Born of a Virgin, Risen from the Dead
Did these things really happen?
Main teaching: De fide
The big question
The Creed says Jesus was “born of the Virgin Mary” and “rose again on the third day”. Many people today assume these are stories with a spiritual meaning, not events that happened. Does the Church say they really happened? And is there any reason to think so?
What the Church teaches
Christ was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit in the womb of the Virgin Mary, without a human father (Apostles’ Creed; Constantinople I, DH 150; Lateran Synod, 649, DH 503; CCC 496–498).
Christ truly died, descended to the dead, and on the third day rose again bodily from the dead (Creed; Lateran IV, DH 801; CCC 631–658).
Christ ascended into heaven, body and soul, and is seated at the right hand of the Father (Creed; CCC 659–667).
How sure is this? De fide. All four are articles of the Apostles’ Creed.
Where it comes from
The virginal conception. Both Matthew and Luke, writing independently, state it. In Luke, Mary asks the angel, “How can this be, since I have no husband?”, and is told, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you” (Luke 1:34–35). Matthew tells it from Joseph’s side, and sees in it the fulfilment of Isaiah: “Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son” (Matthew 1:18–25; Isaiah 7:14).
The Resurrection. St Paul hands on to the Corinthians a summary of the faith he himself received, probably within a few years of the crucifixion: that Christ died, was buried, was raised on the third day, and appeared to Peter, to the Twelve, to more than five hundred at once, to James and to all the apostles, and last to Paul himself (1 Corinthians 15:3–8). He is blunt about what is at stake: “if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain” (1 Corinthians 15:14).
The Gospels insist the risen Christ was not a ghost: “See my hands and my feet, that it is I myself; handle me, and see; for a spirit has not flesh and bones as you see that I have” (Luke 24:39).
The Ascension. Forty days after the Resurrection, “as they were looking on, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight” (Acts 1:9).
The early Church. St Ignatius of Antioch (about 110) wrote that he knew and believed that Christ was in the flesh even after the Resurrection. St Justin Martyr (died about 165) defended the virgin birth in his debates with Jewish and pagan critics.
How theologians explain it
What the virginal conception means. The virginal conception is a sign that Jesus is the Son of God, with God as his only Father, and that his coming is a new beginning for humanity, God’s initiative and not a human achievement (CCC 502–505). It is not a claim that sex is bad or that God could not have become man in another way. It is the way God chose, and it points to who Jesus is.
The evidence for the Resurrection. The Resurrection cannot be proved like a theorem, but the historical evidence is strong:
| Fact | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| The early creed in 1 Corinthians 15 | It dates the belief to within a few years of the events, too soon for a legend to grow |
| The empty tomb, first found by women | Women’s testimony carried little weight in that society; an invented story would not have made them the first witnesses |
| Appearances to many people, singly and in groups | Including to over five hundred at once, and to sceptics like James |
| The transformation of the disciples | Frightened men became bold preachers who were willing to die rather than deny what they had seen |
| The conversion of Paul | A persecutor of Christians became their leading missionary |
The alternative explanations each struggle. If the body was stolen, why were the disciples willing to die for what they would have known was a lie? If the appearances were hallucinations, they would not explain the empty tomb, and hallucinations do not normally occur to groups. If Jesus did not really die, a half-dead man could hardly have convinced anyone he had conquered death.
What kind of body? The risen Christ is not a resuscitated corpse, like Lazarus, who later died again. His body is real, can be touched and eats, but it is glorified: no longer subject to death, suffering, or the limits of space and time (CCC 645–646). It is the first instance of what all the just will share in the resurrection (Unit 11).
The descent and the Ascension. “He descended to the dead” means that Christ really died, and that his soul went to the realm of the dead to bring salvation to the just who had died before him (CCC 632–635; 1 Peter 3:19). The Ascension is not a journey into outer space, but the entry of Christ’s humanity into the glory of God, where he intercedes for us and from where he will come again (CCC 659–667).
Philosophy bridge
The philosophy course explains natural causes and why nature acts regularly. A miracle does not “break” a law of nature. It is an effect that natural causes could not produce and that only God, the first cause, brings about directly. The Resurrection is the greatest of these.
What the Church does not claim
- Not that the virginal conception is the same as the Immaculate Conception. The virginal conception is about how Jesus was conceived; the Immaculate Conception is about Mary being preserved from original sin from her own conception (Lesson 7.2).
- Not that the Resurrection is a metaphor for the disciples’ faith. The Church teaches a real, bodily, historical event, which caused the disciples’ faith.
- Not that the risen Jesus was a ghost or a vision. He had a real, glorified body.
- Not that the Ascension was space travel. It was Christ’s entry, body and soul, into God’s glory.
Check your understanding
- What do Matthew and Luke both teach about Jesus’ conception?
Show answer
That he was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit in the womb of the Virgin Mary, without a human father.
- Why is 1 Corinthians 15:3–8 important historical evidence for the Resurrection?
Show answer
Because it is a summary of the faith that Paul himself received, dating to within a few years of the crucifixion. It lists named witnesses, including more than five hundred people at once, too early for a legend to have grown.
- Why does the fact that women were the first witnesses of the empty tomb count in favour of the story’s truth?
Show answer
Because women’s testimony carried little weight in that society. Someone inventing the story would not have chosen them as the first witnesses.
- How was Christ’s risen body different from Lazarus’s body after he was raised?
Show answer
Lazarus was brought back to ordinary life and later died again. Christ’s risen body is real but glorified: no longer subject to death, suffering, or the usual limits of space and time.
- What does the Ascension mean, if not a journey into space?
Show answer
The entry of Christ’s humanity, body and soul, into the glory of God, where he intercedes for us and from where he will come again.