Jesus had two children with wife Mary Magdalene, claims new book
Jesus married prostitute Mary Magdalene and fathered two children, according to a new book.
The Daily Mail reported that the authors of The Lost Gospel will focus on a manuscript from 570 AD written in Syriac, a Middle Eastern language related to Jesus' native tongue of Aramaic.
The manuscript has been in the hands of the British Library for the past 20 years and attracted little interest.
However, Israeli-Canadian film-maker Simcha Jacobovici and religious studies professor Barrie Wilson believe the text contains a missing fifth gospel to add to the more familiar four gospels written by Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.
The manuscript reportedly tells the story of the marriage of a couple named Joseph and Aseneth. Photo: Getty Images
According to the Daily Mail, the manuscript tells the story of the marriage of a couple named Joseph and Aseneth.
Jacobovici and Wilson argue that Joseph is actually Jesus and Aseneth is Mary Magdalene.
The text is said to read: "Joseph had intercourse with Aseneth . . . And Aseneth conceived from Joseph and gave birth to Manasseh and his brother Ephraim in Joseph’s house."
Throughout the centuries many people have claimed Jesus and Mary Magdalene had an intimate relationship.
It is major plot point in Dan Brown's best-selling novel The Da Vinci Code also featured in Martin Scorsese's The Last Temptation of Christ.
Jacobovici will present his findings at a conference hosted by the British Library.
