Ancient Script Points to Jesus Having a Wife
Harvard professor Karen King reveals an ancient script that points to Jesus possibly having a wife. The scrap of papyrus is the size of a receipt and contains 33 words and incomplete sentences.
King who is a well-known historian of ancient Christianity at Harvard says the document is a conversation between Jesus and his disciples. Jesus refers to “My wife…” but the sentence is cut off. The fragmented script also says “she will be able to be my disciple.”
However, many questions still surround the so-called Gospel of Jesus’ Wife, which is reportedly from the fourth century. It’s still unclear where the papyrus came from. This raises some red flags among many scholars.
The papyrus belongs to an anonymous collector who asked King to examine its authenticity. According to King, three other scholars have analyzed the script and found that it is not a forgery. There are still further tests to conduct on the script, including an ink analysis.
Could this new-found document change traditional views of Christianity? According to King, this document may spark debate over issues about marriage, celibacy, and family. These ancient assumptions underlie the Roman Catholic Church’s all-male, unmarried priesthood. On the other hand, King acknowledges that Jesus may have been speaking figuratively. Church metaphors commonly refer to God’s followers as the “bride of Christ.”
Debate continues as to the authenticity of the papyrus. Roland Meynet, a biblical scholar from Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome, brings up the Gospel of Judas which “made a lot of noise on newspapers, but was then revealed as a fraud.”
Even if the papyrus is proven to be authentic, could one scrap of paper change thousands of years of Christian faith?
