Mary (Mother of Jesus)

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Mary, wife of Joseph, was the mother of Jesus according to traditional Christian belief.

1 Religious belief
- 1.1 Roman Catholics
2 Speculation
3 Marian apparitions
4 Footnotes

[edit] Religious belief

Many Christians also believe that Mary was a virgin when she bore him. Somewhat more remarkably, the doctrine of the Perpetual Virginity of Mary, held by some churches, maintains that she continued to be a virgin after giving birth. This belief is held in spite of the well-known natural explanation how a woman can become pregnant. In Ancient Greece so many women claimed a god had fathered their child that one king decreed the death penalty for women who insulted a god by making that claim. It appears that in the Ancient World at Mary's time there were many cults worshiping a god and his mother.^[1]

[edit] Roman Catholics

Mary was traditionally conceived without the taint of original sin, a neat trick which which the rest of us unfortunately can't duplicate. This was despite original sin being accepted from the words of the Book of Genesis which was composed some 500 years earlier and must be true because Christians say so. Roman Catholics believe that Mary ascended bodily into heaven. Her body is there as well as her soul. The rest of the blessed will have to wait till judgment day to be reunited with their bodies or given new bodies. My child do not question. Believe and adore.

[edit] Speculation

Alternative possible explanations for the generation of Jesus include the hypothesis that Joseph did it or that Mary was raped by a Roman soldier called Pantera. There were any number of men in Judea at the time who were biologically capable of fathering a child.^[2]

[edit] Marian apparitions

A Marian apparition is an event in which visions or images on objects of Mary allegedly appear in modern times. Marian apparitions are a popular way of encouraging pilgrims and tourists to visit a place.