Question about the importance of Mary's virginity

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Why is it so important to Roman Catholicism that Mary remained a virgin her entire life?

I have asked my wife (who is Catholic) and she does not know the answer. This question is not to debate that the Bible indicates she didn’t remain a virgin. I only want to know why it seems, at least from an outsider’s perspective, this is important to Roman Catholicism. Maybe my perception is wrong and it is not that important. Just curious.

God bless
 
Not just the Catholic church believes this.

Eastern Orthodox along with some Lutherans and Anglicans hold to it.

So most of Christendom believes in her perpetual virginity.

Would it have been sinful for her to have relations with Joseph? I guess not.

But if you were Joseph and your Newlywed spouse housed and birthed the creator of the universe…would you feel ok have relations with her after that? The very thought of that is appaling to me and i cant understand why i didnt see it that way as a protestant.
 
I’d like to understand this too.

“But if you were Joseph and your Newlywed spouse housed and birthed the creator of the universe…would you feel ok have relations with her after that?”

I don’t really know, but I’m guessing yes, probably? Folks marry folks who have fathered/borne children with other folks. I can’t speak to what it would be like to be with the one who gave birth to Christ, but I don’t think it would re-wire my natural desires to be one with my wife…
 
Lenten_ashes said:
Not just the Catholic church believes this.

Eastern Orthodox along with some Lutherans and Anglicans hold to it.

So most of Christendom believes in her perpetual virginity.

Would it have been sinful for her to have relations with Joseph? I guess not.

But if you were Joseph and your Newlywed spouse housed and birthed the creator of the universe…would you feel ok have relations with her after that? The very thought of that is appaling to me and i cant understand why i didnt see it that way as a protestant.
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Not sure why that would be appalling to you but to each their own. There is nothing about the act of sexual intercourse that would take away from Mary, Joseph, or God in anyway. I would think that Joseph fell in love with her even more knowing that God chose her to birth the Savior.

But being a life-long virgin wouldn’t make her holier than if she weren’t a virgin so not sure why this seems to be so important to the Roman Catholicism.
 
It’s not that her perpetual virginity is so important to US, it’s the fulfillment of the sacred scriptures that she be a “garden enclosed, a fountain sealed” (Song 4:12). It is the way God intended for her to be - not that having marital relations would’ve caused her to sin in any way. In fact, as Christ “appears” in rooms after his Resurrection without entering through the locked door or windows, perhaps He was born by the same way. We have no way of understanding this mystery, but the Church teaches that Our Lady’s virginity is perpetual, which means that not even her hymen was broken when Christ was born. I hope that helps…if not I can try and expand some more for you. Let me know!
 
Mary’s perpetual virginity is the traditional Christian belief. Why is it important to Catholics and Orthodox? We could also ask why the rejection of Marian perpetual virginity, and rejection of Marian devotion generally, is important to some Protestants. Some latter day Protestants reject this devotion in order to differentiate their groups from earlier Christians. I suppose that it depends on one’s perspective.

Despite the true faith of many Protestants, I believe that this is the major problem with the Protestant movement. It has schismed into thousands of competing groups. They each have to invent distinctions to show that their group is better than others.
 
NeuroTypical said:
I’d like to understand this too.

“But if you were Joseph and your Newlywed spouse housed and birthed the creator of the universe…would you feel ok have relations with her after that?”

I don’t really know, but I’m guessing yes, probably? Folks marry folks who have fathered/borne children with other folks. I can’t speak to what it would be like to be with the one who gave birth to Christ,** but I don’t think it would re-wire my natural desires to be one with my wife…**.
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Would she have even been his wife if they did not consummate the marriage? I’ve often wondered that personally given the mores and laws of the day. If I’m not mistaken consummation was a requirement of the stages of a marriage union in Ancient Judea.
 
Padres1969 said:
Would she have even been his wife if they did not consummate the marriage? I’ve often wondered that personally given the mores and laws of the day. If I’m not mistaken consummation was a requirement of the stages of a marriage union in Ancient Judea.
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Where did you get this info?
 
Padres1969 said:
Would she have even been his wife if they did not consummate the marriage? I’ve often wondered that personally given the mores and laws of the day. If I’m not mistaken consummation was a requirement of the stages of a marriage union in Ancient Judea.
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I have wondered this too. I guess the belief is that they were perpetually betrothed, but never fully married according to the law of their time. I imagine many of their neighbors saw them as married, but it was never official.
 
drblank1 said:
Not sure why that would be appalling to you but to each their own. There is nothing about the act of sexual intercourse that would take away from Mary, Joseph, or God in anyway. I would think that Joseph fell in love with her even more knowing that God chose her to birth the Savior.

But being a life-long virgin wouldn’t make her holier than if she weren’t a virgin so not sure why this seems to be so important to the Roman Catholicism.
Click to expand...
So there is a tradition found in Philo that after Moses and the 70 elders received the Spirit and started prophesying, someone immediately said to his friend, “Woe to the wives of those men!” Even Moses refrained from relations with his wife from then on. Before the Israelite men encountered God on Mount Sinai, they had to wash their clothes, purify themselves, and refrain from lying with their wives. So if these men who had the gift of prophesy refrained from conjugal relations with their wives, as well as people who witnessed a glimpse of the Skekinah, how much more would a woman who had been predestined to bear God Himself?
 
I thought Mary took a vow of perpetual virginity? St Joseph knew this when he married her.
 
drblank1 said:
Why is it so important to Roman Catholicism that Mary remained a virgin her entire life?

I have asked my wife (who is Catholic) and she does not know the answer. This question is not to debate that the Bible indicates she didn’t remain a virgin. I only want to know why it seems, at least from an outsider’s perspective, this is important to Roman Catholicism. Maybe my perception is wrong and it is not that important. Just curious.

God bless
Click to expand...
It is important, because if Mary was with the Holy Spirit and then with Joseph, she was fornicating with one. She can’t belong to both at the same time in intimacy. So, that’s impossible. catholicbible101.com/jesushadbrothers.htm It’s a heresy to suggest that Mary wasn’t a virgin or celibate, when she was. We must come to the defense of our Mother’s honor. We believe this because it’s the truth.

Further, apparitions of the Blessed Virgin Mary have said she was perpetually a virgin. In the apparition, which has been accepted by the Catholic Church as worthy of belief, when Our Lady appeared at Fatima, she asked for the First 5 Saturdays’ reparation for those
who blaspheme:
  1. Against her Immaculate Conception.
  2. Against her virginity.
  3. Against her divine maternity (refusing at the same time to acknowledge her as the Mother of men.
  4. …of those who publicly seek to sow in the hearts of children indifference or scorn or even hatred of this Immaculate Mother.
  5. …offenses of those who outrage her directly in her holy images.
 
drblank1 said:
Not sure why that would be appalling to you but to each their own. There is nothing about the act of sexual intercourse that would take away from Mary, Joseph, or God in anyway. I would think that Joseph fell in love with her even more knowing that God chose her to birth the Savior.

But being a life-long virgin wouldn’t make her holier than if she weren’t a virgin so not sure why this seems to be so important to the Roman Catholicism.
Click to expand...
Well, I suppose this is where recognizing the OT typology of the Ark of the covenant is helpful.

The old ark housed Manna from Heaven and the Word of God.

The new ark, Mary, housed the new Manna from heaven / Word of God.

If you touched the old Ark, even on accident, you dropped dead. (2 Samuel 6:7)

I know the gospel authors aren’t spelling it out for us, but the parallel is there.

Pax
 
I believe that when Mary was very young she took a vow of virginity because she wanted to belong to God alone forever. This was not done to deny the holiness of marriage. Marriage is very sacred in both the Jewish and Christian religions. It was her destiny to take this higher path.
 
PaulfromIowa said:
Why is it important to Catholics and Orthodox? We could also ask why the rejection of Marian perpetual virginity, and rejection of Marian devotion generally, is important to some Protestants. Some latter day Protestants reject this devotion in order to differentiate their groups from earlier Christians. I suppose that it depends on one’s perspective.
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No, for most Protestants, its a not a rejection but a non-issue within a solely Biblical faith. Yes, there are those who have grave concerns (and voice those concerns) about Marian doctrine but Marian devotion is not practiced for lack of Biblical foundation. Not to differentiate from Catholicism.

But back to my original question: I still don’t understand the important placed on her being a virgin.
 
jaimeleglise said:
I believe that when Mary was very young she took a vow of virginity because she wanted to belong to God alone forever. This was not done to deny the holiness of marriage. Marriage is very sacred in both the Jewish and Christian religions. It was her destiny to take this higher path.
Click to expand...
So within the Catholic church, being a virgin is considered a higher/holier path to take?
 
jaimeleglise said:
I believe that when Mary was very young she took a vow of virginity because she wanted to belong to God alone forever. This was not done to deny the holiness of marriage. Marriage is very sacred in both the Jewish and Christian religions. It was her destiny to take this higher path.
Click to expand...
I think whether Protestant or Catholic, we can all agree that Mary was/is the most extraordinary, non-divine person on earth. So her being in a extraordinary relationship with Joseph isn’t far fetched at all.

I’ve heard that it wasn’t just Paul that went celibate after becoming Christian - other Church leaders were doing the same. They were still “husband of one wife”, the one they were already married to… but not uncommon for them to give up physical relations with their spouse, yet still support her and the family in every other aspect.
 
ClearWater said:
It is important, because if Mary was with the Holy Spirit and then with Joseph, she was fornicating with one. She can’t belong to both at the same time in intimacy. So, that’s impossible. catholicbible101.com/jesushadbrothers.htm It’s a heresy to suggest that Mary wasn’t a virgin or celibate, when she was. We must come to the defense of our Mother’s honor. We believe this because it’s the truth.
Click to expand...
Are you indicating the Holy Spirit had relations with Mary? I’m sure you are not but just clarifying.

And if Mary had sex with Joseph after Jesus’ birth, how is that fornication when they were married?
ClearWater said:
Further, apparitions of the Blessed Virgin Mary have said she was perpetually a virgin. In the apparition, which has been accepted by the Catholic Church as worthy of belief, when Our Lady appeared at Fatima, she asked for the First 5 Saturdays’ reparation for those
who blaspheme:
  1. Against her Immaculate Conception.
  2. Against her virginity.
  3. Against her divine maternity (refusing at the same time to acknowledge her as the Mother of men.
  4. …of those who publicly seek to sow in the hearts of children indifference or scorn or even hatred of this Immaculate Mother.
  5. …offenses of those who outrage her directly in her holy images.
Click to expand...
You can only blaspheme a god/the divine. Are you indicating the apparition of Mary was claiming to be divine?
 
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