[malakhi]

Second, find the passages with the word cousin and friend in the Bible, because in the old Jewish language brethren referred to cousin, friend, etc.

Here is something to consider. For the sake of our new Catholic friend, I will use the Douay-Rheims translation:

And behold thy cousin Elizabeth, she also hath conceived a son in her old age: and this is the sixth month with her that is called barren. (Luke 1:36)

Elizabeth is called Mary's cousin. Which means (as we know) that John the Baptist and Jesus were related. Now, this is precisely the sort of extended family situation where some tell us that we should expect the members of the extended family to be called "brothers" or "sisters".

Elizabeth is not called Mary's "sister". And John the Baptist is never called the "brother" of Jesus.

[Havoc]

The ossuary of James listed Jesus as his brother - written on the cask by the family. The Catholic scholars want like the dickens for it to be shown a fraud but every test performed on it has shown it authentic. There are no more tests they can do and it still holds up to scrutiny. I'm sure it's a conspiracy to destroy their credibility.. LOL

[SoothingDave]

Elizabeth is not called Mary's "sister". And John the Baptist is never called the "brother" of Jesus.

And yet Abraham's nephew is called his "brother."

It almost sounds like the Holy Spirit had to make do with the human author and the human language available.

SD

[RobbyS]

Whether one uses cousin or brother would boil down to the particularand personal relationship, would it not? Famous example" the Brothers Adams," referring to Sam and John Adams, who were, of course, second cousins. If we did not know so much else about them, we might think they were actually brothers. There is so much we do NOT know about the people named in the New Testament, because the writer either did not know them Or did know them and assumed that his listeners would know what he meant. He could drop a name and the reader whould think of a bull-blown personality, complete with hook nose or red-hair, whereas to us it is simply a name on a tombstone.