Film claims Virgin Mary raped

2002-12-23 14:39

Rome - Vatican officials have slammed a documentary by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) alleging that the Virgin Mary was a downtrodden teenager who might have conceived Jesus Christ as a result of being raped, the Rome-daily La Repubblica reported on Monday.

Cardinal Martins Jose Saraiva, Prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, described the controversial documentary broadcast in Britain on Sunday night as "nonsense".

"These are old stories that resurface from time to time and which have never found any historical support," said Cardinal Saraiva quoted in La Repubblica.

"Giving prominence to such legends only falsifies the truth," the cardinal said. "As a Christian, I am especially mortified by the fact that such rubbish was aired on the eve of Christmas."

'Offensive speculation'

The BBC documentary questioned the popular belief that Mary was a blue-eyed virgin and raised other doubts concerning the birth of Jesus in a stable in Bethlehem.

It reported claims put forward by a second-century historian, who alleged she was raped by a Roman centurion. Another version of events that was given more weight by the programme alleged that she was a hard-working, dark-haired uneducated teenager who might have conceived Jesus ahead of an arranged marriage with Joseph.

The programme had already been criticised by some Catholic prelates in Britain, who described it as "offensive speculation".

But according to a survey carried out by the Sunday Telegraph, the traditional account is also openly questioned by members of the Church of England clergy.

The paper surveyed 500 clergymen and women and found that 27 per cent of them did not believe in the divine conception of Jesus. - Sapa-DPA

- SAPA