(September 19, 2016 at 12:59 pm)Minimalist Wrote:(September 19, 2016 at 7:50 am)SenpaiNoticeMeYouBlindShmuck Wrote: For most protestants yes, however older branches like Catholics, Coptics and Eastern Orthodox; most of them believe in the "perpetual virginity of Mary". This is mostly because, Catholics moreso than the others, consider marriage to be a sacrament and mostly indissoluble.
But only since the 12th century. Including marriage as a sacrament seems to have been a reaction to the Albigensian Crusade against the Cathars.
Do you know where might be a good place for me to start reading about this area Min? I do find the whole Gnostic episode during the middle ages fascinating, and I have talked about this area with believers before, who usually resort to the traditional defense of "It was always a sacrament, we just never officially defined it".
I know marriage was shunned as an option for lesser believers in some sections of the "Early Church", there were some extremes not taken on by all like St Jerome's decree that sex within marriage was fornication that would damn people to hell but I don't really know much that outright defines it. I know there's evidence to show marriages never took place within Churches during the first few centuries for most people, but I'd love to know more about what they actually thought marriage was.
