Holy Matrimony Controversy
In recent years, since the publication of Dan Brown's hit novel The Da Vinci Code, Mary Magdalene has thought to have been secretly married to the savior of the world, Jesus Christ. Did Jesus marry Mary? If he did, what does this mean? Is Christianity defunct or should doubt be cast upon the sacrificial death Christ endured upon the cross?
The claims made often within Brown's book are, surprisingly, not new to the arena of ideas. Each question posed previously can easily be answered, No. Did Jesus exchange vows with Mary? By studying the historical record and evidence (which there aren't any), it becomes quite reasonable to conclude that Jesus of Nazareth, in fact, did not marry any of his women followers. If Jesus was married would this somehow void Christianity of it's central message that Christ came to die a brutal death in exchange for our sins and then conquer death itself by resurrecting three days after, fulfilling his own prophecy, and promising new life? Was Calvary meaningless?
These questions have been answered vehemently by non-believers to be an astounding, Yes. But what if Jesus was married? Christ's divinity , being both fully God and man, would not be in question if he indeed married. The secrecy that Dan Brown tries to convey Jesus as using to cover up his alleged marriage seems quite implausible. Melinda Penner writes, "Marriage is a God-created and sanctioned relationship so there would have been nothing compromising if Jesus had married. So even the theoretical possibility doesn't challenge the Biblical portrait of Jesus and His mission. My guess is that Jesus didn't marry because He knew what His fate was, and that His earthly life would be short. A female-headed household at that time in history would have suffered in many ways from the loss of the father and husband, and it would have been cruel to knowingly do that to a family."
The claims made often within Brown's book are, surprisingly, not new to the arena of ideas. Each question posed previously can easily be answered, No. Did Jesus exchange vows with Mary? By studying the historical record and evidence (which there aren't any), it becomes quite reasonable to conclude that Jesus of Nazareth, in fact, did not marry any of his women followers. If Jesus was married would this somehow void Christianity of it's central message that Christ came to die a brutal death in exchange for our sins and then conquer death itself by resurrecting three days after, fulfilling his own prophecy, and promising new life? Was Calvary meaningless?
These questions have been answered vehemently by non-believers to be an astounding, Yes. But what if Jesus was married? Christ's divinity , being both fully God and man, would not be in question if he indeed married. The secrecy that Dan Brown tries to convey Jesus as using to cover up his alleged marriage seems quite implausible. Melinda Penner writes, "Marriage is a God-created and sanctioned relationship so there would have been nothing compromising if Jesus had married. So even the theoretical possibility doesn't challenge the Biblical portrait of Jesus and His mission. My guess is that Jesus didn't marry because He knew what His fate was, and that His earthly life would be short. A female-headed household at that time in history would have suffered in many ways from the loss of the father and husband, and it would have been cruel to knowingly do that to a family."
I agree completely with Melinda's analysis. When you are questioned about the easily falsifiable claim that Jesus was married, simply reply with, "So what?" Christ's divinity remains intact and strong even if he was married, but the lack of historical evidence leads the honest man to conclude that the only marriage related to Christ is with the Church.
Cross-Blogged at Apologia Christi
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