( CNN ) In November 2002 , the world was captivated by the biggest archaeological discovery ever made relating to Jesus : a 2,000 year-old ossuary -- or bone box -- bearing the tantalizing inscription in Aramaic : `` James , son of Joseph , brother of Jesus . '' If it was true , this was the first physical evidence ever found of Jesus ' existence . And yet , if this amazing ossuary was false , then it was one of the greatest forgeries in history . Underlying the question of the authenticity of the ossuary is an even bigger theological problem : whether or not Jesus actually had any brothers . Though the debate 's origins are ancient , the answer still divides Catholics and Protestants . For Catholics , Mary , Joseph and Jesus are a family unit unto themselves . Yet Catholic theology also holds that Jesus was God 's son , born of the virgin -- and that Mary did not give birth to other children , divine or otherwise . 'Finding Jesus ' : John the Baptist Q & A . So who are these `` brothers '' that the Gospel of Mark mentions ? The Rev . James Martin , author of the book `` Jesus : A Pilgrimage , '' calls the relationship between James and Jesus `` very complicated . '' `` He 's called clearly the brother of the Lord , and the Greek uses the common word for brother , '' Martin says . But Catholics also believe in Mary 's perpetual virginity , so Martin surmises that James and the other brothers were Joseph 's children from a prior marriage . `` It makes sense that Joseph would have been older and Mary was younger , so I see them in a sense as stepbrothers . '' Other Catholic scholars see James and Jesus as cousins , an idea that began in the fourth century , when St. Jerome , who translated the Hebrew Bible and the New Testament into Latin , argued the point against the theologian Helvedius , who said Mary and Joseph had other children . 'Finding Jesus ' : Shroud of Turin Q & A . Jerome countered that these children were instead born to Mary of Clopas , Jesus ' aunt . Jerome used his linguistic facility to argue that `` adelphios , '' the Greek word used for Jesus ' brothers and sisters , could refer to cousins , as well as to siblings . Protestants , however , see Jesus ' family as free of ambiguity , with Mary and Joseph having several children . One of them is Jesus -- but the question then becomes , which one ? Ben Witherington III , professor of New Testament Interpretation at Asbury Theological Seminary , offers the Protestant view that Jesus and James were full brothers , with Jesus being the elder . `` The New Testament says nothing about Mary being a perpetual virgin , it says she virginally conceived Jesus , and it certainly implies that she went on to have more children after that , and his brothers and sisters are in fact his brothers and sisters , '' Witherington says . Is Judas in hell ? Jesus is presented as the older brother who leaves the family and walks about in Galilee and Judea , has a ministry and leaves James and the other brothers and sisters in charge of the family , according to the scholar . What 's more contentious for some Protestants , is the fact that Jesus , as the eldest in the family , essentially forsook his obligation as next-in-line to head the family after Joseph died . Instead he followed his divine destiny , as ordained by his father in heaven . 5 things you did n't know about Jesus . That left James to fill the void . Whatever he was -- brother , step-brother or cousin -- we know that James became important in the early Christian church because of his relation to Jesus . Paul , the apostle who transformed the new religion from a local phenomenon into a movement throughout the Roman Empire , says as much in his letter to the Galatians : . `` Then after three years I did go up to Jerusalem to visit Cephas and stayed with him 15 days ; but I did not see any other apostle except James the Lord 's brother . '' James and Peter and Paul were the prime movers of this new faith , with James the leader of the Jesus followers in Jerusalem until he was martyred in 64 CE , forgiving his killers with his last breath , just as his brother Jesus had done . Given his importance to the early Christian Church , why would n't he be connected to his brother , or even stepbrother , on the burial box containing his bones ? Michael McKinley is co-author , with David Gibson , of `` Finding Jesus : Faith . Fact . Forgery . : Six Holy Objects That Tell the Remarkable Story of the Gospels . ''
The Rev . I have a friend who is an atheist Ben Witherington III offers the Protestant view that Jesus and James were full brothers , with Jesus being the elder .