A biblical scholar discusses the possibility of Jesus having a wife and children, exploring historical evidence and interpretations.
The question of whether Jesus had a wife and children is a topic that has intrigued many people over the years.
This idea often appears in books, movies, and discussions, leading to a mix of curiosity and speculation.
However, most scholars agree that there is no solid evidence to support these claims.
The origins of debate
The discussion about Jesus having a family gained significant attention with the publication of the book The Lost Gospel in 2014.
This book was written by journalist Simcha Jacobovici and historian Barrie Wilson.
It claimed to uncover hidden truths about Jesus’s life based on an ancient manuscript.
They argued that this manuscript had been in the British Museum.
It contained evidence of Jesus’s marriage to Mary Magdalene and their children.
The authors suggested that the manuscript revealed new insights into Jesus’s life before his crucifixion.
They claimed that the story of a character named Joseph and his wife Aseneth was actually a disguised account of Jesus and Mary Magdalene.
According to their interpretation, the couple had two sons named Ephraim and Manasseh.
Previous claims and literary influence
This is not the first time such claims have been made.
The idea that Jesus was married was a central theme in the popular novel The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown.
The narrative in this book claims that Mary Magdalene married Jesus and that secret societies protected their descendants.
In 2012, another claim arose when a fragment of a fourth-century text surfaced, which included the phrase “Jesus said to them, ‘My wife…’”
This fragment caught public attention but was later deemed a forgery by scholars
Did Jesus have a wife and children?
Most scholars reject claims of Jesus’s marriage.
Despite these various claims, most biblical scholars argue that there is no credible evidence to support the notion that Jesus had a wife or children.
They emphasize that the texts and manuscripts that exist do not provide any conclusive proof of Jesus’s marital status.
Jonathon Wright, a scholar at Oxford University, has spoken out about these claims.
He pointed out that early Christians often viewed important figures in the Old Testament as types or foreshadowings of Jesus.
He explained that people often interpret the Old Testament story of Joseph without directly connecting it to Jesus’s life.
Thus, the claim that the story of Joseph is about Jesus lacks support in the existing texts.
“For early Christians, their Bible was the same as that of Jews.
People came to see important Old Testament figures as types of Jesus.
Christians saw in a popular figure like Joseph some elements of Jesus’ ministry,” Jonathon Wright said.
“The book’s authors claim the story is about Jesus all along, but there is no evidence for this in the text, or any of the 90 or more manuscripts still existing today – indeed in the Armenian tradition it is often in the Old Testament.
The story was probably often copied because it was not controversial and because Christian beliefs about repentance and conversion were portrayed in a Jewish story,” added Wright.
Some claim that early leaders intentionally censored Jesus’s story.
The Lost Gospel authors claimed early Christian leaders censored Jesus’ story.
They suggested that someone intentionally removed missing sections in the manuscript to hide this controversial history.
However, many scholars reject this idea.
They believe that wear, not deliberate concealment, caused the missing pages.
Wright stated, “We can strongly doubt this! It is much more likely that the page was lost through wear.”
He noted that other manuscripts from the same period had missing pages.
He also said the message of the text was clear and not controversial at the time.