Mary, the Mother of Jesus (God)

There seems to be a lot of confusion about Mary among Christians. Many will disagree with what I will claim, but they also disagree based on prejudices and ignorance (not in the negative sense but rather that they have not been given enough information). Mary was vowed to the service of the Lord by her mother, Anne. This meant that she would be raised serving in the temple and living in purity. (Yes, purity means she took vows to be a virgin.) Of course, anyone can discredit this by saying it is not explicitly in the Bible, but without information that is not explicitly in the Bible, much of it would not have been preserved. Also, there is a prominent record, Protoevangelium of James, that describes the history of Mary. It claims Mary required a companion who would protect her virginity. This is where Joseph enters her life. He is said to be an older widower, who already had children. Therefore Jesus would have had STEP-brothers. Another claim about brethren of Jesus is that they were his cousins - in that time they were referred to as brothers. (Personally, I think a family that is close enough to say this about cousins is awesome. I wish it were this way still.) To further support ideas of Mary, her vow was meant to be life-long. You can claim that the Mother of our Savior broke this vow, but I don't think that is the case. (It is more likely that this vow did not exist, which would not change the importance of Mary or the idea that Jesus did not have direct siblings.) For more support, look to the end of the Gospel of John, as Jesus hands her over to his beloved disciple. If she had other sons, they would take care of her. I personally believe Mary died and was then assumed into heaven. It goes without question that she was holy - one devoted to God - so why would she not be assumed into heaven? To put to rest the idea that I would worship anyone other than the Trinity.. "Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death." I've asked plenty of people to pray for me and I do not view this any differently. The Bible says we are surrounded by "a great cloud of witnesses", so my request for prayer is not pointless (Hebrews 12:1). Take it or leave it.. In the end it is most important to just Praise Jesus!!