What does the dogma of the Perpetual Virginity of Mary mean?
The dogma of the Perpetual Virginity teaches that Mary was a virgin before, during, and perpetually after the birth of Jesus Christ ('aeiparthenos'). Christ was conceived without human seed by the Holy Spirit. Her virginity is a sign of her undivided consecration to God and the miraculous divine origin of Jesus. When Scripture mentions the 'brothers of Jesus' (Mark 6:3), ancient Hebrew and Aramaic idioms used the term 'brother' for close cousins and kinsmen, as seen throughout the Old Testament.
Sources
- Catechism of the Catholic Church, paragraphs 496-507
- Luke 1:34
Awaiting review by the chaplaincy. Written in our own words; the Church's own texts are the authority.