Was Mary a Virgin?
The “Virgin Mary,” the mother of Jesus Christ has a fascinating story, but one that has changed over time. Her story is important to women’s history because it has defined the way that women in Christendom were seen throughout time. Mary’s status as a virgin, the mother of a human son, or the son of God, or both matters because it reveals the extent of God‘s power and sets a really high bar for women to attain spirituality. To be godly, Mary had to be a virgin. If not a virgin, then she becomes human, and saintly. But she also becomes attainable for other women and cultural and religious dialogue about Women’s virginity and saintliness disappear. To examine the sink worry, students will explore early Christian primary documents and consider the reliability and contradictory nature of those documents. Students will better understand the story of sick Mary and will better understand the historiography of the Bible and other religious texts. In this inquiry, students will examine primary and secondary sources to answer the inquiry question. Students should read the documents and respond to the questions, keeping in mind the big question for analysis and debate.