Friday, March 27, 2020

Catholic Saints and Theologians Affirming the Virginity of Joseph, the Spouse of Mary, at the time of their Marriage


Today I listened to Trent Horn’s “Counsel of Trent” episode where he attempts to defend the perpetual virginity of Mary (link). Trent, in the podcast episode, stated that he comes more down on the Epiphanian view as opposed to the Hieronymian view of the brothers/sisters of Jesus (i.e., that they were adopted brothers/sisters of Jesus from a previous marriage of Jesus as opposed to being near-relatives, such as cousins).

The problem is that the tradition (note: lower-case t; I am not claiming it is a dogma) concerning Joseph favours, not just the Hieronymian view (or some related view, such as that of John McHugh in his The Mother of Jesus in the New Testament [1975]), but that Joseph himself was a virgin when he married Mary.

Pope Leo XIII, in his encyclical Quamquam Pluries, mandated devotion to St. Joseph on the basis of his worthy, virginal state:

In truth, the dignity of the Mother of God is so lofty that naught created can rank above it. But as Joseph has been united to the Blessed Virgin by the ties of marriage, it may not be doubted that he approached nearer than any [by means of his chastity] to the eminent dignity by which the Mother of God surpasses so nobly all created natures. For marriage is the most intimate of all unions which from its essence imparts a community of gifts between those that by it are joined together. Thus in giving Joseph the Blessed Virgin as spouse, God appointed him to be not only her life's companion, the witness of her maidenhood, the protector of her honour, but also, by virtue of the conjugal tie, a participator in her sublime dignity.

Fathers of families find in Joseph the best personification of paternal solicitude and vigilance; spouses a perfect example of love, of peace, and of conjugal fidelity; virgins at the same time find in him the model and protector of virginal integrity.

Other important theological figures in the Catholic tradition who stated the same thing include the following who are all canonized saints (I mention this, not to impute to them infallibility on the following, but to show that this is the predominant position in Catholicism):

Peter Damian (1007-1072): "If it does not suffice for you that not only the mother is a virgin, there remains the belief of the Church that he who served as the father is also a virgin" (Filas, 99).

Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274) used no uncertain terms is decrying the Epiphanian view as "false; for if the Lord did not wish his virgin mother to be entrusted to the care of anyone but a virgin [John], how could he have suffered that her spouse was not a virgin, and as such would have persisted?" (Ad Galatas, 1.19).

Notice also the following from commentators on Joseph and devotion thereto:

As Fr Paul K. Raftery, O.P. wrote:

Both St. Peter Damian’s statement and St. Thomas’ insistence on the falsehood of the apocryphal legend show how fully St. Joseph’s virginity has been accepted into Church teaching. ("Theology for the Laity," The Rosary Light & Life, 54/4, 2001

Pope John Paul II assumes Joseph's virginity in his Redemptoris Custosin which he states:

The Savior began the work of salvation by this virginal and holy union, wherein is manifested his all-powerful will to purify and sanctify the family - that sanctuary of love and cradle of life."

If Joseph had other children from a previous marriage, his bond with Mary could certainly be called "celibate" (or “chaste”) but just as certainly not "virginal."

While the Epiphanian view is allowable in Roman Catholicism, the position has been rejected by many Catholic theologians and modern defenders of Catholic Mariology, and this can be seen how in Catholic devotion to Joseph assumes his being a virgin when he married Mary, not that he remained a chaste spouse with Mary merely.

For those interested, the best book defending the Epiphanian view of the brothers/sisters of Jesus is that of Eastern Orthodox priest and scholar, Laurent Cleenewerck’s book:


For a discussion of the perpetual virginity of Mary, see Chapter 4: The Perpetual Virginity of Mary, pp. 83-138 of my book, Behold the Mother of My Lord: Towards a Mormon Mariology (2017). I have put the PDF of the book up on my Google Sites website for free here.

I will note that I have told Trent Horn I would happily engage with him in a debate (or plural debates). I would happy debate Trent (or any Catholic apologist) on the Perpetual Virginity (or Immaculate Conception) (and yes, I would happily defend LDS theology, too, such as divine embodiment, plurality of gods, etc;) I know my friend Kwaku El has said he is open to debating Trent (as well as Patrick Madrid), and so am I (and I say this as the LDS apologist, next perhaps only to Blake Ostler on certain topics, who is the most well-read in Catholic theology and probably the most well-read in modern Catholic apologetics).