How old were Mary and Joseph when they had Jesus?

Wow! That is an awesome question! And it’s also kind of a tricky one to answer because the Bible never really says how old they were. However, we do get an idea by doing a word study on the words that describe Mary from Matthew 1:23 which reads, “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel.”

The word “virgin” here is the Greek word “parthenos” which literally means, “A marriageable maiden” as well as its other meaning (go ask your mom!). Matthew 1:23 is referencing the words of the prophet Isaiah of the Old Testament and helps us get a slightly better idea of her age. Isaiah 7:14 says, “Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.”

In this instance, the word “virgin” is the Hebrew word “almah.” The word “almah” means a young, woman of marriageable age. Based on cultural norms of the day, historians have now assumed that Mary was likely somewhere between the ages of 13 and 15.

There is absolutely no information on Joseph regarding his age anywhere in the Bible. What we do know of Joseph was that he was a carpenter, which leads many to believe he was older because he already had a trade. But to definitively say that Joseph was 18 or 20 or 25 would only be conjecture.

Joseph was likely older than Mary but what age difference, we just don’t know.

Why do Catholics pray to Mary and to God?

That is a great question! First, we need to understand that Catholics are Christians and believe that Jesus is the Son of God and that He died on the cross for our sins and was resurrected and lives today in Heaven with God. The difference is that they have certain practices that have become tradition based on their interpretation of certain parts of the Bible.

Let me start by asking you a question: Have you ever asked a parent or friend or even your pastor to pray for you? Or, have you ever prayed for someone asking God to help them? Well, when someone prays for you, they are interceding for you. Interceding is just a big word that means “acting on behalf of someone.”

When Catholics pray to Mary, they are asking Mary to intercede for them and to pray to Jesus for them. It’s like asking your pastor to pray for you.

Catholics are not worshipping Mary; they are simply praying to her and asking her to pray to Jesus for them. Catholics absolutely do not believe praying to Mary is a direct petition to God.

I know…it’s very confusing. But, if you look at the definition of “pray” in the Dictionary, most definitions never use the word “worship” to define prayer. In fact, Webster’s Dictionary defines the word “pray” this way:

• To utter a petition to God
• To make a fervent request or plead
• To beseech or implore
• To make a devout or earnest request for

That’s why Catholics pray to Mary…they are pleading, beseeching, imploring her to pray to Jesus for them.