The Sun.
London, England, 1856-04-29 00:00:00

FACTS,

I. Marriage with a deceased- wife's-sister is nowhere pro-
.bibited in express words of Scripture, and the Jews under-
stood their law as permitting it. - •• - •
11.. The Jewish interpretation of the Levitial prohibitions
was never condemned by our Saviour, though their errors ou
divorce and other matrimonial subjects were so remarkably
denounce sl by him. •
-}rt:ivia,.,4**'ettantritottmo3low Testatneut- to authierfSery
an extension of the Levitical prohibitions.
.
IV. Marriage with a deceased wife's sister is notknown to
haVe been. prohibited in any age or nation before the fourth
century of the Christian era.
V. The marriage of priests has been condemned, or prohi-
bited, by the . same Ecclesiastical authorities over a wider
,space, and during a longer period,• than the marriage with a
deceased wife's sister.
VI. Iu all Christian countries, the ancient restrictions
upon this marriage have gradually been relaxed, and in most
'entirely removed, in modern times.
VII. This marriage may be celebrated, by dispensation or
otherwise, in every country in the world, except England and
Ireland, and the Greek Church in Russia. .
VIII. This marriage is perinitted among 700,000,000 of the
human face. •
IX. In no country has it been proved that the permission
of this marriage has been attended with injurious conse-
quences.
X. Thousands of such marriages have been contracted in
this country. They are found in almost every fown and
neighbourhood iii the kingdom.
XI. Numerous clergymen of the Church of England, in
crading nearly 400 of those resident in the metropolis, have
petitioned for the removal of this restriction.
XII. More than 250 clergymen of the Church in Ireland
have expressed a conviction that these marriages ought to be
made lawful.
XIII.' Protestant Dissmters regard the permission of this
marriage as Scriptural and expedient.
XIV. The Roman Catholic Church. does not regard this
marriage as forbidden in Scripture.
XV. The Greek Church permits these marriages to Chris-
tians of ether churches.

OPINIONS.
" But has it never occurred to
.you, my dear Wynn, that
this law is an abominable relic of ecclesiastical tyranny ? Of
all second marriages, I have no hesitation in sayi .g that these
are the most suitable,, and likely to be the most frequent, if
the law did not sometimes prevent them. It is quite mon-
strous, judges and lawyers Speaking as they have done of
lite upon the subject.."—Robert Southey.
" All and every such marriage within this Church of_Eng-
land as shall be contracted between lawful persons (as by this
Act we declare all persons to be lawful that be not prohibited
by God's law to marry) shall be lawful, good, just, and indis-
soluble," &c.-32 Henry VIII., c. 38.
" Centuries of mistake as to the validity of the marriages in
question will not render them invalid."- —Mr. Justice Eric, in
84. .

" The prohibition of taking two sisters was meant for the
lifetime :only."—Milton.
" These .persons alone Of relatives by affinity) has God for
bidden to me : the wife of my uncle, my sou's wife, my bro-
ther's wife, my wife's daughter, the children of my .wife's son
or daughter,' the - sister of my wife, while my isife is living.
With none of these can Leontract matrimony, with the rest I
may, even without paying money'for a dispensa' ion ; as with
the sister of my espoused or married wife, when_the latter has
departed this life, with the daughter
,of the brother, of my
wife, with the daughter of the uncle of my wife, and with any
other of my wife's cousins, nieces, or relatives."—Luther.
" The union of husband and wife is of Divine right, which
is binding, however contrary it may be to human laws, and
the laws of men ought to yield to it without reserve. For if I
a man leaves father and mother to cleave to his wife, how
much rather shall he trample under foot the contemptible .!
and unjust laws-of-men, and cleave to.hi§:Wif.ol And popex-.
bishop, or officer, if he diss,.dve any marriage contracted in
opposition to merely human law, is antichrist, a vio'ator of
nature, a traitor against the Divine Majcsty ; for that sen-
tenee still stands—' What God hatli joined, let no man put
asunder.' Perish, therefore, those cursed traditions of men,
which have been brought in only to multiply dangers, of-
fences, and .miseries in the Church.'—Luther.
" In her life time,' because when she was dead he might
marry her sister."—Menochits.
" In her life time.' This sufficiently indicates that he
permitted it when the wife was dead, otherwise than in the
case of two brothers."—Jansenins.

" The ancient Roman law permitted the marriage of two
sisters in succession."—Heineecius.

" Thou shalt not marry twb sisters at the same time, as
Jacob did Rachel aud.•Leah, but there is nothing in this law
that rendered it illegal to marry a sister-in-law when her
sister was dead."—Dr. Adam Clarke,
Though it is certain that the case of marriage be'ween
brother and sister-in-law came before our Saviour (Matthew
xxii., 24), yet we do not And that, He spake ono word against
i t,"—Fry .

• c, No man has examined this subject more diligently than
Fry, the author of a .pamphlet which you justly commend,
and you see my opinion perfectly coincides with his."—Sir
William Jones. " • '
" I have read over the 18th chapter of Leviticus in He-
brew, with a view to discover the true meaning of the words
which you desire me to interpret ; and I have examined all
the,passages that I could find, in the h'stoiical and prophe-
tical parts of Scripture, in which the same expression occurs.
The phrase of uncovering the nakedness' is literally trans-
lated from the Hebrew. It is surprising that the chapter
before us should ever have been taken for the law of mar-
riage, since it is apparent that all the laws contained in that
chapter relate only to the impure lusts and obscene rites of
the Egyptians and Canaanites, to the abominable customs
awnhdo or d, no a
enxctei
rs
p,
aa
ts e
dtl
be
yy
tai •ee ceahlel es
eda, opfe
et d oTlahtersoeusd
eniantgi
so nasr,e
enumerated with a special law against each of them ; and,
lastly,
in
the i generalese
things,comfme
theser in all iesiui
11.0ataed y
he
"—Sir v
things
fie l coe not
nationsyour-
selves
you.'
defiled which I cast out before
resumed—'
—alioA,lritgeihoebndisoildfletnploiviet
;g
restriction ° '
u
measure marriageas af
which
approvinglllhniagymeoana lalonuf Jones.yd
" You are at liberty to refer thee.
di-
rect scriptural command or precept. 'He could'' Rot bring
himself to understand even the passages from the Old Testa-
ment which-had cams under discussion that night as pro-
hibiting the marriage of a man with his deceased wife's
sister." "At the same time I admit that the existing law
does press unfairly upon E01110013Oipi!s of the community.
irosn o n the moral Iwtedsoheosuilede seem
uht:aarnd
interpretation
psia.
evtoalti religiousm o7.iinitat intolerance,
Jewsthat
eblatsel:relmhis
Germans)aadcradP
59,118 toleration—if be measurehadabclldaeimbeydite.xemlfpttiohne
fel
alai
an ofn t these
have lawsbee
been
s
noblecontraryprinciple
e ar
earl (St.
rteh lei
giri
on the broad
for the Jews, or for any other body of religionists besides
them,reli
indisposed to sup-
ontraryto their
gi religious nmeat sy—clo-sml
sup-
port the biil."—Bishop of Norwich's Speech, I
" The view which we bad heard taken in that House
respecting the operation of Scripture must, after all; be a
applying
mere matter of inference and construction ; and
himself to that view of the subject, lie should say that such
marriages as the Bill was intended to legalise were no •t •
pio-
hibited, but were tacitly permitted by the words
of the
chapter which had been so often quoted. Ho protested
against the opinions expressed by these who contended that
there existed any Divine prohibition• -- 73'" ' •
wimp of St. David's
Speech, -1851.
" The petition was probably entrusted to me in conse-
quence of my having declared, without hesitation, that the
marriage of a sister of a deceased wife was not prohibited by
the Levitical law."=The late Bishop of Llandafr •
" So far as the poor are concerned, I believe that an alte-
ration in the present law is much to be desired."—.The Hon.
and Right Rev. the Bishop of Bath and Wells (Loud Auck-
land.)
I admit that marriage with a wife's sister is et for-
bidden in Leviticus. —The late Bishop of London. 11
I know of no social disadvantages attending on such mar-
riages.' The apprehensions expressed in England ou this head
arc entirely dissipated by our experience."—Right Rev.
Bishop Burgess, Maine, United States. •
" Such marriages, I apprehend, are nearly as f • iequent as
the circumstances which usually give rise to them. I have
known several cases, and they created no surprise, nor did
they receive any censure from public opinion, I have not
known any social disadvantages attending such marriages."
_Right Rev. Bishop M'llvaine, Ohio, 'United States.
‘• I am not one of those who hold that such marriages are
forbidden by Scripture. They are permitted by the laws of
Pennsylvania. Several have occurred within the sphere of
my acquaintance ; and I am not aware that any special dis-
advantages, social pr domestic, have resulted from them,"_,_,
Right Rev. Bishop Potter, PennsylVania, United States.
Bishop Moore, the predecessor or Bishop Hobart, was
distinguished as rubrical and canonical, and, I may say, cot.-
rectly evangelical ; yet this species of marriage met his full
sanction ; nor did I ever hear one word of disapprobation ex-
pressed in regard to this matrimonial connexion."—Rev. Dr.
Barry, New Jersey, United States.
" My opinion is certainly in favour of the relaxation of the
law prohibiting the marriage of a widower to his late wife's
sister."—Chancellor. Martin, of the Diocese of Exeter.
" I have no doubt that according to Leviticus, xvii , 18
(Fre
brew and English), marriage with a deceased wife's aster
's permitted."—Dr. M'Caul, Prebendary of St. Paul's, and
Professorlof Divinity Kina's
• College.
" Are you of opinion that there is any prohibition in Scrip-
ture against such marriages 1 "No; I am quite satisfied of
the contrary. "—Evidence of Rev. J. Garbett, Hon. Canon of
Worcester.
" From all I have been able to learn on the question,
'whether a man may marrya deceased wife's sister,' any opin-
ion is, that neither does Holy Scripture anywhere. forbid it,
nor ever did the Jews,"—Rev._Dr. (late Professor) Lee.
" He. asked them to reflect that the parting request
of Many a dying wife was, that -the man should mar 7 her
sister, which was the best testimony to the feeling of woman
in this matter. Subic-marriages were not repugnant to na-
turenor to Scripture.; and, if they did but look calmly at
p these facts, sure ho Was that the day was not far distant
wholl this law yreuld /0 repealed."--Speech of