Jesus was married?

Karen King, a professor at the Harvard Divinity School, announced the finding of what appears to be a 4th century papyrus fragment. It comes from a previously unknown Coptic gospel. The line that has everyone buzzing is, "Jesus said to them, my wife ..."



As Dr. King explains, the fragment does not prove that Jesus was married. It merely highlights the preoccupation of early Christians with the question of whether Jesus was married or not. As the oral tradition gave way to the written word, a few scattered references in non-canonical texts have raised the possibility.

There are plenty of questions about the authenticity of this fragment. It was in the hands of a private collector and there is no record of its discovery or history. A number of Coptic scholars are skeptical of the script and phrasing. Archeologists have questioned its sudden appearance and possible financial motives of the collector. Academic journals and museums refuse to make public artifacts without an established history and provenance.

Hany Sadak, the director general of the Coptic Museum in Cairo, said the fragment's existence was unknown to Egypt's antiquities authorities until news articles this week.

"I personally think, as a researcher, that the paper is not authentic because it was, if it had been in Egypt before, we would have known of it and we would have heard of it before it left Egypt," he said.

Even if the initial tests of its authenticity are verified, there remains a more important question. Does it really matter to the followers of Christ? Nothing changes if Jesus was married or not. Jesus told his followers to take their marital vows seriously and remain faithful to their spouse in thought as well as deed. That is the ultimate take-home message. He also said the bonds of marriage will have no meaning in the Kingdom of Heaven.

According to researchers at Harvard Divinity School, here is the significance of this tiny scrap of papyrus:

If authentic, this tiny, damaged fragment provides tantalizing glimpses into issues about family, discipleship, and marriage that concerned ancient Christians. The main topic of the dialogue between Jesus and his disciples is one that deeply concerned early Christians, who were asked to put loyalty to Jesus before their natal families, as the New Testament gospels show. Christians were talking about themselves as a family, with God the Father, his son Jesus, and members as brothers and sisters. Twice in the tiny fragment, Jesus speaks of his mother, and once of his wife—one of whom is identified as "Mary." The disciples discuss whether Mary is worthy, and Jesus states that "she can be my disciple." Although this is less clear, it may be that by portraying Jesus as married, the Gospel of Jesus's Wife conveys a positive theological message about marriage and sexuality, perhaps similar to the Gospel of Philip’s view that pure marriage can be an image of divine unity and creativity.

This gospel fragment provides a reason to reconsider what we thought we knew by asking what role claims about Jesus's marital status played historically in early Christian controversies over marriage, celibacy, and family. The Gospel of Jesus's Wife makes it possible to say with certainty that some early Christians believed that Jesus was married. This conclusion potentially has significant implications for the history of ancient Christian attitudes toward marriage, sexuality, and reproduction.

The crux of the matter is not marriage, but sexuality. Christians that think sexual acts are evil or unclean want to see Christ as celibate. Some even claim to be more Christ-like because they are celibate. Of course, not all who claim to abstain from sex are celibate or Christ-like.

We live in world of 7 billion people and suffering is everywhere you turn. The message of Christ is simple. We are to go out into that world and serve as beacons of God's love. In that context, it does not matter whether Jesus was married or not. Moreover. sexual ethics are simple in the context of marriage. What is much more complicated and difficult is to repair a world filled with violence, greed, despair, and need. That is what we are called to do as followers of Christ.

If Jesus was married, then I have faith that he treated his spouse with the utmost respect and love. If he was not married, then I have no doubt that he encouraged his followers to love their spouse and be thankful for the companionship. Those preoccupied with the celibacy of Christ have lost sight of the forest for the trees.