Joses
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Joses, in Hebrew, means "He that forgives". Joses is one of the brothers of Jesus mentioned in the Gospel of Mark 6:3 and its parallel passage in Matthew 13:54 - 57. Joses is mentioned again in Mark 15:40.
In the Gospel of Mark 6:2-3:
- When the sabbath came he began to teach in the synagogue, and many who heard him were astonished. They said, "Where did this man get all this? What kind of wisdom has been given him? What mighty deeds are wrought by his hands!
- Is he not the carpenter, the son of Mary, and the brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon? And are not his sisters here with us?" And they took offense at him."
The passage is repeated in Matthew, 13:54 - 57, where "Joses" is rendered "Joseph":
- He came to his native place and taught the people in their synagogue. They were astonished and said, "Where did this man get such wisdom and mighty deeds?
- Is he not the carpenter's son? Is not his mother named Mary and his brothers James, Joseph, Simon, and Judas?
- Are not his sisters all with us? Where did this man get all this?"
- And they took offense at him.
The two passages are among the many verses that the two gospels share, drawn apparently from a single source, though there is disagreement over the precise nature of that source, commonly designated the "Q Gospel" ("Q" for Quelle or "source").
The primary meaning of the text would be clear and sufficient, were it not for the dogma of the Perpetual Virginity of Mary, not directly attested in the New Testament, which developed during the 2nd century and later became dogma of the Roman Catholic Church. In the Roman Catholic Encyclopedia, 1908–10, there is no entry for Joses. [1] (http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/j.htm)
The independent other mention of some of these figures is in the description of the Crucifixion in Mark 15:40;
- There were also women looking on afar off: among whom was Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James the less and of Joses, and Salome.
In Acts of the Apostles, when lots are cast for a successor to Judas Iscariot, Matthias is chosen from among those gathered together; the one not chosen was "Joseph called Barsabbas (also known as Justus)". Robert Eisenman has read this shadowy figure as a cloned conflation who represents all the Desposyni— rejected, according to the author of Acts in favor of a Matthias (Eisenman 1997) [2] (http://www.depts.drew.edu/jhc/RPeisenman.html).
See also
Further reading
- Eisenman, Robert 1997. James the Brother of Jesus: The Key to Unlocking the Secrets of Early Christianity and the Dead Sea Scrolls Viking Penguin, 1997, xxxvi + 1074 pp ISBN 0-670-86932-5