The Illegitimacy of Jesus: A Feminist Theological Interpretation of the Infancy Narratives

Jane Schaberg's 1990 book is subtitled "A Feminist Theological Interpretation of the Infancy Narratives". Her thesis is that "texts dealing with the origin of Jesus...originally were about an illegitimate conception and not about a miraculous virginal conception... [and this fact] was lost to Christians, but it was passed on and developed in Jewish circles (1-2)." The book is divided into 3 major sections: Matthew, Luke, and pre- and post-gospel traditions (Acts of Pilate, Gospel of Thomas, Rabbinic literature, and early Christians such as Justin, Irenaues, and Tertullian) followed by a brief epilogue and extensive notes. Unfortunately there is no reference list and no index. The chapter on Matthew discusses his inclusion of "the four women" in his geneology of Jesus. While this issue has been discussed ad infinitum, Schaberg provides not only an extensive discussion, but a provocative one as well. She gets side-tracked by her own feminist concerns, but it is a side track that is interesting to pursue. She points out that all four "find themselves outside patriarchal family structures...are wronged or thwarted by the male world...risk damage to the social order [through their sexual activity]..." and "the situation of all four are righted by the actions of men who acknowledge guilt and/or accept responsibility for them (32-33)." It's an interesting analysis,. but doesn't add much to the discussion of Mary, as Schaberg readily admits. Continuing with Matthew, she reviews the evidence vis-a-vis the mistaken geneology which she attributes to the illegitimacy (rather than Matthew's errors, of which they are many) or to the idea that Jesus is 13th and 14th (as Christ) in descent. Matthew's nativity scene (18-24) she insists is proof of the illegitimacy claim, at which point she goes into an extended section about the difference between rape and seduction according to Jewish law and customs in the 1st Century. Her discussion is scholarly and interesting, though hardly to her point. Next she turns to Luke, which is the largest section in the book. Herein she tends to ramble (as does Luke) and this is probably her weakest section. The 3rd section concerns pre and post gospel sources, and here the most data for her claim is present. Schaberg sees hints of Jesus' illegitimacy in John 8:41 ("We were not born of fornication") as well as John 7:53-8:11 (the adulteress). She claims Mark 6:3 ("son of Mary") is another veiled hint, yet she says "There is no certain evidence that the practice of identifying an illegitimate son by the name of his mother prevailed in first century Judaism (p. 161)." She quotes the Gospel of Thomas (v 105) "son of a harlot" to help make her case. She finds accusations in the Acts of Pilate (2:3) although she acknowledges that the claim is nullified by witnesses. She refers to Origen's Against Celsus to raise the Jewish slanders, yet she seems unaware that we have no Celus manuscripts to peruse. Finally, she settles into the

Schaberg's viewpoint is profoundly and philosophically spiritual. The book makes an excellent Christmas gift for those who want to renew their belief in the deep spiritual meaning of Jesus's origins and his ascendance.