Scrap of papyrus makes explicit reference to Jesus having a wife
-
An ancient scrap of papyrus makes explicit reference to Jesus having a wife, according to a renowned expert in Christian history.
Harvard divinity professor Karen King unveiled the 4th-Century Coptic script at a conference in Rome.
She said researchers had identified the words "Jesus said to them, 'my wife'", which might refer to Mary Magdalene.
Christian tradition holds that Jesus did not marry - but Ms King said in early years it was subject to debate.
The provocative find could spark debate over celibacy and the role of women within Christianity, she added.
But the announcement sparked scepticism from some theologians.
Jim West, a professor and Baptist pastor in Tennessee, said "A statement on a papyrus fragment isn't proof of anything. It's nothing more than a statement 'in thin air', without substantial context."
Ms King said the fragment, written in ancient Egyptian Coptic, is the first known scripture in which Jesus is reported to cite his wife.
She said several experts agree the yellowish brown papyrus is authentic, but that "final judgment on the fragment depends on further examination by colleagues and further testing, especially of the chemical composition of the ink".
'Worthy disciple'
A video filmed by Harvard University reveals experts were "sceptical" before examining the ancient scrap of papyrus
Although the script is not proof of Jesus's marital status, Ms King said it revealed concerns early Christians faced with regards to family and marriage matters."This fragment suggests that some early Christians had a tradition that Jesus was married," she said.
"From the very beginning, Christians disagreed about whether it was better not to marry, but it was over a century after Jesus's death before they began appealing to Jesus's marital status to support their positions.
"What this shows is that there were early Christians for whom sexual union in marriage could be an imitation of God's creativity and generativity and it could be spiritually proper and appropriate."
According to Ms King's research team, the text also quotes Jesus as telling his followers that Mary Magdalene is worthy of being his disciple.
This, in turn, casts new doubt on the long-held belief that Jesus had no female disciples, and raises issues about Mary's biblical role as a sinner, they said.
Ms King presented the document at a six-day conference held at Rome's La Sapienza University and at the Augustinianum institute of the Pontifical Lateran University.
The faded papyrus is hardly bigger than a business card and has eight lines on one side, in black ink legible under a magnifying glass.
The private collector, who owns the fragment, has asked to remain anonymous because "he doesn't want to be hounded by people who want to buy this", Ms King said.
Full Story at
http//www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-19645273
-
Greetings and Peace, all group
I heard this story on NPR this morning. There is other circumstantial evidence that Jesus (peace upon ALL Prophets) was married.
Jesus was a rabbi. It was expected for rabbis to marry and have children.
In the Bible, Jesus turned water to wine at a wedding. It was the groom's duty to provide wine at a wedding. The groom was never identified in the Bible--perhaps it was Jesus's wedding?
The whole issue of a bloodline (corrupted as san graal/grail instead of sang r?al/royal blood) is moot without offspring.
The issue of Barabbas in the Bible may also shed some light--bar abba (son of the father) or bar rabbi (son of the rabbi)? Fun with word roots! The implication is that Barabbas is Jesus's son. This explains why Barabbas was released instead of Jesus--so the royal bloodline could continue.
What does it mean for the Deen? Not a thing!
ALLAH knows best.
peace
~Abdul-Hadi
-
Agreed, what difference does it make if he was married or not. Is marriage really that bad? Umm No. All these saints,priest and nuns trying to remain celibate, does not work. Nuns have gotten pregnant by priests (in Catholicism, I know for sure as a past catholic). Priest have gotten themselves in enough trouble with the alter boys and girls. I always found it amazing that during my divorce and marriage counselling I had to get the advise of an old man who was never married on how marriage works. My old priest once said, I was not always a priest. Okay so you had sex, but you have no idea what a family unit takes to make it in today's world.
Now if they found it in Aramaic, the tongue of Jesus (pbuh) then it might hold more weight with me.
I still love Jesus very much, don't care if he was married or not.
-
I once took 1338 to mean to all prophets and then I was suddenly stopped by Jesus.
-
Salaam brother,
Peace to you as well brother ) and thank you for the Welcome
What do you mean with this?
When I first started reading Qur'an I had a Yusuf Ali translation and it rendered the verse something like this
"We did send Apostles before thee, and appointed for them wives and children and it was never the part of an Apostle to bring a sign except as God permitted (or commanded). For each period is a Book (revealed)."Since it says God appointed wives and children to Apostles, I took it to mean "All" Apostles and Since "The Davinci Code" was getting a lot of attention at that time I was instantly hooked to that verse. Then somewhere in the commentary Yusuf Ali wrote that Jesus could be an exception
He writes in Page number 616 under note 1861
"All the Apostles of whom we have any detailed knowledge, except one, had wives and children. The exception is Jesus the Son of Mary. But his life was incomplete; his ministry barely lasted 3 years; his mission was limited;(...he continues)"Took a while to realize that God didn't say he granted "all" Apostles wives and children
-
Peace to you as well brother and thank you for the Welcome
When I first started reading Qur'an I had a Yusuf Ali translation and it rendered the verse something like this
"We did send Apostles before thee, and appointed for them wives and children and it was never the part of an Apostle to bring a sign except as God permitted (or commanded). For each period is a Book (revealed)."Since it says God appointed wives and children to Apostles, I took it to mean "All" Apostles and Since "The Davinci Code" was getting a lot of attention at that time I was instantly hooked to that verse. Then somewhere in the commentary Yusuf Ali wrote that Jesus could be an exception
He writes in Page number 616 under note 1861
"All the Apostles of whom we have any detailed knowledge, except one, had wives and children. The exception is Jesus the Son of Mary. But his life was incomplete; his ministry barely lasted 3 years; his mission was limited;(...he continues)"Took a while to realize that God didn't say he granted "all" Apostles wives and children
Salaam bro,
Ah I see. I have to admit that if I opened my eyes I would not have asked you anything.
I checked the verse you mentioned (the one I thought you mentioned) a couple of times but I really didn't understand.
Just now I realized I was checking the wrong verse
I was checking 339 Allah doth blot out or confirm what He pleaseth with Him is the Mother of the Book.
I really was clueless on your comment, it's already midnight here, time to sleep for me -
It's true that perhaps we cannot be sure whether all or just some had wives and children, by reading the quran. And perhaps it doesn't matter.
BUT, dear Yusuf Ali did not make Jesus an exception due to his understanding of the quran. He claimed him to be an exception due to the tradition surrounding Jesus... that is, tales from history, so his explanation/remark is just his own belief... and not really an explanation of the verse itself. It's an assumption and re-telling of a politically correct (or rather, religiously correct) idea. IMHO.
-
BUT, dear Yusuf Ali did not make Jesus an exception due to his understanding of the quran. He claimed him to be an exception due to the tradition surrounding Jesus... that is, tales from history, so his explanation/remark is just his own belief... and not really an explanation of the verse itself. It's an assumption and re-telling of a politically correct (or rather, religiously correct) idea. IMHO.
I know . When I first read the verse I thought about Jesus having a family because of all the "Da Vinci Code" hype. Then I read his commentary and I noticed that he too noticed about Jesus.