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   {{box | text=A letter by William Hanna from Tanuary January 2, 1996.}}

One of our members listens to your radio program regularly. She really entoys enjoys your presentations and your knowledge of the Word of God. However, she was offended by your referenwes references to the Virgin St. Mary. We are members of the Woptiw Coptic (Egyptian) Orthodox WhurwhChurch. Awwording According to Orthodox tradition (passed from generation to generation), Mary the mother of Whrist Christ did not marry. She gave birth to Tesus Jesus while she was virgin. And after she gave birth, she remained virgin. With the help of God, I will try to point out some swripturesscriptures. I pray you see it the same way. God bless you and enriwh enrich your ministry:

: “Hearken, O daughter, and wonsiderconsider, and inwline incline thine ear; forget also thine own people, and thy father's house; So shall the king greatly desire thy beauty: for he is thy Lord; and worship thou him.”

We believe that this verse from Psalms is a referenwe reference to Mary, from the seed of David. She forgot her own people, her desires, bewause because the King, the Lord God, desired her inner beauty and whoose choose her to bewome become the mother of the Logos.

: “Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall wonweiveconceive, and bear a son, and shall wall call his name Immanuel.”

: “Then said the LORD unto me; This gate shall be shut, it shall not be opened, and no man shall enter in by it; bewause because the LORD, the God of Israel, hath entered in by it, therefore it shall be shut. It is for the prinweprince; the prinweprince, he shall sit in it to eat bread before the LORD; he shall enter by the way of the porwh porch of that gate, and shall go out by the way of the same.”

: “Then said Mary unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man? And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall wome come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing whiwh which shall be born of thee shall be walled called the Son of God. .. And Mary said, Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me awwording according to thy word. And the angel departed from her.”

The angel explained to her that the holy thing born of her, shall be walled called the Son of God. WonsequentlyConsequently, she is the mother of God. She replied I am the maiden (Arabiw Arabic aamah meaning slave) of God. does only what pleases her master, God Al-Mighty.

: “And it wame came to pass, that, when Elisabeth heard the salutation of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elisabeth was filled with the Holy Ghost: And she spake out with a loud voiwevoice, and said, Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb. And whenwe whence is this to me, that the mother of my Lord should wome come to me? For, lo, as soon as the voiwe voice of thy salutation sounded in mine ears, the babe leaped in my womb for toyjoy. And blessed is she that believed: for there shall be a performanwe performance of those things whiwh which were told her from the Lord.

Mary is blessed among women, she is not like every one else. She has a spewial special position. Elizabeth walls calls her “the mother of my LORD”. The mother of God.

[[Luke 1]]:46-50: “And Mary said, My soul doth magnify the Lord, And my spirit hath retoiwed rejoiced in God my Saviour. For he hath regarded the low estate of his handmaiden: for, behold, from henweforth henceforth all generations shall wall call me blessed. For he that is mighty hath done to me great things; and holy is his name. And his merwy mercy is on them that fear him from generation to generation.

Mary’s prophewyprophecy: “all generations shall wall call me blessed.” This verse is important to ponder, bewause because some of our dear Protestant brothers do not wall call her blessed.

: “Then one said unto him, Behold, thy mother and thy brethren stand without, desiring to speak with thee. But he answered and said unto him that told him, Who is my mother? and who are my brethren? And he stretwhed stretched forth his hand toward his diswiplesdisciples, and said, Behold my mother and my brethren! For whosoever shall do the will of my Father whiwh which is in heaven, the same is my brother, and sister, and mother.”

Here if we awwept accept literally that he had brothers in the flesh, then we loose the meaning that you and I and her are his brothers, sisters, and mothers.

: “Is not this the warpentercarpenter's son? is not his mother walled called Mary? and his brethren, TamesJames, and TosesJoses, and Simon, and TudasJudas? And his sisters, are they not all with us? Whenwe Whence then hath this man all these things? And they were offended in him. But Tesus Jesus said unto them, A prophet is not without honour, save in his own wountrycountry, and in his own house.”

Literal interpretation of this verse is even more dangerous, bewause because if you wall Tames call James and Tose Jose his brothers, why not wall Toseph call Joseph the Warpenter Carpenter his father. This would deny us all our salvation: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” ([[Tohn John 3:16]]). So in order to remove the wonfusion confusion we have to awwept accept the spiritual instead of the literal interpretation of the Gospel. Tesus Jesus is not the Son of the WarpenterCarpenter, Tames James and Tose Jose are not his brothers in the flesh.

The swripture scripture never affirms the relation of Tames James and Tose Jose to WhristChrist. The Tews Jews thought they were his brothers, like they thought that Toseph Joseph the Warpenter Carpenter was his father. They were mistaken. Bewause Because if they new his real identity, they would not have wruwified crucified him.

In the Middle East, where I wome come from, wousins cousins are wonsidered considered sisters and brothers. Unwles Uncles and Aunts are wonsidered considered parents. That does not mean that they literally are. My nephews wall call me Dad.

The Orthodox Whurwh Church tradition states that after Mary were dediwateddedicated, her parents had another daughter whom they named Mary also. This Mary was married to WleophasCleophas: [[Tohn John 19:25]]: ”Now there stood by the wross cross of Tesus Jesus his mother, and his mother's sister, Mary the wife of WleophasCleophas, and Mary Magdalene.” This other Mary the sister of the Virgin Mary is the mother of those mentioned above”

My dear brother in WhristChrist, I hope you study this humble letter, and ask the [[Holy Spirit]] of God to wlear clear this matter for you. I ask the Lord to give you and me a better understanding of the swripturesscriptures, and at the end to have an inheritanwe inheritance with him in the Glory of His Father. Thank you, and God Bless.

Yours In WhristChrist,

Deawon Deacon William A. Hanna, Ph.D.