I am confused. The Catholic Church teaches that Mary was a virgin when Jesus was born and that she remained a virgin after the birth of Jesus and therefore Mary and Joseph never had other children together.  The Bible, however, talks about the brothers and sisters of Jesus. Please comment.

Miss Frieda Wunder

The answer is very simple, really. Some people point out that in the Bible that the word "brother" is used to mean a close relative. In Mark 6:3 James and Joses seem to be brothers of Jesus. In Matthew 27:56 they seem to be the sons of another Mary not the mother of Jesus. Papias, the bishop of Hieropolis and a disciple of St. John the Evangelist who was born in 60 AD says they were the sons of Mary, wife of Clopas, not Mary the blessed mother. John was a relative of the whole bunch so he would have known and reasonably would have explained it to Papias.

There is quite another possibility. The Protoevangelium of St. James is a document written at the least by 150 AD. It claims that Joseph had been married and had sons by a first wife. This document indicates that the perpetual virginity of Mary was believed by the first and second generation of Christians. I have encountered some people very upset by this idea who claim that the Catholic church teaches that Joseph also was perpetually a virgin. This is not a doctrine of Catholic faith. Don't worry about it. The point of the Protoevangelium is that the first Christians held that Mary was ever virgin.

The most telling point in favor of Mary having had only one child is that, from the cross, Jesus commends his mother to St. John, who was probably a relative of Jesus and his mother. If Mary had other children, she would have certainly gone to live with them, but she spent the rest of her life in the care of St. John, who probably became a second son to her.

Don't let the whole issue bother you, there are very good and biblical reasons to believe in the perpetual virginity of the Blessed Mother. I certainly believe in it. 

If some anti-Catholic sort quizzes you on the issue, ask them where the prohibition against alcohol is in the Bible, and where pray tell, do they get the silly ideas of faith alone and scripture alone? They are just not in the Bible!

Tell you what, on the day after the resurrection I'm going to the Blessed Mother's house on some heavenly street of gold and have her explain the whole thing. I bet she’s a great cook. You're welcome to join me.

Rev. Know-It-All