What is the history of Christians NOT believing in the perpetual virginity of Mary?
The popularity of the idea that Mary was always a virgin exploded on the scene only in the
4th century after Christ. There we find the doctrine to be widespread.
But if we must trace the doctrine’s acceptance, we should start with Christ Himself.
Christ did not teach this doctrine. This can be seen from the multiple accounts of His most important doctrines recorded purposely in the Gospels. In actuality, if read straight and without bias, the Scriptures imply that Mary was not always a virgin.
After Christ ascended, the Apostles did not teach this doctrine either, nor is there any contemporary record anywhere that they did.
After the Apostles, none of the earliest fathers and writings ever mention this doctrine and some teach contrary to it. There were many writings in the earliest centuries, but none teaching that Mary was perpetually a virgin.
For some examples, the early church father Hegesippus taught that Jude, Christ’s brother (Mar 6:3), was related by
blood:
ccel.org/fathers2/ANF-08/anf08-165.htm
Irenaeus also taught that Mary did not remain a virgin while married:
“For as by one man’s disobedience sin entered, and death obtained [a place] through sin; so also by the obedience of one man, righteousness having been introduced, shall cause life to fructify in those persons who in times past were dead. And as the protoplast himself Adam, had his substance from untilled and as yet virgin soil (“for God had not yet sent rain, and man had not tilled the ground”), and was formed by the hand of God, that is, by the Word of God, for “all things were made by Him,” and the Lord took dust from the earth and formed man; so did He who is the Word, recapitulating Adam in Himself, rightly receive a birth, enabling Him to gather up Adam [into Himself], from Mary, who was
as yet a virgin.”
ccel.org/fathers2/ANF-01/…#P7836_2143030
And…
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before Joseph had come together with Mary,
while she therefore remained in virginity, “she was found with child of the Holy Ghost”
ccel.org/fathers2/ANF-01/…#P7317_1944667
Tertullian, at the height of his orthodox genius, and as the Father of Latin Christianity, also taught that Christ’s brothers mentioned in Mat 12:46 were
BLOOD relation:
“Who is my mother, and who are my brethren? He added the answer “None but they who hear my words and do them,” He transferred the names
of blood-relationship to others, whom He judged to be more closely related to Him by reason of their faith.”
tertullian.org/anf/anf03/…#P5992_1802834
This is the consistent testimony up until Origen (middle of the 3rd century after Christ), who himself believed that Mary was always a virgin.
It was during the 4th century after Christ that this doctrine finally became very popular. As far as I know, most of the 4th centruy fathers held this view and taught it, unlike earlier fathers.
Even in the 4th century, however, there were
many Christians who did not believe that Mary was perpetually a virgin. St. Basil said that the view that Mary had other children during his era:
“
was widely held and, though not accepted by himself, was
not incompatible with orthodoxy” (J.N.D. Kelly, Early Christian Doctrines [San Francisco, California: HarperCollins Publishers, 1978], p. 495).
Please note that this is the reality all the way
in the 4th century after Christ.
Here is St. Basil commenting on the doctrine again:
“[The opinion that Mary bore several children after Christ]…does
not run counter to faith; for, virginity was imposed on Mary as a necessity,
only up to the time that she served as an instrument for the Incarnation, while, on the other hand, her subsequent virginity had
no great importance with regard to the mystery of the Incarnation.” Homilia in sanctam Christi generationem, PG 31:1468.(See. fn 174 of Carol, Vol. 2, p. 277).
After this period, and only after this period, did the popularity of this doctrine so win out that almost nobody believed otherwise until yet again in more recent centuries.
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