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To: Popman

This has been addressed repeated on FR.

Catholic Answers:

1. The Meaning of Brother

The first thing to understand is that the term brother (Gk. adelphos) has a broader meaning than uterine brothers. It can mean a biological brother, but it can also mean an extended relative, or even a spiritual brother.

Take Genesis 13:8 for example. Here the word brother is being used to describe the relationship between Abraham and Lot, who were not biological brothers but uncle and nephew:

“So Abram said to Lot, “Let’s not have any quarreling between you and me, or between your herdsmen and mine, for we are brothers” (Gen 13:8, NIV; see also 14:12).

Because of the Bible’s broad semantic range of “brother,” we can rest assured that although St. Paul writes, “[Jesus] appeared to more than five hundred…brothers at the same time” (1 Cor. 15:6), we need not infer from this verse that Mary gave birth to more than 500 children!


18 posted on 12/06/2014 5:31:22 PM PST by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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To: Salvation
Mar 6:3 Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary, the brother of James, and Joses, and of Juda, and Simon? and are not his sisters here with us? And they were offended at him.

Pretty strange to single out four "brothers" and "sisters" when the translation could mean any number of thousands of people... ?

Carry on with your traditions...

24 posted on 12/06/2014 5:44:11 PM PST by Popman
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To: Salvation
This has been addressed repeated on FR.

Catholic Answers:

Yup; with Catholic spin.

106 posted on 12/07/2014 4:37:58 AM PST by Elsie ( Heck is where people, who don't believe in Gosh, think they are not going...)
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