Shots Across The Bow

Of course they would expel the child. The church knows that Mary was Jesus' wife. They know she was a high priestess. Therefore the church can do anything they wish since they have blinded the world from the truth. Consequently the child can be expelled for a nonsensical reason.

Check your facts. Mary Magdelene was not a prostitute. This is an old myth, based on no facts from the Bible.

Check your facts. Mary Magdelene was not a prostitute. This is an old myth, based on no facts from the Bible.

I would have to agree with Sara on this one. Mary Magdelene is mentioned numerous times in the New Testament and nowhere is she named as a prostitute. I can't find any scripture to support it, and I've looked countless times.

I'm looking for reference material for a paper I'm writing on Mary Magdelene for a religion class in Nursing school. I'm looking for who she was, her history, relationships, ets. Any suggestions?
please email me at kjtaggart@hotmail.com.
thanks, kelly

I'm looking for reference material for a paper I'm writing on Mary Magdelene for a religion class in Nursing school. I'm looking for who she was, her history, relationships, ets. Any suggestions?
please email me at kjtaggart@hotmail.com.
thanks, kelly

kelly,

Check out the new dan brown book "the da vince code" for information about mary magdelene....while the storyline of the book is fictionl there are many interesting points that are factual

kelly,

Check out the new dan brown book "the da vinci code" for information about mary magdelene....while the storyline of the book is fictionl there are many interesting points that are factual

While we may never know for sure, Mary M:
1. Was apparently no prostitutes and may have, in fact, been at least the social equal of Jesus.
2. MAY very well have been the wife of Jesus, as Jesus (as a practicing Jew)would have most certainly have NOT remained unmarried. If he had been unmarried, this would certainly have been a subject of much comment in the new testament.
3. The male-centric nature of the church at the time of Constantine dictated that Mary be relegated to a most secondary position. To have a "divine jesus" who was lustful, married and otherwise a generally secular creature [in addition to being one mean preacher] was not "convenient" for the early Roman church. So, "she got trashed."
4. Lastly, remember that Jesus was not "deemed" to be divine until the council of Naecea, in the 4th century. All "good christians" are operating under a massive misunderstanding and assumption. Imagine! As an ex-catholic myself, I must say I am very bemused. I'm finding more to believe in with Steven Hawking and String Theory!
5. See the many websites that post the texts (sometimes in multi-translations) of ALL the gospels--including that of Mary M. She was (as Peter states) "Loved by Jesus most amongst all."
Hope this helps.

I few little lies that the churches need to keep in place that will maintain the "faith".
The Holy Grail is not a cup, chalise ar bowl. It is a "Vessel" that holds the blood of jesus. Mary Magdalene was not a prostitute, and was infact the defacto wife of Jesus. Take a look at the paintings of the last supper there is no chalice. If the holy grail was only a cup It would not be hunted for so strongly by the churches (or more strongly than any other item from this time ie the cross, nails crown of thorns, other items from the last supper). The HOly Grail if ever found by a christian church would never be revieled or would be destroyed to hide its truth. The bible unfortunatly was written and rewriten over and over again by "MAN" untill we have todays product, a very neat interpretation of what the faiths would like you to believe. Through Mary Magdelene jesus bore a blood line, thats right a heir and unfortunatly for the chuches this would prove that he was not devine and was but a flesh and blood "man". Therefore the holy grail (vessel) was at the last supper but was a person seated at the table not a cup to drink from. Mary magdelene was the "vessel" for jesus' blood and the truth of his mortality. "Destroy the women, Destroy the truth and the faith lives on". Hence she was labeled a prostitute by the chuches to protect the faith. Mary Magdalene is the holy grail.

Such a shame the christian churches have to hide behind lies and deception to save from being exposed. PS I am an ex-catholic that served as an alter boy and was asked to leave the local church when my incesant questioning of the bibles double talk could not be answered by my church father.

I just read the DaVinci Code too, and although it certainly raises some interesting questions, I don't think Dan Brown--or any of the others who have researched and written about Mary Magdelene--claims to have all the answers--and neither do any of us. Was the Bible twisted to fit the beliefs of the early Catholic Church? Yes. Does that mean that none of it is true? No. I agree with those who point out that there is no evidence at all that Mary Magdelene was a prostitute. It makes a good story, but it just isn't true. Was she married to Jesus? We don't have any evidence of that either that I know of, although if Jesus did marry (and there is no reason to think he wouldn't have), it was probably to Mary Magdalene. Wouldn't it make sense that his wife would be the first one to whom he would show himself after the resurrection? And, yes, I have no problem believing in a divine Jesus, who could pull off the atonement and the resurrection and still be married. He was after all the son of a woman (and therefore mortal) as well as the son of God (and therefore immortal). I don't know what the holy grail is, although the theory about it being Mary Magdelene certainly makes sense to me. But the lack of a chalice (cup) in the drawing of the last supper is by no means proof that it couldn't have been a cup. The drawing was, after all, Leonardo DaVinci's interpretation of that event, not a photograph. We don't know what--or who all--was there. It actually makes more sense that there was one cup from which they all drank rather than individual glasses, just given the tradition of the times. But for crusades to have been launched in search of a cup? That really doesn't make a lot of sense. It's all very fascinating--and I hope we someday learn the truth--but it shouldn't take away from the fact that Jesus was who he said he was and that his life and his death were the most significant events of this world--and perhaps of eternity.

there are just a couple of things that this line of thought is missing. the first is that while we have nothing to disprove Mary being Jesus' wife, we have nothing to prove it either. I like the idea myself, but I think that given the lack of evidence in either direction, the best you can do is hope that God got the full treatment, as it were.
The second thing is that Christ was divine before Nicea, that's an unfortunate piece of errata in the D. Code. The Council of Nicea met for several reasons, and its primary reason for meeting was to nail down what it meant to be a Christian. The belief in Jesus' divinity was older than the crucifixion. You cannot read the letters of Paul or the four (plus) Gospels and tell me that they didn't believe in the divinity of Christ and remain honest. The fact of the matter is that human beings don't rise three days after having been crucified. And after Jesus died people started seeing the dude walking around. Jesus is divine--fully God. But what the Da Vinvi Code missed is that Christ was ALSO (not only) fully human, as well. The humanity of Jesus connects him to us. The divinity of Jesus connects him and us to God. But that divinity is unique to Jesus, and even if he had kids that divinity would not have been passed on. I hope that Jesus had the opportunity to be married. I know the wonderful things that it's bought to my life. The fact is, we just cannot know.
As for the Bible having been rewritten over and over, everything is reworked here and there, but the neat thing about the Bible is that it is so surprisingly similar to the oldest manuscripts that we have, and that there are translators who are constantly working for a more accurate translation based on the oldest possible material. People have this odd idea that if history caught up with Christianity then Christianity would fall, but Christianity is historical. We know the symbols that are in our worship and the days that are on our calendar. Hell, Martin Luther believed that Jesus and Mary were married, but he still believed.
Sorry for the rant. The point is that the most important thing about Jesus is that he is the Lamb of God who has taken away the sin of the world on the cross and by being raised. Everything else is just extra

Stop getting your religion from novels.

TO JIM THE READER:Don't you get your religion from a novel? The greatest story ever sold? A widely read tome on mythology(yes all religions are mythology) and male oriented history with stories plagiarized from other beliefs;i.e. the flood, samson, virgin birth, rising from the dead, etc. sometimes altered and making one to believe that these stories are original. Yes, if jesus was a real person, he sure was a good, caring and devout individual who espoused all the good possible in humankind, but he was not the only one who did this. Sometimes I think his P.R. crew just went a little overboard to push their product. And very selectively at that.

If jesus and Mary M. did get married and had kids---So What--- after all, he was human and did adhere to all the laws and customs of his time and apparently this did not interfere with his ministry. I am not an enthusiast of this particular belief,but anyone out there who does, this should have no effect on your beliefs; if it does, maybe you should reexamine your inner self and maybe find something that more suits what you truely would like to believe. His life as a human should have no effect on what he was trying to convey to you through his teachings; whether he actually did and said all the things attributed to him or not. After all, remember, the (chosen) gospels were written thirty are more years after his supposed death, and nothing against the writers, but human memory is not perfect and ,yes, history is written by the winners and is always written in the best light, true or false, to promote the best characteristics of the subject.

Why all the discussion on the D. Code? While an interesting novel, it is still found in the fiction section...not the history section. Check out former atheist Lee Stobel's "A Case for Christ" for some interesting investigative facts by a reporter on the evidence regarding Jesus.

This is very interesting to me. I am Catholic and believe deeply in my FAITH. My husband bought the Da Vinci Codes for me this CHRISTmas and I have not put it down. I have always been especially drawn to the Virgin Mary AND Mary Magdelene. What I get from the book the most (and we all get something different apparently) is that women are to be respected and revered. I have read all of you mention that Jesus was Divine (and He was/is), but really, what about His Mother? Without Her - He would not have existed and what a shame that would have been. God Bless the Fruit of Thy Womb....Thank God for women! It just reminds me that I should continue on my journey of faith and keep in mind how we were created. I guess we will all receive the truth when the time comes...

p.s. A Case for Christ is ALSO an awesome book as well as Home Sweet Rome.

I have been reading all your messages, i am an opened minded person. Not so much a religious person more of a spiritual person. but i must admit i have read this D.V code, it interested me..it shocked me at how the book highlighted something i have always thought. Where are all the women bishops, priests and rabbais? It seems we have been living in a mans world for 2,000 years. why years later after jesus' death are we only now wondering why the balance of women and men could be slightly off..?
I say Jesus was married (it seemed unlikely that a prominent Hebrew man from that time was unmarried), whether he was divine, mortal, god only knows!! What i do understand now is that religion can seem almost political...whenever there is/was a war of beliefs whoever wins writes the history. So the "loser" is banished. So we can speculate all we want. But how about living today and not photo-copying your faiths from novels, or historical documents, fascinating as it may be. Did you know the authors personally? Where did they get their information from? Where was the Bibles source? How does anyone know for sure. Protect the ones who are being brainwashed. The only thing you can rely on is your inner voice, love and truth as you know it...and always appreciate that "women give life"

I was raised Catholic and bolted the church around the time of my confirmation. Not by coincidence, but because that was when I started really reading about religion - not just the church readers (never the bible) that catholic school fed us. I just could not reconcile myself to the changes in doctrine that the church had made over the millenia. But now that I'm reading about Mary Magdalene, I am profoundly struck by how consistent with our idea of Jesus' teachings it is that Jesus would have stood for the premise that Mary should be treated as an equal with the apostles. After all, doesn't Christianity supposedly preach equality? How can it be that Christ stood for equality of all people except on a gender basis? Seeing Mary as an apostle and Christ's wife puts so much in focus for me and honestly gives me a faith I can believe in, as well as a much greater appreciation for the love and bravery of Christ.

I too read the DV code. Although it was riveting, I could not understand the assumption that discovering Jesus had children would disprove his divinity; the fallacy that his fathering a child would expel his divity, like a seeress loosing her powers if she has sex. He was sent here to experience life and to show how to live it. Certainly he would want to experience the joy and pain and marriage and fatherhood. Too bad he didn't last long enough to have more than one in the back seat of a wagon on a long vacation. That would have been an interesting sermon.

Jesus was/is fully human and fully God and fully the Holy Spirit, all at the same time, so why is fathering a child mutually exclusive to his divinity, especially when he is actually his own father. Wasn't the virgin Mary made pregnant by the Holy Spirit?. Whooo, this is starting to sound like an Arkansas family reunion. Better end it here.

I was raised Catholic, but I am also a woman and a feminist. Which makes believing every detail of my faith very hard for me. I really don't want to put my faith into a religion that excludes me, and makes me assume that my body is unclean and inherently evil, as it is not worthy to touch a "man of god" (priest). The very idea seems to me to be another system of domination, like racism and heterosexism. I do believe in Jesus, he said some beautiful things that i base my life around. Sadly while in church i only see glimpses of that beauty. Whether Jesus was married or not is not the issue. Jesus loved people. He loved the outcasts of society. Too bad his message has been twisted to create a breading ground for hate of women and homosexuals. Perhaps we should stop obsessing over the details and focus our energies on doing as Jesus did, to care for those who are left out, (even animals,and plantlife their of God too dont forget) instead of working so hard to exclude people and make them ashamed of what God has made them. No one should ever have to feel that way.

I was raised Catholic, but I am also a woman and a feminist. Which makes believing every detail of my faith very hard for me. I really don't want to put my faith into a religion that excludes me, and makes me assume that my body is unclean and inherently evil, as it is not worthy to touch a "man of god" (priest). The very idea seems to me to be another system of domination, like racism and heterosexism. I do believe in Jesus, he said some beautiful things that i base my life around. Sadly while in church i only see glimpses of that beauty. Whether Jesus was married or not is not the issue. Jesus loved people. He loved the outcasts of society. Too bad his message has been twisted to create a breading ground for hate of women and homosexuals. Perhaps we should stop obsessing over the details and focus our energies on doing as Jesus did, to care for those who are left out, (even animals,and plantlife their of God too dont forget) instead of working so hard to exclude people and make them ashamed of what God has made them. No one should ever have to feel that way.

I was raised Catholic, but I am also a woman and a feminist. Which makes believing every detail of my faith very hard for me. I really don't want to put my faith into a religion that excludes me, and makes me assume that my body is unclean and inherently evil, as it is not worthy to touch a "man of god" (priest). The very idea seems to me to be another system of domination, like racism and heterosexism. I do believe in Jesus, he said some beautiful things that i base my life around. Sadly while in church i only see glimpses of that beauty. Whether Jesus was married or not is not the issue. Jesus loved people. He loved the outcasts of society. Too bad his message has been twisted to create a breading ground for hate of women and homosexuals. Perhaps we should stop obsessing over the details and focus our energies on doing as Jesus did, to care for those who are left out, (even animals,and plantlife their of God too dont forget) instead of working so hard to exclude people and make them ashamed of what God has made them. No one should ever have to feel that way.

I hope the joy I get as a father watching my children grow and hunger for wisdom to become better people, is just an inkling of what God experiences as His children continue the quest to know Him better. So many questions not fully answered, so many things still in the shadows. "Seek (and keep seeking) and you shall find, knock (and keep knocking) and the door will be opened to you"
I agree there is much about Jesus we do not know, yet there is enough documented evidence to support He is who He says He is. That still leaves us with choices to make in our lives, as we continue to search.

As a woman and a member of the Catholic Church, I find it disturbing and disheartening when I see how the Catholic Church has portrayed and continues to portray women. In the Bible, there were 2 Mary's mentioned. Mary Magdalene was mentioned just above the Mary that was the sinner and who wiped the feet of Jesus. This is where the confusion and deliberate attempt by the early church to discredit the importance of Mary Magdalene occured. Because so many people realized the close relationship between Jesus and Mary Magdalene and the high esteem that he placed on her, they had to come up with this lie. In those days, women were considered less than horses in terms of importance, so if a WOMAN was this close to Jesus, that could not be tolerated. Some historians even believe that St. Peter himself could not tolerate this closeness. Also, history seems to suggest that Mary Magdalene was a wealthy land owner.
The Church, thankfully, corrected this terrible defamation of her by removing the words Penitent and Sinner, although I went to one site before this that gives the lives of the saints and it still refers to her as such.
I find it ironic and telling that the Pope says that women can't be priests because there were no women at the Last Supper. I highly doubt that Mary wasn't there. But in terms of importance, what event was more important? The Last Supper or the Resurrection? I would say the latter by all means. And where were these beloved Men when Jesus needed them the most---His trial, His walk to Golgotha, His Crucifixion and His Resurrection? They were all in hiding. Yet both his Mother Mary and His disciple MARY stayed with him throughout it all. If that isn't a testament to her being a true disciple and close to Jesus, then what does?

I found the Da Vinci Code profoundly interesting. I guess I'm what people would call a Sunday-Christian - which would be showing faith only on Sundays, when we go to church. It's been like that for a while now. Don't get me wrong, I still believe in the Lord and His Son and everything in between. This book, however, points out some facts that are very hard to ignore and that I find appealing. I found myself fervently wishing that the words written in relation to Christ and Mary were true. If there really are any descendents of that couple, I wonder what they would be like?

In response to the original post (we seem to have a knack for going off topic)...
I have no doubt the school would expel her simply because its "such a wrong thing to do". However, I must say that the school is teaching the daughter, not the mother. If the mother strips for a living, who are they to judge her, never mind the daughter? Are they so high and mighty? I would think not. Going back to a feminist point of view, it'd be interesting to see what they would do if a father was a stripper.

Why punish the daughter for what the mother has done.Does that mean that the Catholic church is going to go out and punish all the children of murders or drug dealers? They need to think about some of the things they have done themnselves.

the school had no right to expel the child for the mother's bad decisions. if they thought that it was such a bad example, then they should have kept the child so that she could have a good example.

In 1968 I went to Catholic school with a 13 year old girl who's mother was also a "stripper". I look back now and am appalled at the things we (children, also) said and did to her because of her mother's actions. In 1971 she took her own life...I can't help but think about this in reading the original post.

I find it interesting that so much is assumed from the da vinci painting. He was a prankster, a homosextual, and a artist. Did he believe in the power of God? Who's to say what stuff he may have omitted or added. I think the book tells it all by having it end in the pyamid with 666 glass panes. No true revelations there....

I was amused about the comment that stated that "the Davinci Code" was found in the fiction section and not the history section. I am a student of history, and have found that while there is much evidence out there that doesn't support the idea of Mary Magdeline and Jesus being married, there's also alot of evidence that does. Keep in mind...the first hard lesson learned by real historians, historians who search for the truth, not to strengthen their agendas: History is written by the winners. Always by the winners. Even if some history from a different perspective survives, it's always outweighed in consistancy and volume by the winner's version. If a sect such as the catholic church was in power for as long as it was, of course it could manipulate history, even "secular" history, to promote it's agenda. Any questions, don't hesitate to ask...I've done much studying on the things mentioned in Brown's book.

I too have read and been mesmerized by the
Davince Code. However, there is no proof for or
against the "Mary Magdelene" as Christ's wife
dilema. Why coulnd't "Mary the Mother of Christ"
have been present at the Last Supper??? Also, if
Buddah, Krisnah, and others could be celebant, why couldn't Jesus as well be??????

i do have to say that while reading the da vinci code many questions were answered for me. being only 17 i am at that time in my life where i have many questions about life and religion, while i am in no way brainwashed by Mr. Brown's book it does verify some theories i myself have harbored the past few years. for one the bible is not a concrete "fax from God" so to follow everything it says and belive everything it claims would be niave however i appreciate the historical and factual based text, it has become my belief that people have to experience an ary of religious theories and beliefs before thay can truly become a whole person, who has found peace within themselves and peace with all of mankind. if any of you out there could recommend any good books (fiction or non) about such topica and theories i would really appreicate you emailing them to me, hayleyarmstrong@hotmail.com

As for the "stop getting your religion from novels" comment from before, I believe that it is important to understand that while the DVC is just a ficiton novel, much of it is at least based in fact. I think that as long as readers don't take everything Dan Brown says as gospel, but instead read the book for enjoyment, while noting interesting tidbits that would benefit from further personal research, then this book is immensely important. It at least gets a much underlooked topic into the minds of even casual readers, sparking real interest in a topic that deserves attention: the role of women in church, the bible, and society.

wow...a whole bunch of conflicting messages...yikes!!!!....it is hard to know what to beleive ..or whom to beleive...i, personally beleive..that it is the Holy Ghost you need to ask for these answers and enlightenment...speculating on our own opinions is not the answer..it says in the Word that only God knows everything...so why not ask Him?

Why do so many of you believe that any object has spiritual significance? This world and the things of it are not real. What is real is spiritual! Many of you are so caught up in details that you "can't see the forest for the trees!" You are so busy arguing over conjectures that you are missing the big message. Even in our society, most people marry (and remarry), but there are some who do not, and some of those who choose to be celibate. Jesus had a higher view of life, a more spiritual view. It should not be shocking to think he would be celibate. He may have loved Mary Magdelelne very much. There are men and women who respect and love each other deeply without having a sexual relationship. That realtionship might even be more powerful than one with a sexual union. I believe the Word of God. Jesus did not come to undo any of it but to fulfill it, to clarify it. God didn't change anything He had inspired previously; He clarified it! There is no buffet Christianity; you either believe it all or you don't believe it at all. Instead of reading all of these books that contain conjectures, read the actual BIBLE!

I also read the Da Vinci Code, and became very interested in the subject. So I decided to do a little research, and ended up here. I am only 17 and have had the Bible shoved in my face my entire life, it hasn't been until recently that I started to question what I've been taught, which is why I soaked up every word of the Da vinci Code. But even Brown's theory has a few holes in it. And I'd have to say that Jackie helped me restore a little more faith in the Bible again. I'm still really confused, though, I don't know what to believe. Why does it have to be so difficult?

I, too, had a some difficulty believing that all the Bible was truth. The more you study it and read it, not other sources, your faith will grow. You will see more and more how it is truly God's instructions for living. Get involved in a church that opens and discusses how it applies to your life today. Learn what God has to say to you, not what others think it says. Be open to the Holy Spirit. God already knows each one of us; He wants us to know Him! How do you know what church to choose to enhance your spiritual growth? One that does not go against what the Bible says for us. There will be no perfect church because people are not perfect. But, choose one that continually strives to meet that expectation. For me it is a Baptist church. I was brought up Catholic, but there are too many things that are distorted, missing, and not taught, especially about forgiveness and heaven. The Bible says that we are saved by grace-faith, believing in Jesus, knowing that His death on the cross once and for all saved us from all of our sins- past, present, and future. We don't have to worry if we will go to heaven; we can KNOW! This frees us to aspire to be all that He created us to be, to love others unconditionally, to have true serenity (peace), to want to know Him more and to please Him more. It's just that simple! It has always been that simple! Man has clouded it, distorted it, complicated it. Jesus came to show just how simple it truly is! Again, man has clouded it and distorted it. You don't need to join a religion as much as you need to find a fellowship of believers that understand the truth. That's what I did. It just happened to be a Baptist church. Christians are not meant to be an island but part of a fellowship of believers that support and encourage each other. God doesn't just want us to wait for heaven for joy and serenity; He meant for us to have that here on earth in this life. We must be willing to trust Him that all of our life's circumstances are not in HIs perfect will for us, but they can be used for our greater good.

I just finished the D.V. code and I didn't find that it was trying to say that Jesus having been a father would have dis-proved his divinity. In fact, it clearly states the historical fact that Jesus' divinity was VOTED ON! Had Jesus been portrayed as a mortal in the new testament, it was thought that the religion would not have been as successful. So, Constantine ordered all the evidence of Christ's mortal life be destroyed. That included his marriage to Mary Magdeline, his children, and any other evidence that would make him seem less godly. That is what the Dead Sea Scrolls are.

I am a Pagan, and an apprentice witch. I am learning so much about the connection between all religions and to me, it is unreasonable to force any faith on another person. That is what faith is, an inner belief that can only come from within. I love to research the history of religions, and am always glad to hear someone of an open mind telling the truth without any bias.

You should teach your girl and make her stop stripping but you are right. He does say suffer the little children. We need to stop judging. Matthew 7:1 Judge lest we be judged.

well, these comments seem late- I just found the web site. What a shame a little girl was exposed to the rigors of a religion rather than the truth of Christianity. There is a vast difference between the two. We all need to pray for these miserable people, and that young lady and her mother. My faith says that with prayer, Jesus will provide a solution to this hardship. As for the work of fiction so discussed, I enjoyed it. I was raised a baptist in the Bible Belt. Never will find a more strident or less tolerant sect, in my opinion. However, I am a deep believer in Jesus. I have long questioned the postion of Mary Magdelene and women in society. My husband and I are partners in our marriage. I believe Jesus intended this. The men who followed him had only three years and then the problem of building the Church while being punished for such actions. It is not possible in my mind for these teachers to not filter Jesus' message through their own personal beliefs and bias. So, I read the books of the bible, and search out the information on other ancient material as I can. Jesus as a father, Wonderful! What an answer to the current questions regarding the importance of marriage and family! Does he have decendants? Well ,how speculative and how wonderful! If only such a wonderful thought could be proved!

It's very interesting reading the comments regarding Jesus' bachelorhood and Mary Magedelene's role. However, I would like to throw something into the mix. Like His cousin, John the Baptist, Jesus subscribed much to the Essene part of the Judaic faith. Essenes were known for wandering in the wilderness and not being married. That is part of the way they lived. Also, if He was married, it would be hard pressed to believe that He would not have a place to lay His head. The apostle Paul also mentions that if you must marry go ahed but for the life of a traveling teacher, that is not the life they should lead. Besides, as far as they knew, the world was about to end (i.e Revelations being about the distruction of the Temple)

As far as Mary Magdelene, a great injustice has been done to her. She has been lupmed with the snowball of Marys in the Bible. Also there seems to have been a VAST conspiracy to keep her out of the Gospels. She fits every single requirement of being an apostle, especialy since she is the first to not only find the empty tomb but also to see the risen Christ, which is what the Good News, or Gospel, is. According to the Nag Hammadi, which is like the Dead Sea Scrolls but specifically about early Christianity, Jesus and Mary did share an intimate relationship, but not like our Western minds think of as intimate. Apparently she is the one who really "got it". The one who really understood what the message was and He did bestow knowledge to her. It often talks about "the kiss". Which, when dealing with a teacher and student, symbolizes the transferrance of knowledge. The Nag Hammadi as well as the Gospel according to Mary Magdelene also discusses the battle between Peter and Mary which may be the beginning of the slander of Mary's name. This is not so unbelievable because Peter and Paul also had feuds regarding if a gentile has to become Jewish before becoming Christian.

I think it does a great diservice to Mary to place her importance on being Jesus' wife and bearer of children. It reverts women back to the role of only being important because of what status her husband has. Taking the articles of faith of Christianity if the Logos, or Word, of God could be introduced to the world through a woman, would it not make sense for the Word to continue through the works of a woman. I think that's the "secret" of Christianity that the church fathers would hide.

mary wasnt exactly a prostitute. she was more of jesuses wife.

It's March, and in a week or so the 5 planets will follow Venus through the sky. After reading the "DaVinci Codes," I will never look at Venus the same again. The age of Pices (fish) for Man has passed and I really believe that now the Age of Aquarius (symbol for water/life/female) has arrived. We are now living in a time when the balance of male and female has been unbalanced, which I feel has brought chaos to the world. The Ying/Yang has been corrupted and Mother Earth will soon explode to right itself. Maybe it is a sign for all of us; whether we are Jew, Christian, Budahist, worship Islam or whatever...that we must live together in PEACE and love one another, for love is the mystical communion that brings us closer to God (and I'm not just talking about sexual love). I don't know if Mary Magdelene was married to Jesus or not, but I do believe he respected and loved her and treated her as an equal. Jesus said, "I am not of this world," so maybe he wanted to prove that he loved and respected both genders on this planet and tried to explain to us by his actions and deeds that we are all worthy of his love. "Love one another and do unto others as you would have them do unto you." That was the doctrine Jesus preached as his church.
Many of the "Laws of the Church" have changed like they have changed other things through the centuries and now I think it has all caught up with them. Through all the chaos, whether Mary Magdelene was Christ's wife or not, I do believe that the Divinity of Jesus has not been harmed in any way.
Also, in the book all the theories of Mary Magdelene's tomb look in France and Ireland, but I think it might be in Spain. What do you think of that theory? Also, read books by Santa Teresa de Avila. She wrote in the 1500's (ahead of her time).

I can't help but think about the money here. This church isn't worried about the mother, the daughter or right or wrong. They are concerned about the money that is coming from the people who are so self rightous that they can not believe the church would allow "these people" to be in the same school as their rightous children. It's all about the economy.

I have read the davinci codes, but i think that it goes further than that. We will never know if Jesus was married, if everything the bible says about his life is true, i think "man" having a hand in the fabrication of the bible is not credible. People will say anything to make you believe their side, even if they hide behind god to do it. I have my own issues with the bible, and I am not any denomination of religion. I believe that Jesus is the son of god, and he was sent here to show us and to teach us, and he died for our sins on the cross, and 3 days later was ressurected. Anything after that I dont think matters. The important message is to love eachother, do good things, and for those who choose to follow evil ways, love them not for their crimes, but love them because they are gods children.

I have read the Da Vinci Code and found it fascinating. The research is impeccable, the story captivating and the plot a work of genius. At the same time, it has it flaws. (To let you know the basis of my worldview, I am not Catholic, but an evangelical Christian.) One thing that I haven't seen written here is that there are many of us Christians out there who don't have a mindless faith. I, for one, found it necessary in my life to research and find out for myself whether the Bible is reliable as the basis for the Christian faith, whether Christ truly lived, and whether there are valid arguments that point to his divinity. One thing I found to be fallacious in the arguments in The Da Vinci Code purporting the marriage of Jesus and Mary M. was the unquestioned acceptance of the documents supporting that theory; it is my understanding that they, and other "gospels" ultimately excluded from the canon of scripture, cannot be considered as reliable as those that have been included in the Bible. Also, as HAS been mentioned here, the argument that it wasn't until the Niacene Council that Jesus was considered divine is way off base; how true it is that one only has to look to the New Testament, all of which was written within 100 years of the birth of Christ, and all of which are supported by manuscripts that are far older than those found for most ancient documents, to see that the divinity of Christ is proclaimed throughout. That there were those who believed otherwise, even from the earliest moments, is also documented, but neither is it surprising! Christ and Christianity were a threat to many in Jewish, Roman and Greek societies; no wonder alternate theories were espoused. The Bible itself attests to such resistance to the "new" beliefs espoused by Christians. Furthermore, the alternate meaning of the Holy Grail as the bones of Mary Magdalene (accompanied by documents that reveal the "validity" of her secret marriage to Jesus) may have been accepted by many throughout history, including Leonardo Da Vinci, but their acceptance and the existence of secret societies doesn't mean that what they believed is the truth. Many people believe in the existence of Big Foot, too. There have been a great many hoaxes perpetrated upon society regarding the existence of that creature as well, and so far many have been proved or admitted as hoaxes. There has never been any definitive proof of Big Foot's existance, and neither has there been any of the marriage of Jesus and Mary M. or the existence of any mysterious offspring. The evidence, and yes, I do mean evidence, supporting the virgin birth, death on the cross, burial, and resurrection of Christ is much stronger. Granted...there is room enough to allow doubt. If there was no room for doubt, then we would no longer have freedom of choice. But there is still enough feasible, logical evidence that backs a stance for faith that the logical part of me was convinced, which ultimately built up the faithful part of me. When I was young, I believed entirely on faith, but as an adult, I can no longer have one without the other, and my research has led me to a greater faith in Christ.

I have also read the da vinci code and thought that it was a great book. I was christened but the bible could never answer all of my questions, it could be a nice way to live a life but it was a life for 2000 years ago. Now i am sitting here and watching sunday tv where historians are saying that certain statements in the bible are just comments against the roman empire, including the number of the beast, read more into it and find that women are under represented (im a man by the way) and then read even more, and find that jesus was a man born of a woman, by a normal birth like his brother. and that he just wanted people to be good to each other end of, no miracles no divinity a man in love with a woman. which then lets a church or many churches decide how you should live. and Deborah the new testament was written within 100 years of jesus's life therefore it must be true?? how much of the history of what really happened to the american indians or the victorian life style, behind closed doors was true, we cant even find the truth about this let alone 2000 years ago

Interesting how this book has brought to light a lot of questions hidden in our brain. I for one feel much better about my religion knowing that MEN of FLESH wrote, governed and still do and not "faxed by God". One thing that really made me say "YES" was when he (Brown) said why were all the miracles long time ago and not now. HMMMM

In no way is the Da Vinci Code correct. Jesus was never married and all those pics that are supposedly w/ Mary...it's actually one of the Apostles, John. Read the Bible...yes it was written by man, but it's the Word of God. Read John 3. Jesus came to save all of us and give us Salvation - that's it...bottom line.

I believe that Jesus is the Son of God and that He came to teach us how to live and that He also died for our sins on the cross and 3 days later He rose again. Read God's Word (the Bible) and you'll find all the answers you're looking for.
I also put in a comment some time ago and it got erased - very interesting.

Krishna was not celibate. He had many lovers and one love, Radha, in particular and was married to someone else. I am not sure about Buddha however, if you read into Siddhartha which is a fictitious novel based on the Buddha you would find that even he experienced physical love as well.
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I too have read and been mesmerized by the
Davince Code. However, there is no proof for or
against the "Mary Magdelene" as Christ's wife
dilema. Why coulnd't "Mary the Mother of Christ"
have been present at the Last Supper??? Also, if
Buddah, Krisnah, and others could be celebant, why couldn't Jesus as well be??????

Hi
I've read the da vinci code and quite a few other books. I've read the bible and the Quran. i realized something very interesting which is that Islam happens to be a 1500 yrs old religion the only one which reveres Jesus but as a Prophet and not divine being. Its interesting how Islam points out the fact that the bible has been twisted and another thing that is present but in an older gospel is that Jesus promised the arrival of another messanger and Islam claims that that messanger was Muhammed who was the prophet of Islam who married and had children and has a progeny and the interesting this is that Muhammed is a direct descendent of Abraham. Its really interesting so I would advise all u ppl who belive that Jesus was a prophet to check Islam out....its kind of like christianity put straight and w/o the fables.

Hey Budha wasnt celibate he even had a son....and that is something every budhist belives

Who decided that the "da Vinci Code" book should or even could stand in the same respect as the bible! Have you even READ the bible! WHERE IN THE BIBLE does it say the Jesus was married!!!! This is why the church can't get together on anything, because people are trying to come to their own conclusions instead of REALLY reading the bible.

Either get it right, or just don't say anything, please! The bible is as "clear-cut" as it can be...if it is in there, it is TRUTH, if it is not in there, PLEASE STOP ADDING TO IT, not one jot or tittle!

try - Bloodline of the Holy Grail
by Laurence Gardner
this book is about Jesus / Mary Magdelene as husband and wife, most of the research is very interesting, but some of Gardner's conclusions are, in my mind, questionable.
Dan Brown DeVinci Code and Angels and Demons are a must read.

comment on David Walker, I have read the new testament, to me, its sketchy at best, it is so wide open for interpretation that it has founded countless sects. The bible offers only a handful of verses that tell us really very little about jesus and christ. Its like a destination with out any road map.

I do not accept that all the necessary knowledge and writings was sucessfully filtered by a group of men 1500 years ago to be condensed into the new testament / bible. Should not the Gosples include at least the brother of jesus or mary magdelene, at least they lived with jesus, why were they excluded? (along with thousands of other manuscripts)
If you do a search you may discover that many things have been altered over the years by the church for political reasons. Your / my belief's today, if we like it or not, has been shaped and effected by 2000 years of church politics. Where does reality end and myth start? I can't tell for sure. We interpret the Bible / life with our personal filters.
If this were not the case we may all agree on the meaning of the bible / christ

I am seventh-day adventist. Whenever somebody said they saw a movie that had Jesus on the cross saying goodbye to his "girlfriend" my sabbath class teacher would say it's all I lie. Now, after REALLY seeing the picture by Da Vinci of the last supper, and seeing no holy grail, but many other cups, and also seeing a figure on the right side of Jesus wearing the opposite clothes on "it" resembling a woman, with a man supposedly Peter about to slap "it" I don't know what to think. I mean Da Vinci wasnt' actually at the last supper, so he doesn't know every detail, plus wouldn't it have mentioned in the bible that Jesus was married. Then again man wrote the bible, and many other books of the bible have been destroyed. All I know is to keep believing, and not to question god.

just a thought
check out Marovingian Kings
betrayed by the church of rome

Marovingian Kings were the from the bloodline of Jesus
no conclusive evidence if from Jesus or just his brother's

Just proof the church wanted no competition, man or woman (Mary Magdelene) and would do anything to assure its supremecy, Marovingian Kings where a threat, so was Mary Madelene.

Don't ever stop believing, just learn there is more to the story. If Jesus was married, does that change anything he said? or did?
or >IS if if does, ignore the possibility, its ok

TDVC was fun to read. The movie should be fun too, assuming a studio has enough balls (I mean guts) to make it. This has Oliver Stone written all over it. It would be neat to see something or someone in the history that links all people, e.g., including Taoist, Buddhist, Hindu, etc., to all this stuff historically. I remember hearing a rumor that Jesus spent some time in Asia and Africa during his "lost years." What the heck did he do between the time when his mom found him in the temple teaching all the priests and when he showed up in Cana? Why wouldn't the Savior of the World have travelled as far and wide as possible to reveal himself. If he did travel abroad, why couldn't he have hooked up with some women there? He was, after all, human. That will have to be someone else's novel.

All of this is really just astounding to me. I am one who believes that the spirit is the center of human existence so all decisions related to that most intimate aspect should be made with understanding -complete with research & heart-search. Having done a LOT of both I know where I stand. However, after having read each of the previous posts I would venture to say many of you may need to keep searching for yourselves. In America, we like to consider ourselves "thinkers" instead of lemmings. So as a challenge I'd like you to look at what you've said. I've also read the D Code & am SHOCKED at the plethora of direct quotes being used from the book in a way that would suggest to me that you think these ideas came from your own head. Truly amazing. A few real facts that may help to clear things: from a Christian point of view the authenticity of the old Testament is undeniable- God directed the authors with exactly what to write. From a secular point of view the authenticity of the old Testament is undeniable- The history was written as it happened (complete with geneologies) and the letters of each copy were counted to ensure that the original text not be perverted. No other account of ancient history is more complete or supported by more outside sources - yes outside sources. Similarly, (as mentioned in the books More than a Carpenter & Evidence that demands a Verdict) no other ancient text has a many MATCHING copies to validate the information therein. - If you are a truth-seeker read those books. They were written by a non-Christian who found that everything historically valid he found pointed to the Bible. As for our dear Mary's: God loves us all equally men & women - slave or free- as HUMAN BEINGS - no one to be revered more than another save Jesus who was also God. The problem with Mr. Brown's book is one as old as the human race- In the Garden an event took place that forever divided us all- a woman & then a man ate something they were told not to -at which point humans & God had a division between them - next is the division we all deal with daily - do we worship YAHWEH - the God who created us or (like Kain) do we worship "Eve" & or the snake- a fascinating point: look into the Greek history, it has the same root as Judaism but is as different as day from night. They worshipped the snake & eve as "Hera" or "Athena." If you look through history this "sacred feminine" as Mr. Brown is so so fond of saying is really just eve with a new head-dress. Also, the truth of the Judeo-Christian God Yahweh is that of a sexless complete spiritual being. The only reason we use male imagery is because of one of Mr. Brown's famous points "History is written by the winners."- Who at the time would have listened to a female Messiah??? God used males because He knew we would listen. One more point: God never ever said sex is dirty or bad- He said ENJOY have fun - within these perameters- a man & woman married. Not such a bad plan to protect us as all venereal disease stems from promiscuity. Also, doesn't it also point to the fact that God views sex as a holy, sacred (or "separated") act. If something is so very speacial it's only to be shared with one person - i think that says it's very valuable. Also, there is no directive in scripture to support celibacy for church authority. In fact it actually says please get married so you don't sin - Unless you feel no desire. & there are EXTREMELY rare people who feel totally fine that way, but it was nevermeant to be a self-denial act. God made these bodies; He designed them to enjoy what was needed to sustain life. In closing a follower of Christ is NOT a sexist as some would lead you to believe. A true follower of Christ loves as Christ does without eyes for outward trappings but insight to the person within. Keep Searching - IF you really are seeking Truth you will find it.

Those of you who are interested in the "authenticity of The Bible" debate should look into Dr. Rocco Errico. He is a scholar well-versed in Aramaic and ancient Hebrew, as well as in the historical culture of the Near East. In his view, it is ludicrous that, in 21st century America, people take so literally verses and ideas from the Bible that were clearly a product of their ancient settings and cultures.

For my part, it has been clear for some time that the creation story in Genesis is just a rip-off of the same story from earlier civilizations, particulary the "Epic of Gilgamesh" from Mesopotamia. Hmmm, and the Bible says that Abraham was from Mesopotamia -- is it just coincidence, or do you think he probably passed on this fable to his descendants?

Since the creation story is a myth, then the idea of Original Sin is a myth. Therefore, Jesus's death on the cross had nothing to do with "dying for our sins" and our reconcilation with God. Show me in the four Gospels where Jesus's words promote any such idea! In fact, he promoted the ideas that there was no separation from God for anyone, that heaven on earth was here and now, and that God's forgiveness for sins was INSTANTLY attainable -- not dependent on Jesus's dying on the cross at a later date.

By the way, I'm an incredibly big fan of Jesus, and I strive to have relationships with God and with mankind in the manner that Jesus taught. He was definitely no ordinary person, and, for me, it was through his teachings that he showed "the way, the truth, and the life."

I just finished reading the DVC myself early yesterday morning.And I have also took the time to read each and every comment on this site today.Reading this book is in fact what has me on a search now .For what else? but Knowledge. Knowledge has and always will be power. To be empowered is what we are all seeking.There are more books out there waiting to be read . And i can hardly contain the excitmnet i feel to finnally be inspired enough to start my journey .Thanks to each and everyone of you who have taken the time to express your thoughts on this subject !!

Have read all the comments posted on this sight,and every person who has posted a comment on this site(barring a couple) beleives in Christ and in the teachings of Christ. So my question is, how does it matter if Christ was married or not,it's the way of life that he taught us that is most important. I beleive that we should stop subjecting his divinity to his marital status and concentrate on living as he wanted us to live.
In short what i'm saying is that Christ is divine and is the Son of God wether he was married or not. So stop deliberating on his marital status and just beleive in him and his teachings.

There are a few things that I would like to address from my own (occasionally) humble perspective.
First, the Bible and authenticity/truth. There is truth in the Bible, but it is not word for word true in the sense that God said the words or imparted them to the authors. This is a new assumption brought about without the burden of proof or historical precedent by the post-reformation fundamentalist movements beginning in about the 1700's. The truth that the Bible reveals is that humanity is unfaithful and that God is faithful in spite of our unfaithfulness and that God calls us back time and time again in spite of the terrble things we are capable of and regardless of the wonderful things we can do--he calls us back out of love. The Bible reveals the Word of God, and that Word became flesh and dwelled among us. The fact of the matter is that there is a lot in the Old Testament that is written in the form of a historical narrative that was never intended to be taken as literal, though it is authentically inspired by God in that people wanted to write accounts of what God had done for Israel and through Christ. Creation is one such section. Creation in Genesis (both, vastly different, accounts) is meant to be a theological narrative to tell what our theological understanding is. God is a creator, God created intentionally, God loves that which he has created, and though there is evil in the world and although we do evil things he loves us anyway. The fall is not literally what happened, rather it describes the circumstances of our broken human nature: no matter how simple the instructions/law/expectations are, we will never be able to do anything good enough or be pure enough of heart to follow through. Our nature is that we will eventually choose our own will over God's will for us. Part of our brokenness is choosing to do sinful/evil things at least occasionally.
This leads to the second point: Jesus' life and ministry, while they did give us a good example of how to lead life and so on, led to the cross and to resurrection as the revalation of God's love for that which he creates in spite of our inability/unwillingness to live as we ought.

As for what BTM said about Jesus' death and resurrection having no Biblical precedent for the forgiveness of sins, don't forget the Last Supper. It was Jesus' way of explaining the cross beforehand, since he would be unable to do it from the cross. He said "this is my body given for you" of the bread. He said of the wine, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood". Though John doesn't have a Last Supper account, the entire Gospel is eucharistic, using the earthly elements of water, wine and blood as interchangeable symbols of the meal--not to mention chapter 6 where Jesus says "Unless you eat my flesh and drink my blood you have no share in me". Forgiveness by God hinges upon the death and resurrection of Christ from the Christian perspective. Though I believe that God's forgiveness is availiable to everyone, and whether they believe or not his love for them is unchanged, it is on account of Christ that this is possible.

Sorry for the rant, but I hope that this is helpful, stimulating, insightful, or at least something for you to laugh at and poke holes in. . .

-e

I read The da Vinci Code, too,but even before that I took a Comparative Religions course in college. I believe Mary Magdalene was in independent woman of means which would have meant that she could easily have been mistaken as a prostitute. I believe that she was the woman who funded the ministry of Jesus and believe that she was the lover or wife of Jesus. She has been adversely portrayed by the Catholic Church especially, among others, because of her femininity. The male-dominated Catholic Church could not admit her relationship to Jesus or priestly celibacy would not exist. They could not admit her sexual relationship with Christ because pre-marital sex is just another thing to hold over the heads of Catholics to make them submissive. I am a Catholic, non practicing, but do believe the good in other religions, even Islam. Mary Magdalene was a good, true and faithful friend to Jesus and should have a place in his life which we all can share. If Mary Magdalene was recognized for what she truly was, the Catholic Church and all other Christians would be blessedly feminized instead of having feminism disgraced to make men look superior.

I read The da Vinci Code, too,but even before that I took a Comparative Religions course in college. I believe Mary Magdalene was in independent woman of means which would have meant that she could easily have been mistaken as a prostitute. I believe that she was the woman who funded the ministry of Jesus and believe that she was the lover or wife of Jesus. She has been adversely portrayed by the Catholic Church especially, among others, because of her femininity. The male-dominated Catholic Church could not admit her relationship to Jesus or priestly celibacy would not exist. They could not admit her sexual relationship with Christ because pre-marital sex is just another thing to hold over the heads of Catholics to make them submissive. I am a Catholic, non practicing, but do believe the good in other religions, Islam included. Mary Magdalene was a good, true and faithful friend to Jesus and should have a place in his life which we all can share. If Mary Magdalene was recognized for what she truly was, the Catholic Church and all other Christians would be blessedly feminized instead of having feminism disgraced to make men look superior.

I like what Bob said on June 17. "Don't ever stop believing, just learn there is more to the story." I know this seems random but... there is no biblical mention of a giraffe. At no point in the bible does it mention a porcupine. However, we know they exist. We have concrete proof. My point, there are many things in the bible that are not mentioned. The Bible is only part of the story, not the history of all things past, present, and future. Were Jesus and Mary Magdeline married?! Who's to say. The "Da Vinci Code", albeit a great book is still fiction. Will some of the "theories" mentioned ever be proved or disproved? That would be great! Unfortunately, I'm sure the early Roman Catholic church (papacy) destroyed any evidence there might have been. As for me... the marriage makes sense. And you know what... it's not going to shake the foundation of my belief system. Jesus is still my savior - married or not.

A couple thoughts:

History is indeed written by the victors. Everyone should keep in mind that, this past century, the church is the loser; books such as TDVC should be taken with a grain of salt.

It's fun to speculate about Jesus being married and having children, but if you believe that he was fully divine (and fully human), the possibility of a child seems ludicrous. Would he be God's Only Grandchild? Perhaps a half-son? Furthermore, the idea of Jesus "sleeping around" in ancient times as some have suggested implies to me that these people are still living in the 1970s.

Lastly, conspiracy theories are lots of fun. They're also false 99.9% of the time. At a time when there is no definitive proof that Jesus even existed - esp. with the validity of the Roman historians' accounts being under question, some of which have been "modified" by zealous individuals - it seems premature at best to be subscribing to complicated and ultimately unsubstantiated theories of secret societies and cover-ups.

Christianity is a religion. Agree or disagree with the precepts put forth in the Gospel, but for God's sake don't waste your time arguing over conjectures and symantics. Whether a believer or not, there are better things you can be doing with your time.

Good posts everyone
to armouton july 7
i don't feel that this is arguing, it can be thought provoking.
For me it seems to help put ideas into perspective.
For instance, it never seemed right, as to what in the heck Jesus was doing with Mary Magdelene, at best it was an embarassement to have Jesus associated with her, at worst it was
lustrious. If they were married, it becomes beautiful, that she treasured him and he her.
Their relationship becomes right!
(very very sticky point about god's grandchildren????)
About Mary Magdelne, its possible her funding did help Jesus, but also consider Jesus's family was given vast riches at his birth, and that he also came from a rich family, Joseph of aramthea, Jesus's uncle, was one of the richest men in the roman empire. He was also influential or powerful enough to persuade Romans to allow Jesus to be taken down from the cross and he also purchased his tomb.... think think think
A tomb (with a round stone door [had to be carved...])had to cost a small fortune.
I am not talking about a poor wood worker and his extended family here (this is just church - poor person, humble beginning propaganda), I am presenting Jesus, as well educated, from a very rich family, from the kingly royal line of David

wha is history but a fable agreed upon?

I appreciate Eric's well-thought-out response to my original comment.

Regarding his assertion that Biblical accounts of the Last Supper convey Jesus' own view that his shed blood brings mankind redemption from Sin . . .

Matthew 26:28, at least, has Jesus saying the contents of the cup represent his blood "which is shed for many for the remission of sins." (KJV) Interestingly, Mark and Luke do not add this 'clarification' about his shed blood. I will have to dive (once again) into the realm of the history of Biblical writings and translations, to see if Matthew's addition is agreed upon by scholars as being in the majority of the oldest Greek texts. (The Gospels, at least as some of us know them from the King James Version, have suffered somewhat from an aggregate affect -- they contain ideas and phrases that were added to what we now know are earlier text versions that the KJV compilers did not know of.)

I'm guessing that Eric might say that my 'Matthew argument' is irrelevant, in light of what he sees as the Eucharistic significance of the Last Supper. And to that, I can only say that we all see things with different eyes, through our own lenses and filters. If you come to the Bible already 'clear' that Jesus died to wash away our sins and make us reconciled to God, then your readings will assuredly support what you wish to believe. And the same rings true for people like me who don't hold the traditional Christian view of Jesus's role in the universe. For those of you who attest that the Bible can only be read one way (or it's the highway to hell for you), I assert just as strongly as you that my way also comes from God.

I find it sad, though, that Eric seemed to minimize the significance of Jesus's earthly ministry. It seems that, if it weren't for having to go through the rather laborious process of fulfilling OT prophecies about his earthly life, Jesus could have just shown up on Good Friday and said, "Hi, I'm the earthly persona of God, and I'm going to die today to pay the debt you owe for being a sinful being."

I'm not trying to be glib, or disrespectful to Eric or anyone else. But all too often, Christians (especially Fundamentalists) completely waste Jesus's immensely powerful teachings in their haste to concern us about eternal damnation or salvation. (I know -- I've been to these churches.) And really, I'm not against anyone having a traditional view of Jesus as The Redeemer. But do you think the Sermon on the Mount was only about Jesus trying to kill time before his crucifixion?

WE SHOULD BE LIVING HIS WORD.

I have no religion officially, although I take bits and pieces of what I learn from different religions. One of the reasons that I do not have a specific religion is that many are flawed. I do not wish to anger anyone, but would simply like to state that there are many exceptions that exist or can be made to every rule a religion sets down. Also... History IS written by the victors and religion can be altered to suit the needs of the people. For example... after Martin Luther posted his Thesis, the church went and changed the bible and their practices to prevent the people from converting. In the old days, religion is meant to keep people under control and in line - to not question their superiors. I understand that there are many good people under the church but I know many who aren't and take the Bible too literally and do not learn the lessons from it. Jesus was a real person - the "Son of God". But doesn't the bible also state that we are all His children? I find it rather insulting that people claim to follow God or Jesus Christ and do horrible things in their name. Wasn't their (Or at least Jesus's) message love, peace and acceptance?
I believed once that the extinction of humans will come with our own hand - and I still do. Many people who follow others have a tendency to interpret words the wrong way... and you must understand... Words are POWER, but they can be manipulated to someone else's evil cause.
Therefore, please do not say someone's WORDS are truth, for they can be twisted.
The Da Vinci code is a fictional book and many of it's theories are intriguing. I wish it were possible to prove all the details, but it isn't. However, I believe you cannot take EVERYTHING in the Bible to heart because if it is God's or Jesus's WORD and the TRUTH, why has it repetetively been heavily edited? Why should the truth be edited? To recruit more believers/followers? To gain more money?
I think the child should not be expelled for something the mother is responsible for. And if God is to be the judge of who is worthy, what right does the person who expelled the kid unworthy to learn 'the word of God'? However, it may have been for the child's good (though I do not believe that was the intention of the church when she was expelled) that she was removed from such a bias church - if she remained, she could also have been mistreated and driven to suicide.

Very interesting comments about Mary Magdeline. I understand the catholic church apologised in the 1960's for defaming her name as a prostitute... Looked through this to ascertain this...
I think although the answers are within ourselves more so, just like what was said...
Reading books are good and insightful and describe the world, but it is ourselves that can truly live and understand the description... I'm sure jesus didn't use many study materials or books when he was teaching...
I'm not a person who is to follow rules or semantics, or readily accepted what is reported or written, without living that/those things for myself...
Interesting dialogue all the same... food for thought

I do not understand why people believe that if Jesus had a wife, he could not still be divine. Jesus, who is God incarnate came down to save us from our sin. He was God, but He was also human. Jesus suffered tempatations, and pain. But He persevered to the end and on that cross and through His ressurection, He conquered sin and death. That is really all that matters. But if you want to get into a discussion about whether or not He was married lets do it. If Jesus married Mary, that would not be a sin. Marriage is a sacred union from God for humans. If you think about it, if Jesus married Mary that was just one more way for Him to understand humanity. But that does not make Him any less God. This is a silly arguement.

It is good to discuss religion, good to ask questions especially for the younger generation writing these comments. Surprisingly some of the woman even the ones who claim themselves feminists are refering to God as "him". Eventually what an enlightened person realizes is that God is not in an object or a him. God is everything in the universe and every feeling. For the younger generation I suggest reading "Conversations With God" by: Neal Walsh, another controversial book as far as the Catholic Church is concerned. Don't take the books to an extreme or treat them as your bible but just take what you can get out of them. Then I would look into some works by Deepok Chopra. These are more philisophical works to inspire the mind not to worsen an already jumbled one by arguing history. Don't get me wrong I enjoyed the Davinci Code but it is really not what is important. None of us can travel back in time to see what really happened and the most important thing to remember about Jesus is the teachings that you know are right, the golden rule, do unto others as you would have done unto you.

The Bible was written by man, sinners; a true and false Glossery of Faith. As a Catholic church attender, and believer in the Devine God, I can still say that not everything in my religion I agree upon. Faith incourages man to find a church demonination they agree the MOST upon. Not everything will be true and believable, but that is where personal judgement comes in. Faith is an individual personal belief. Religion is a set of strict rules, and values, set under a church. I can honestly say that no one has religion, but everyone has Faith.

So whether or not you believe all of these statements would be your own personal judgement. Take what you believe, it's your Faith, and use it to help others to see the ultimate goal, everlasting life.

And remember that no one can be right or wrong in their Faith, we are sinners after all.

Tim - you got it, GOD is everything
there is not anything but GOD
We only devide GOD so we can try to comprehend the emensity of what GOD may be.
From 1 then into 3 (Father / Son / Holy Ghost)or
From 1 then into 2 (God / Devil) or
From 1 then into 2 (Spirit / Material) or
From 1 then into many (God / aspects of God...)
The mind must catagorize to understand anything.
There are no words to express an expierence of GOD...

But I thought this website was dedicated to Mary Magedelene, and the controvery about her?
Why are there so many messages about why its not important to discuss this?

It troubles me, to think that I may have been intentionaly misinformed about the true nature of Jesus life, just to fit some political or power agenda. When as a matter of FACT misinformation is down right deception, LIEs!
Stand up and demand to know the TRUTH! If you care about Jesus and his life, how in the world can Mary be discarded as not important if Jesus was married to her and had children. How can any aspect of his life be unimportant, if he is God's Son on earth. Everything he did is important!!!!!
We pretend to know everything about Jesus extrapolated from a few phrases, try extrapolating a few phrases concerning Mary!

oh wait a minute lets discount the potential that Jesus may have been other than what we believe. We must know of Jesus the way that best fits our preconceptions, that's good enough I guess.
sorry to get on soap box...done now

Maybe u guys should read the Templar Revelations instead of Da Vince Code. I read both. It will make more sense.

It's so sad for the child she has to suffer for her mother's choices in life, perhaps the church should have found another alternative in dealing with the mother's occupation. But I don't really think that expelling the child is a good answer. As was pointed out earlier, alot of the "good Christians" have skelatons in their closets and the Church should set an example, not be so quick to ridicule and ostracize anyone, especially a child.
I too enjoyed the Davinci Code and it made me
think twice about all the things I was taught in school and church. The important thing to remember is that it is a work of fiction. Perhaps Mr. Brown was simply challenging others to search themselves about their own faith,in writing this book, as opposed to making the Catholic Church look bad. Maybe not, maybe he has some issues with the Catholic Church. I know it's made me wonder about a few things, but the most important one is, am I being a good person as I go about my daily life, and what can I improve on?
The book has a lot of points that can be researched, and to me that's what a good book does, makes me hunger to learn more about what I have just read.
All the rest is just politics and because of politics the truth is often swept under the rug and people made out to be what they are not. It's sad to realize this about religion, but these days nothing should be surprising. Maybe we should all contribute to a fund to give this little girl a private education in a boarding school where she doesn't have to be around her stripping mom!!! That would be a better way of handling it than the Catholic Church took!

I just reread the first post and I now realize it was an Assembly of God Church that did the expelling, well either way, it wasn't handled for the child's welfare. And the Assemblies are in the same league as the Catholic's in my own understanding. Lots of rules and fire and brimstone. That's why I left them. The Assembly of God Church's teach about Jesus Love and how we should be conducting our lives, but the churches I tried to join or visited just seemed like one big gossip session. Not my idea of what a Christian should be doing. Just my opinion tho, hope they all aren't like what I experienced.

Has anyone else read Holy Blood, Holy Grail or
A Distant Mirror?

I'd also recommend Constantines Sword, The Church and the Jews. A very revealing read.
Synopsis, history of the church and it's role in Jewish persecution right up to the Holocaust and modern times.

Jackie if you're still in the board, don't you think that "just read the bible" is a little narrow minded? When Iraneus chose the 4 gospels,Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, he had an agenda. This was to chose the most consistent gospels to promote stability within a emerging church, still being persucuted by the Roman empire. If you don't know who Iraneus is, you need to read more books than "just the bible", because he excluded many accounts of "the living Jesus" as Thomas called him.
Question, did you know that the original Nicean creed did not include the crucifiction?

I have not yet read The Da Vinci Code. I am now reading the "Secrets of the Code" by Dan Burstein. It is a book which has so many articles and references on all the aspects of The Da Vinci Code. As a Catholic, I feel strongly that great injustice has been done to St. Mary Madelene by branding her a "fallen women", a "penitent", a "sinner", a "prostitute", instead of highlighting the fact that she was the most devoted desciple of Jesus, the most faithful, the most fearless and the most loving. Was such injustice an "innocent" mistake due to "ignorance" or a wilful cover-up due to arrogance of some who believed in the superiority of the male specicies? May God restore Mary Magdelene's stature to what it truely is - however uncomfortable it is to those who feel it too difficulty to digest that Jesus had no gender bias. God Bless this site and God bless you all. Amen.

Tony
You may have taken the first step in seeing history, closer to the truth
The first step was in realizing that some of or most of what we have learned is just political correctness, remnants of past ages, and control webs to inhibit critical analysis.
It’s hard to get clear of it all, maybe impossible
For what we believe and think have been so programmed into our brains.

Jesus not poor - came from a spiritual, very wealthy and very influential family
Mary Magdelene not a prostitute - came from a wealthy family
Jesus descendent of the royal blood line of David
Jesus – not an only child - had brothers and sisters
Jesus not a hermit - Mary M was his wife
Bob

WHAT IS SO SAD, IS THAT ALL HAS BEEN LOST TO DECEPTION. I THANK THE HEAVENS THAT I FOUND GOD DESPITE RELIGION. THE CATHOLIC CHURCH AND OTHER RELIGIOUS INSTITUTIONS ARE SO SWIFT TO CAST OUT THOSE WHO SIN, YET WE ARE ALL SINNERS. WHEN THE SIN FALLS UNDER THE ROOF OF THEIR OWN INSTITUION THERE ARE LIES, SECRETS AND CONSPIRACIES TO PROTECT THESE SINNERS, NOT TO MENTION THEY WILL SURELY BE FORGIVEN. FOR THOSE ON THE OUTSIDE,AND PERHAPS THE INDEPENDENT THINKERS ON THE INSIDE, THE RULES ARE DIFFERENT, PEOPLE ARE CAST OUT. DID JESUS NOT SAY: THOSE WHO ARE WELL DO NOT NEED A DOCTOR, IT IS THE SICK THAT NEED TO BE HELPED. IF WE LIVE IN THE DARKNESS OF OUR LIES WE WILL NEVER SEE THE LIGHT OF TRUTH. I URGE PEOPLE TO FIND GOD WITHOUT RELIGION. ONCE YOU HAVE FOUND IT ONLY THEN CAN YOU SEPERATE WHAT IS HOLY AND WHAT IS THE WORK OF MAN IN RELIGION. WE SHOULD ALL KEEP AN OPEN MIND. IF GOD IS EVERYWHERE IN EVERYTHING THEN THERE ARE PLENTY OF WAYS TO FIND HIM.

To Rose
agreed on religion

finding God is not so easy...at least not for me, at the end of the day its hard to imagine a force in the universe that actually cares, being locked in this human shell IS awareness... all alone.
Is it an illusion of feeling connected that is so fulfilling or is it in reality being connected.
If spirit is real, it keeps damned silent!

PS take your CAPS off, its like shouting :)

I have comment about the little girl but first.....

I have researched alot to do with Jesus and Mary and the holy grail etc.....

There are scrolls out there that say jesus was a normal man. Who just gave people faith and hope .

He was married to Mary Magdelene. She was the Mary who dried his feet with her hair, as a mark pf respect before he was sentenced to death.She was the same Mary with the Alabaster jar.

She was pregnant with his child { the vessel carying Jesus blood,} She is the Holy Grail!

You should try reading The Dead Sea Scrolls. Holy Blood,Holy Grail. The woman with the Alabaster Jar. Rossylin The Keeper of the secrect of the holy Grail.

Read up on The Knights Templar, The Priory of Sion, [ the order of Sion}

Look at the ROYAL bloodline of the House Of David That proves Jesus was of Royal decsent and not born of God!!

Mary Magdelene Was also a Royal, From the house of Benjamin. She had to flee to Europe so no one could know she was pregnant with Jesus's child. It was to cause alot of conflict at that time.
She was due to return home with her son to re-claim the throne but alas had a daughter and didnt return.

I have no religion personally and always thought that 'The Bible' was just a fable. Walking on water!!! Come on be serious!!!

I have no problem with people who have found solice and faith within religion.I think it is wrong that they have been told the halve truth of what really happened to these real life PEOPLE [ not divine souls] Real life human being's.

Jesus did exist. He was a kind and very caring man. Who helped others who were not as fotunate as he was.

The fact that this child has been expelled by a false faith is ridiculous. The book of the lord needs to be re-written

Karina - you are too bold, you realize at one time you would have been tortured until your thinking was corrected and the demons expelled, then burnt at the stake just to make sure you were safe from the devil's return.

Besides why should we even consider we were lied to, we are content in our ignorance.

We demand our savior to be GOD's only son, and endowed with magical properties, and we are not going to share him with a wife and a child, he is our personal savior, he dedicated his life for mankind, he did not have any purpose in life outside of saving us... right?
thats correct isn't it?
well?

I do have a question, why does God demand blood to forgive sins? Why doesnt a heartfelt regret not work the same?