Christian churches and theologians traditionally hold that Jesus never married and remained celibate until his death. However, this has not prevented alternative and fringe theories of his sexuality, as the gospels and the rest of the New Testament do not focus on the subject.
Background
Jewish sexual norms In first century Judaea, sexual immorality in Second Temple Judaism included incest, impure thoughts, homosexual relations, adultery, and bestiality. According to the rabbinic interpretation of Genesis 2:24, "a man shall leave his father and his mother" forbids a man from having relations with his father's wife and his own biological mother; "cleave to his wife" forbids a man from having more than one wife, or having relations with another woman; and "they shall become one flesh" forbids a man from having relations with non-human beings (such as animals). Jesus states in the gospels that he came "not to abolish, but to fulfill the law", and at his various trials, no one could testify that Jesus broke them (Matthew 5:17, Matthew 26:59–60).
Corporeal genitalia Christ is ascribed a male human body during his time on Earth, including a set of male genitalia. The Circumcision is a major event of the early life of Jesus, originally described in Luke as taking place shortly before the Presentation at the Temple in accordance with the Jewish law followed by Mary and Joseph. The Holy Prepuce, or foreskin, removed from Jesus's body is a major Christian relic and is described by one scholar as representing a focus on the humanity of Jesus. Beginning in the 13th century, European art would break with Christian tradition of hiding Jesus's genitalia using clothing and composition, instead depicting Christ with a visible or even physically erect phallus. This "display of the genitals" was coined in art scholarship as the ostentatio genitalium, mirroring the ostentatio vulnerum, or "display of the wounds", during the Passion.
Celibacy Mainstream Christian thinking typically assumes Jesus to have remained celibate and without a defined sexuality, living a pious life free from sins such as lust or fornication.
Eunuchdom In the Gospel of Matthew 19:3–12, Jesus is reported to have referred to the behavior of eunuchs to illustrate a desirable approach to sexuality: "For there are some eunuchs, which were so born from their mother's womb: and there are some eunuchs, which were made eunuchs of men: and there be eunuchs, which have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven's sake." The term "eunuch" normally referred to a castrated man. Several theologians and Bible commentators have interpreted this passage as indicating Jesus's support for complete celibacy. The early Christian writer Origen who was purported to have interpreted Jesus' words literally, was alleged by Eusebius to have castrated himself as an act of devotion. The early Church Father Tertullian wrote that Jesus himself lived as a "eunuch", likewise encouraged people to adopt this practice.
Heterosexuality
Mary Magdalene
The non-canonical 3rd-century Gospel of Philip, using Coptic variants of the Greek κοινωνός (koinōnos), describes Jesus' relationship with Mary Magdalene. The gospel uses cognates of koinōnos and Coptic equivalents to refer both to the literal pairing of men and women in marriage and sexual intercourse, but also metaphorically, referring to a spiritual partnership, and the reunification of the Gnostic Christian with the divine realm. The Gospel of Philip mentions Mary Magdalene as one of three women named Mary "who always walked with the Lord" (Philip 59.6–11). The work also says that the Lord loved her more than all the disciples, and used to kiss her often (Philip 63.34–36). Author John Dickson argues that it was common in early Christianity to kiss a fellow believer by way of greeting (1 Peter 5:14), thus such kissing would have no romantic connotations. Professor of philosophy and religion Jeffrey J. Kripal writes that "the historical sources are simply too contradictory and simultaneously too silent" to make absolute declarations regarding Jesus' sexuality. Bart Ehrman, a scholar of the Greek New Testament and early Christianity, concludes that historical evidence says nothing at all about Jesus' sexuality—"certainly nothing to indicate that Jesus and Mary had a sexual relationship of any kind". Ehrman says that the question people ask him most often is whether Mary Magdalene and Jesus of Nazareth married each other (after the claim was popularized in The Da Vinci Code):
It is not true that the Dead Sea Scrolls contained Gospels that discussed Mary and Jesus. ... Nor is it true that the marriage of Mary and Jesus is repeatedly discussed in the Gospels that didn't make it into the New Testament. In fact, it is never discussed at all—never even mentioned, not even once. ... It is not true that the Gospel of Philip calls Mary Jesus' spouse.
Polygamy
Early Latter Day Saints Apostle Orson Hyde taught that Jesus was a polygamist who was married to Mary Magdalene, Martha, and Mary of Bethany, and fathered children with them. He also taught that the marriage at Cana was Jesus' own wedding. This idea is not official LDS doctrine, although it has entered into Mormon folklore.
Homosexuality
Disciple whom Jesus loved
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