Saturday, 8 August 2015

Mary



Born: Circa 20 BC
Died: Unknown but probably between 33 and 50 AD.

FatherJoachim 
Mother: Anne
Sibling: Elizabeth
Children: Jesus, James, Joses, Judas, Simon and two daughters whose names are unknown.

Ethnicity: Jewish (Judean)
Jobs: A mother of at least seven children.

Mary was born in about the year 20 BC but the exact year is far from certain. She was brought up in either the region of Judea (a fair assumption because of her ancestry) or Galilee (a fair assumption because that`s where she raised her children.)

We have no early records of her life until a first center biography that focuses on the life of Jesus commonly called `Luke` says that she was pledged in marriage to a man named Joseph.

Mary is said to have been visited by an angel:

“Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.” The angels says to her. 
`This troubles Mary and she`s unsure about the greeting message.
The angel continues on: 
“Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God. You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High.The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.”
She asks how this can be, noting that she is a virgin. 
“The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be unable to conceive is in her sixth month. For no word from God will ever fail.”
“I am the Lord’s servant, may your word to me be fulfilled.”

She hurries to the region of Judea to visit her sister Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard her greeting she said ``Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the child you will bear! But why am I so favored, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? As soon as the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. Blessed is she who has believed that the Lord would fulfill his promises to her!” 
At this it's reported that Mary sings a song, which can be read here

She stays with Elizabeth for three months and then returns to her home.

Some time later while she and Joseph are staying in Bethlehem (a city a few miles south of Jerusalem) that's when Jesus is born.

We hear again about Mary twelve years later when her family travels to Jerusalem for the Passover. as they did every year. But this time Jesus is left behind. After about a day of travelling,  on their way back to Nazareth (which has become their hometown) they noticed Jesus was missing. After three days of searching she finds her son having a conversation with the teachers of the Torah in the Temple courts. Her son impresses them.

"Son, why have you treated us like this? Your father and I have been anxiously searching for you.” 
Mary asks, to which the young Jesus replies: 
“Why were you searching for me? Didn’t you know I had to be in my Father’s house?”

She doesn't understand what He means, but as Jesus grows up Mary treasures the events in her heart.

Eighteen years pass and this time Mary is worried about her son again as are His brothers. Jesus has become preaching, teaching and healing which has caused large crowds to follow Him. They're constantly surrounding Jesus which causes Jesus's family to say "He's lost His mind."

Again Mary is mentioned in the earliest of the Gospels as being watching Jesus as He was dying. She had likely come to Jerusalem for the Passover even in her old age (fifty was considered old for her time.) 

According to the latest first century Gospel Jesus spoke to His mother on the cross:
"Woman, here is your son" and He tells one of His disciples "Here is your mother." That disciple took care of her. She is, at this point very likely a widow. She watched her son fade away after suffering the cross for three hours. Then her beloved son's body fell limb. She saw where Jesus's tomb would be and may have remained in Jerusalem instead of heading back to Jerusalem. 

The last mention of her comes from the first early church history written by a fellow named Luke. It reads as follows: 

Then the apostles returned to Jerusalem from the hill called the Mount of Olives, a Sabbath day’s walk from the city. When they arrived, they went upstairs to the room where they were staying. Those present were Peter, John, James and Andrew; Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew; James son of Alphaeus and Simon the Zealot, and Judas son of James. They all joined together constantly in prayer, along with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brothers.

When, where or how Mary died is very much unclear. The Greek Orthodox and Roman Catholic church both hold that Mary ascended bodily into Heaven. Some use a vision in the book of Revelation to try to support the claim, the passage used can be read here

Timeline:

Circa 20 BC: Mary is born.

4 BC-6 AD: Jesus, her best known son is born while she`s in Bethlehem.

8-18 AD: Mary is hurt by her son after she leaves the Passover pilgrimage without Him.

April 3, 33 AD: Her son Jesus is crucified.

May of 33 AD: Mary prays with Jesus`s apostles and her sons.

33-50 AD: Mary dies living to be at least 53 (probably.)

No comments:

Post a Comment