ABC Special Explores if Jesus Had Wife

Atlanta Journal-Constitution ^ | 10.30.03 | DAVID BAUDER

[mhking]

NEW YORK — ABC News correspondent Elizabeth Vargas concedes her network is stepping into a theological minefield with its one-hour exploration of whether Jesus Christ had a wife.

The ABC News special, "Jesus, Mary and DaVinci," is scheduled to air Monday at 8 p.m. ET.

"You can't talk about this subject without intriguing people or offending people," Vargas said Thursday. "We're trying to do it as respectfully as we can."

ABC screened the special for some reporters and religious leaders on Thursday. The program is based on the best-selling novel, "The DaVinci Code," which claims to be partly grounded on historical fact.

The book asserts that Mary Magdalene was Jesus' wife — not a prostitute, as in some teachings — and that she fled Jerusalem with his child following his crucifixion.

The story was kept alive for centuries by a secret society that included the painter Leonardo DaVinci, who supposedly inserted clues about it in his art, the book claimed.

The ABC special outlines the theories and speaks to several theologians who either discount the story or assert that it is possible.

The show unravels like a mystery perpetuated by secondhand gossip. Vargas said ABC found no proof that Jesus had a wife, but couldn't completely discount it, either.

Vargas, who was raised a Roman Catholic, said her own parents said to her, "Oh, my goodness, what are you doing?" when they found out she was working on the story.

She said she was never aware of the power struggles and political intrigue that went into how her faith is taught today.

"For me, it's made religion more real and, ironically, much more interesting — which is what we're hoping to do for our viewers," she said.

It drew some immediate criticism, particularly from a representative of the Catholic League, who said ABC News relied too heavily on the opinion of Father Richard McBrien of Notre Dame, who believes Mary Magdalene's importance has been historically understated and that it's possible she was his wife.

"I think it was not sufficiently balanced," said Joseph DeFeo, policy analyst for the Catholic League. "The majority of the people who spoke believed in either the plausibility or the outright truth of (book author) Dan Brown's claims. The facts themselves scream out that this is a crackpot theory."

The show even drew criticism from Nikki Stephanopoulos, mother of ABC News correspondent George and the communications director for the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America. She the special might offend people who believe that women have a more prominent role in the church.

[Dog Gone]

I'm not familiar with the book, and I doubt I ever will be. Everyone who loved Jesus felt utterly abandoned when he willingly died and I'm not sure a wife would have felt worse than, say, Peter.

Had Jesus been married, I'm sure much could have been made of how he also served as a role model in that regard. However, I suspect the reason that Jesus did not get married is that it would have created an enormous problem if he and his wife had produced children.

The theological consequences of that would have been interesting, but at some point any descendants would probably have been hunted down and killed.

[ET(end tyranny)]

I believe some of us may be "gone" and others will be "Left Behind"

I agree. The bad ones are going bye bye.

[hobbes1]

St. Anne was chosen, for her exceptional Virtue

[xsmommy]

thanks, i knew you would know. : )

[dangus]

>> I'm not familiar with the book, and I doubt I ever will be. Everyone who loved Jesus felt utterly abandoned when he willingly died and I'm not sure a wife would have felt worse than, say, Peter.

Except that he is responsible to his wife, as they share one flesh.

>>Had Jesus been married, I'm sure much could have been made of how he also served as a role model in that regard.

Except he didn't and so there is no history of him as such a role model. So we countinue to look to St. Joseph as a model.

[NeoCaveman]

where we learn that Mary rode Joseph's a$$ all the way to Bethlehem.

LOL. Clever.

[NeoCaveman]

The theological consequences of that would have been interesting, but at some point any descendants would probably have been hunted down and killed.

This is an interesting hypothetical. I don't believe in any of this gnostic garbage because it was condemned by the early Church but it is interesting.

If Jesus had had a son. I imagine he would have been named the head of the Church and not Peter. Surely the son of the King of Kings would be well, the King. As heredity would trump all. We'd have quite a diffrent religion with a leader based on a particular bloodline, weird.

[ET(end tyranny)]

Thanks for posting that. Interesting.

[saradippity]

I know that many people in the Western world,to say nothing of the rest of the world do not believe as I do. Ideally,the beliefs and words and actions of opposing sides would present their "cases" using facts and honest perceptions,and those who are uncommitted could make informed choices.It is truly unfortunate that the side whose view of things is the polar opposite of mine,control the majority of the means of communicating it.

It seems to me,a committed,conservative Catholic,that this is just one more media attempt to bury Truth. I believe Jesus Christ when He said "the Truth will set you free",I also agree with Pope John Paul II when he said "Faith and reason are two wings carrying us to Truth;which is God". The "enemy" knows that too. So if they can confuse things,tweak a little here,hide some things there,spin a little,twist a little and bury as much truth as they can,they are able to plant seeds of doubt about Christianity,that they hope will eventuate into a mass rejection of God.

The anticipated outcome is the opposite of what Jesus promised. Rather than being set free by the Truth,man will be enslaved by the lies. A society untethered to God is a pretty frightening future.

I sometimes think it's unwise to speculate about things that make Jesus's hunmanity just like ours,too often we try to bury the reality of the Second Person of the Trinity.I think it stems from trying to avoid the supernatural,which surrounds us as we speak,so to speak.

[ET(end tyranny)]

Da Vinci must have been drinking. We just KNOW that can;t be true. The church doesn't mention MM much at all and to think that she might have been treated as an equal or perhaps even higher than the 11 men, well, you just know something isn't right. /sarcasm

More than likely it was MM that Yeshua loved and not John as so many have theorized. But, then again, they HAD to say something, didn't they? LOL

[Xenalyte]

Thanks to both of you!

[ET(end tyranny)]

The thought being conveyed is that the Gospels are more like the New York Times reporting of the news from Iraq. They report some truth but they fail to report and actually supress much of what is happening.

Bingo!

[hobbes1]

My Pleasure.

[Flightdeck]

Don't the gnostic gospels and dead sea scrolls say something like this as well?

[ET(end tyranny)]

Some people are more intrigued by a lie rather than the Truth.

How do you know that what you believe to be true, isn't the lie???

[mict42]

"You can't talk about this subject without intriguing people or offending people," Vargas said Thursday.

Duh! How many people have actually had this crazy thought in the first place? Talk about inventing a story.

[Jim Cane]

You can't say anything that might offend some butt-slamming fag

You just did, and no one's killed you.

or a child-incinerating Muslim,

You just did again.

but let's psychologically rape every Christian in sight, right?

Psychologically raped? What are you, a hysterical liberal victim?

The time is coming, and it can't happen soon enough.

Religious hubris is the worst sin of all.

[ET(end tyranny)]

If Jesus had had a son. I imagine he would have been named the head of the Church and not Peter. Surely the son of the King of Kings would be well, the King. As heredity would trump all. We'd have quite a diffrent religion with a leader based on a particular bloodline, weird.

Precisely why James his brother was the head, and not Peter. Acts proves this. It was James that gave the final directives to be imposed upon the gentiles, NOT Peter!

Christianity is indeed a different religion than the religion that Yeshua, James et all practiced. The gentiles were to be grafted unto the Jews/Judaism, IF they accepted the G-d of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, not the other way around!

[bert]

For the record, there is also a symbol of John the Babtist. The person on the right has an index finger pointed up. This is said to be the symbol of John the Babtist and appears in many art works.

[bert]

.....The church doesn't mention MM much at all....

There are lots of shrines and churches in France and Europe dedicated to MM. The "Church" suppresses the cult of the Black Madonna.