{"id":7663,"date":"2016-05-24T07:55:58","date_gmt":"2016-05-24T11:55:58","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/admin.patheos.com\/blogs\/davearmstrong\/?p=7663"},"modified":"2017-02-25T15:15:17","modified_gmt":"2017-02-25T19:15:17","slug":"biblical-arguments-for-marys-perpetual-virginity","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davearmstrong\/2016\/05\/biblical-arguments-for-marys-perpetual-virginity.html","title":{"rendered":"Biblical Arguments for Mary’s Perpetual Virginity"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

\"MaryAnnunciation6\"<\/p>\n

The Annunciation<\/em> (1490\/1495), by Jean Hey (fl. c. 1475 \u2013 c. 1505)<\/span> [public domain \/ Wikimedia Commons<\/a>]<\/p>\n

*****<\/p>\n

From my book, Proving the Catholic Faith is Biblical<\/a><\/em> (2015)<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

In a\u00a0previous article<\/a>, I wrote about the \u201cHebraic\u201d use of the Greek <\/span>adelphos<\/i><\/span>: as applying to cousins, fellow countrymen, and a wide array of uses beyond the meaning of \u201csibling.\u201d Yet it is unanimously translated as \u201cbrother\u201d in the King James Version (KJV): 246 times. The cognate <\/span>adelphe<\/i><\/span> is translated 24 times only as \u201csister\u201d. This is because it reflects Hebrew usage, translated into Greek. Briefly put, in Jesus\u2019 Hebrew culture (and Middle Eastern culture even today), cousins were called \u201cbrothers\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\n

Now, it\u2019s true that <\/span>sungenis<\/i><\/span> (Greek for \u201ccousin\u201d) and its cognate <\/span>sungenia<\/i><\/span> appear in the New Testament fifteen times (<\/span>sungenia<\/i><\/span>: Lk 1:61; Acts 7:3, 14; <\/span>sungenis<\/i><\/span>: Mk 6:4; Lk 1:36, 58; 2:44; 14:12; 21:16; Jn 18:26; Acts 10:24; Rom 9:3; 16:7, 11, 21). But they are usually translated <\/span>kinsmen<\/i><\/span>, <\/span>kinsfolk<\/i><\/span>, or <\/span>kindred<\/i><\/span> in KJV: that is, in a sense wider than <\/span>cousin<\/i><\/span>: often referring to the entire nation of Hebrews. Thus, the eminent Protestant linguist W. E. Vine, in his <\/span>Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words<\/i><\/span>, lists <\/span>sungenis<\/i><\/span> not only under \u201cCousin\u201d but also under \u201cKin, Kinsfolk, Kinsman, Kinswoman.\u201d <\/span>, lists it not only under \u201cCousin\u201d but also under \u201cKin, Kinsfolk, Kinsman, Kinswoman.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

In all but two of these occurrences, the authors were either Luke or Paul. Luke was a Greek Gentile. Paul, though Jewish, was raised in the very cosmopolitan, culturally Greek town of Tarsus. But even so, both still clearly used <\/span>adelphos <\/i><\/span>many times with the meaning of non-sibling (Lk 10:29; Acts 3:17; 7:23-26; Rom 1:7, 13; 9:3; 1 Thess 1:4). They understood what all these words meant, yet they continued to use <\/span>adelphos<\/i><\/span> even in those instances that had a non-sibling application.<\/span><\/p>\n

Strikingly, it looks like <\/span>every<\/i><\/span> time St. Paul uses <\/span>adelphos<\/i><\/span> (unless I missed one or two), he means it as something other than blood brother or sibling. He uses the word or related cognates no less than 138 times in this way. Yet we often hear about Galatians 1:19: \u201cJames the Lord\u2019s brother.\u201d 137 other times, Paul means non-sibling, yet amazingly enough, here he <\/span>must<\/i><\/span> mean sibling, because (so we are told) he uses the word <\/span>adelphos<\/i><\/span>? That doesn\u2019t make any sense. <\/span><\/p>\n

Some folks think it is a compelling argument that <\/span>sungenis<\/i><\/span> isn\u2019t used to describe the brothers of Jesus. But they need to examine Mark 6:4 (RSV), where <\/span>sungenis<\/i><\/span> appears: <\/span><\/p>\n

\n

And Jesus said to them, \u201cA prophet is not without honor, except in his own country, and among his own <\/span>kin<\/i><\/span>, and in his own house.\u201d (cf. Jn 7:5: \u201cFor even his brothers did not believe in him\u201d) <\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

What is the context? Let\u2019s look at the preceding verse, where the people in \u201chis own country\u201d (6:1) exclaimed: <\/span><\/p>\n

\n

\u201cIs 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?\u201d And they took offense at him. <\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

It can plausibly be argued, then, that Jesus\u2019 reference to <\/span>kin<\/i><\/span> (<\/span>sungenis<\/i><\/span>) refers (at least in part) back to this mention of His \u201cbrothers\u201d and \u201csisters\u201d: His relatives. Since we know that <\/span>sungenis<\/i><\/span> means cousins or more distant relatives, that would be an indication of the status of those called Jesus\u2019 \u201cbrothers\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\n

Jude is called the Lord\u2019s \u201cbrother\u201d in Matthew 13:55 and Mark 6:3. If this is the same Jude who wrote the epistle bearing that name (as many think), he calls himself \u201ca servant of Jesus Christ and brother of James\u201d (Jude 1:1). Now, suppose for a moment that he <\/span>was<\/i><\/span> Jesus\u2019 blood brother. In that case, he refrains from referring to himself as the Lord\u2019s own sibling (while we are told that such a phraseology occurs several times in the New Testament, referring to a sibling relationship) and chooses instead to identify himself as <\/span>James<\/i><\/span>\u2018 brother. <\/span><\/p>\n

This is far too strange and implausible to believe. Moreover, James also refrains from calling himself Jesus\u2019 brother, in his epistle (James 1:1: \u201c<\/span>servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ\u201d<\/span>): even though St. Paul calls him \u201cthe Lord\u2019s brother\u201d (Gal 1:19: dealt with above).<\/span><\/p>\n

It\u2019s true that Scripture doesn\u2019t come right out and explicitly state that Mary was a perpetual virgin. But nothing in Scripture <\/span>contradicts<\/i><\/span> that notion, and (to say the same thing another way) nothing in the perpetual virginity doctrine contradicts Scripture. Moreover, no Scripture can be produced that absolutely, undeniably, compellingly defeats the perpetual virginity of Mary. <\/span><\/p>\n

The alleged disproofs utterly fail in their purpose. The attempted linguistic argument against Mary\u2019s perpetual virginity from the mere use of the word \u201cbrothers\u201d in English translations (and from <\/span>sungenis<\/i><\/span>) falls flat at every turn, as we have seen.<\/span><\/p>\n

If there is any purely \u201chuman\u201d tradition here, then, it is the <\/span>denial<\/i><\/span> of the perpetual virginity of Mary, since it originated (mostly) some 1700 years after the initial apostolic deposit: just as all heresies are much later corruptions. The earliest Church fathers know of no such thing. To a person, they all testify that Mary was perpetually a virgin, and indeed, thought that this protected the doctrine of the Incarnation, as a miraculous birth from a mother who was a virgin before, during and <\/span>after<\/i><\/span> the birth.<\/span><\/p>\n

*****<\/p>\n

Meta Description: There are several biblical indications (not very well-known and involving Greek words) that Mary was a perpetual virgin.<\/p>\n

Meta Keywords:\u00a0perpetual virginity of Mary, Mariology, Marian doctrine, Catholic Mariology, Reformation Mariology, Lutheran Mariology, Calvin\u2019s Mariology, Calvinist Mariology, Luther\u2019s Mariology, Anglican Mariology<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Annunciation (1490\/1495), by Jean Hey (fl. c. 1475 \u2013 c. 1505) [public domain \/ Wikimedia Commons] ***** From my book, Proving the Catholic Faith is Biblical (2015) *** In a\u00a0previous article, I wrote about the \u201cHebraic\u201d use of the Greek adelphos: as applying to cousins, fellow countrymen, and a wide array of uses beyond 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Chesterton\\\" (Saint Benedict Press \/ TAN Books: 2009). \\\"100 Biblical Arguments Against Sola Scriptura\\\" was published by Catholic Answers in May 2012. His \\\"Quotable Wesley\\\" compilation was published by (Protestant \/ Wesleyan publisher) Beacon Hill Press in April 2014. Several of his 49 books are bestsellers in their field. Dave maintains a popular personal Facebook page, a Facebook author page, and has a Twitter account as well. He offers almost all of his books in e-book form on his own Biblical Catholicism site (http:\/\/biblicalcatholicism.com\/), at a permanent deep discount: only $2.99 for ePub, mobi, and AZW, and $1.99 for PDF. His writing has been enthusiastically endorsed or recommended by many leading Catholic apologists, authors, and priests, including Dr. Scott Hahn, Fr. Peter M. J. Stravinskas, Marcus Grodi, Patrick Madrid, Steve Ray, Tim Staples, Devin Rose, Mike Aquilina, Al Kresta, Karl Keating, Fr. Dwight Longenecker, Brandon Vogt, Marcellino D'Ambrosio, and Fr. John A. Hardon, S. J. Dave has been happily married to his wife Judy since October 1984. 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Formerly a campus missionary, as a Protestant, Dave was received into the Catholic Church in February 1991, by the late, well-known catechist and theologian, Fr. John A. Hardon, S. J. Dave\u2019s articles have appeared in many influential Catholic periodicals, including \"This Rock\" (now called \"Catholic Answers Magazine\"), \"Envoy Magazine\" (Patrick Madrid), \"The Catholic Answer,\" \"The Coming Home Journal,\" \"Gilbert Magazine\" (American Chesterton Society), and \"The Latin Mass.\" He also writes a featured column for every issue of \"The Michigan Catholic\": published by the archdiocese of Detroit, and was editor for most of the apologetics tracts published by the St. Paul Street Evangelization apostolate. Dave\u2019s apologetics and writing apostolate was the subject of a feature article in the May 2002 issue of \"Envoy Magazine.\" He served as the staff moderator at the Internet discussion forum for The Coming Home Network, from 2007-2010. Dave has been interviewed on many nationally syndicated Catholic radio shows, including \"Catholic Answers Live\" (twice), \"Faith and Family Live\" (Steve Wood), \"Kresta in the Afternoon,\" \"Son Rise Morning Show,\" \"Catholic Connection\" (Teresa Tomeo), and \"The Catholics Next Door.\" His large and popular website, \"Biblical Evidence for Catholicism,\" was online from March 1997 to March 2007, and received the 1998 Catholic Website of the Year award from \"Envoy Magazine.\" His blog of the same name (now transferred to Patheos), begun in February 2004, contains more than 1,500 papers, at least 500 debates or dialogues, and over 50 distinct \"index\" web pages. Unsolicited correspondence has indicated many hundreds of conversions (or returns) to the Catholic faith as a result, by God's grace, of these writings. Dave's conversion story was published in the bestselling book \"Surprised by Truth\" (edited by Patrick Madrid; San Diego: Basilica Press, 1994). Sophia Institute Press has published six of his books: \"A Biblical Defense of Catholicism\" (Foreword by Fr. John A. Hardon, S. J., 1996 \/ 2003), \"The Catholic Verses\" (2004), \"The One-Minute Apologist\" (2007), \"Bible Proofs for Catholic Truths\" (2009), \"The Quotable Newman\" (editor: 2012), and \"Proving the Catholic Faith is Biblical\" (2015). He is co-author (with Dr. Paul Thigpen) of the inserts for \"The New Catholic Answer Bible\" (Our Sunday Visitor: 2005), and editor for \"The Wisdom of Mr. Chesterton: The Very Best Quotes, Quips, and Cracks from the Pen of G. K. Chesterton\" (Saint Benedict Press \/ TAN Books: 2009). \"100 Biblical Arguments Against Sola Scriptura\" was published by Catholic Answers in May 2012. His \"Quotable Wesley\" compilation was published by (Protestant \/ Wesleyan publisher) Beacon Hill Press in April 2014. Several of his 49 books are bestsellers in their field. Dave maintains a popular personal Facebook page, a Facebook author page, and has a Twitter account as well. He offers almost all of his books in e-book form on his own Biblical Catholicism site (http:\/\/biblicalcatholicism.com\/), at a permanent deep discount: only $2.99 for ePub, mobi, and AZW, and $1.99 for PDF. His writing has been enthusiastically endorsed or recommended by many leading Catholic apologists, authors, and priests, including Dr. Scott Hahn, Fr. Peter M. J. Stravinskas, Marcus Grodi, Patrick Madrid, Steve Ray, Tim Staples, Devin Rose, Mike Aquilina, Al Kresta, Karl Keating, Fr. Dwight Longenecker, Brandon Vogt, Marcellino D'Ambrosio, and Fr. John A. Hardon, S. J. Dave has been happily married to his wife Judy since October 1984. They have three sons and a daughter, and reside in southeast Michigan (metro Detroit).","sameAs":["https:\/\/biblicalcatholicism.com\/","https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/dave.armstrong.798","https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/@LuxVeritatisApologetics"],"url":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davearmstrong\/author\/davearmstrong"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davearmstrong\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7663","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davearmstrong\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davearmstrong\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davearmstrong\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2331"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davearmstrong\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7663"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davearmstrong\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7663\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davearmstrong\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/7664"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davearmstrong\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7663"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davearmstrong\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7663"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davearmstrong\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7663"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}