know,sometimes very confused…
Especially about Virginity of Joseph
 
Gorgias said:
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lilypadrees:
I studied under Bart Ehrman several years ago.
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How did you find him, as a scholar?

Was it a survey course for undergrads, or an upper-level course for majors? (Just curious…)
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I found him very intelligent in the subject. It was an upper-level course for majors.
 
I know of no one who has claimed that Joseph was a virgin. It is believed that he was an older man. Not to get too graphic, but there was no viagra back then. Also, the angel commended him to take Mary as his wife. Knowing that she had conceived by the Holy Spirit, would you desire conjugal relations?

Me? No way!

As to even step-brothers and sisters, if they existed, not one of them was named or referred to when Jesus stayed behind in the temple, when He was arrested, or at His trial, or along the via dolorosa, or at the crucifixion, the resurrection, or any of the appearances in the upper room. I tend to think that there were none.

He did have many brothers and sisters from both Nazareth, as well as Galilee, as those from your town or area were referred to as brother and sister, as were extended family.
 
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po18guy said:
As to even step-brothers and sisters, if they existed, not one of them was named or referred to when Jesus stayed behind in the temple, when He was arrested, or at His trial, or along the via dolorosa, or at the crucifixion, the resurrection, or any of the appearances in the upper room.
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True, but James, Joses, Judas, and Simon, named as Jesus’ “brethren” in Mark 6:3 (par. Matt 13:55), are clearly close family members, probably either stepbrothers or cousins. John 7:5 explains why we hear nothing about them on Palm Sunday or later: For neither did his brethren believe in him.
 
“Brethren” being those of your same tribe (of the 12 tribes), and those of your town or region, i.e. Nazareth and Galilee. Anything is possible except that Mary had “other children” which is a modern unbiblical concoction. She vowed before Gabriel to be the the handmaid or bond slave of her Son.

Who can serve two masters?
 
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