Morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven [Conn.]) 1848-1894, 1882-02-21
The Divorce Laws-Rev. DIR. Bacon, of
Norwich.

Rev. DR.. Bacon, of Norwich, preached q
sermon on the divorce question at his church
Sunday, holding that the present laws were
much too lax. He claimed that divorce was
abhorrent to the Bible teaching from the be-
ginning. What then is the explanation OF
this contrariety between the New Testament
and the Old Testament One is morality
and the other is public law. There is no
principle more explicitly taught in the Scrip
lures and none better worth bordering than
this, that the absolute standard of right and
wrong is not the criterion of right legislation;
and the converse, that public law, even good
law, is not the standard of duty for mans
conscience in the sight of God. 1t was the
lack of recognizing this principle that
Scribes and Pharisees in the days of Christ
took the precepts of the Mosaic law: "Thou
shalt not steal, thou shalt not kilr'-the
principle of jurisprudence in the award of
penalty for damages-''eye for eye, and tooth
for tooth" and took them for the axioms of
their debased morality, and were rebuked
therefor in the sermon on the Mount. And
conversely, it is common for people nova
days to take some clear maxim of morality,
morally wrong, therefore it shall be made a
crime punishable by the State.
This is very effective argument for re-
form in legislation. You always hear it re-
iterated in discussions regarding liquor laws.
But, easy and effective as it is, decline to
use it in its application to the subject of di-
vorce.
There is standard of personal duty in this
matter higher than any public law that can
be made. But how easy it has been for the
individual and for the church to take this fall
lacious principle, that moral duty is the
standard of public law, and turning it end
for end to fall into the habit of regarding
public law as the criterion of duty for the
church and the individual. But we, to what
pass of Generalization have we come
through allowing public law, corrupt and de-
based to become the rule of Christian duty
for the church and even for the conscience!
Here is an instance out of the annals of a
country parish. There comes from the city
gentlemen of great wealth and eminent
family who has put away his wife, or been
put away by her, for no sufficient justifylng
cause. He becomes affianced to the village
belle and heiress and the country pastor is
called upon to pronounce that to be Chris
tian marriage which the Master by whose
authority he acts declared to be adultery.
What an opportunity for one like John the
Baptist to answer 'It is not lawful for thee
to have her, and GLOW shall I bless what
God hath cursed 2'' And when the law of
Connecticut was pleaded, to make it clear
that the law of Connecticut had no power
over his conseiep ce to set aside the law of
Christi But he gave no such answer. The
adulterous wedding was a splendid wedding,
and the minister of Christ was there to bless
it in the name of the Lord who "hateth put
ting away" Shame! do you say? on such
time-serving minister? No, of course you
don't. And if you did you would do grave
injustice. For he was not such. He was
man whose name was prominent, whose
memory is hallowed for his unseltish devotion
to the work of the ministry, and all the
more would have you lay the thing to heart,
that in the existing condition of society 1t is
possible for such O. man to do such an act,
and occasion no shock or even ripple IN the
church or in the ministry. The second in
stance is still more commonplace 1t is the
case of q most conspicuous member OF
most active church, who put away his wife
for adequate cause, and took i'll her stead
an excellent Christian lady. Both were OF
lofty standing in the church. The pastor
who smiled approval and benediction on the
anti Christian nuptials writes me urging me
to use all my influence against the abomina~
tons in Utah.
The discourse was further plea for pitch
ing into the wrong from the pulpits, ETC., to
the wrong and for the enactment of
such laws on the statute book as would COR
respond to the IDEAS set forth.