The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1890-06-26
HOLDS MARRIAGE SINFUL
Tolstoi Stoutly Maintains That the
Marital Relation is Not
Christian.
Christ Did not Marry, nor His Dis
ciples, nor Establish
Marriage.
Chastity and Celibacy the Highest Amb1-
ton of the Human Race--Exttnc-
ton of the Race.

Nrw yoRK. June 25.-Leon Tolstoi. the
great and eccentric novelist mas wrltten 10
a friend in this country in defense OF inc
morals of his new book, in which he says:
.sMv views on the question may be sue
cinct,v stated as follows: Without entering
into detail, it will be generally admitted
that T am accurate in saying that many peo-
n,e condone in young people course of
condnct with regard to the other rex which
;s incomnatible with morality. and that this
d;ssolnteness is pardored generally. Both
parents and governments, III consequence
of this view, may be said to wink at prof1l
oacy. and in the last resort to encourage Its
n,ractica lam of the opinion that this is
rat RIGHT. It is not possible that the health
~ one class should n ecessitate the
min of another. and in conse quence 1t
IS our first duty to turn deaf ear to such
an essentially immoral doctrine. no matter
how strongly society may nave es'a as ~
Unprotected it. Moreover, 1t needs to be
fnliv recognized that men are rightly to be
held responsible for the consequences or
their acts. and that these are no longer to
be visited upon woman alone. 1t follows
from this that it is the duty OF men VINO 90
not wish to live LIE OF lnIamy 10 prac.'oe ",
such confluence in respect to all women as
they would were the female society in which
they move made up exclusively of their own
mothers and sisters. more rational mode
of life should be adopted. which would IN
clude abstinence from intoxicating drinks,
from excess in eating and from flesh meats
on the one band, ana RECOURSE W pAyslcai
labor on the other.
:.In the second place, think that of late
years, through various reasons into which
need not enter, conjngal infideilty has be-
come moro common and IS considered less
reprehenslbie. - .ho on;r;o,,
that another consequence of the false light
in which falling in love- and what it leads
to are viewed in our society Is that blrth OF
children has lost its pristine significance,
and that modern marriages are conceived
less and less from the point OF view OF the
family.
'.In the fourth place, I am of the opinion
that children. who in our society are obsta :
cles to enjoyment, unlucky accidents as 1t
were, are educated not with view to the
problem which they will be one day called
on to face and to solve, but solely with an
eye to the pleasure which they may be
made to yield to their parents. The conse-
quence is that the children of human beings
are brought up for all tho world like the
young of animals.
'.In the fifth place am of the opinion
that owing to the exaggerated ana enron.
eous significance attributed by our society
to love and to the idealiZed state that &C
companies and succeeds it, the best ener-
eies of our men and women are drawn
forth and exhausted during the most prom
Using period of life. those of the men In
the work of looking for, choosing and win
ming the most desirable object OF love, FOL
which purpose lying and fraud are held tt
be quite excusable, and those of the womer
and girls in alluring men and decoyln!
them into liaisons or marriage by the mos
questionable means conceivable. AZ an IN
evening dress may be cited. l am OF tn
OniDiOn that this is not right.
1.-THE truth is that the whole affair hal
been exalted by poets and romancers to al
undue importance and that love in its var
ious developments is not fitting object t.
only to form a liaison, but even to contrac
q marriage, is from the Christian point O.
view not progress, but a fall. Love ane
all the states that accompany and follow 1t
however we may Try in prose and verse tt
prove the contrary, never do and never cal
facilitate the attainment of an aim worth,
of men, but always makes it more difficult
"How about the human race? If We ad
NIT that celibacy is better and nobler thar
marriage, evidently tho human race viii
come to an end. But if the logical conclu
sion of any agreement is that the human
wrong. To that reply that the argumen
is not mine l did not invent 1t; that 1t l
incumbent on mankind so to strive and tina
celibacy is preferable to marriage, ar
truths revealed by Christ nineteen hundre
years ago. set forth in our catechisms an
professed by us as followers of Christ.
Chastity and celibacy, it is urged. canne
constitute the ideal humanity, becauS
chastity would annihilate the race whic
6troye to realize it, and humanity canns
set up as its ideal its own annihilation.
may be pointed out in reply that only tn
mits of infinite graduation in degree of pro
unity. But even if we suppose the Chri
tian ideal of perfect chastity. is realize
what then? We would merely find ourselv
face to face on the one hand, with the
miliar teaching of religion, one of who
and, on the other, of the so-called scien
which informs us that the sun is gradual
losing its heat, the result of which will
time be the extinction of the human race.
''Such thing as Christian marriage ne'
vas and never could be: Christ did L
Neither did his disciples marry. Christa
cannot view the marriage relation 9TH
wise than as deviation from the doctri
of .Christ-as a sin. This is clearly i
down in Matthew v, %. and the ceremo
called Christian marriage does not alter
character one lot. A Christian will ney
therefore, desire marriage, but will alw'
avoid it.
IF the light of truth dawns upon
Christian when he is already married, OF
being Christian. from weakness he ent
into marital relations with the ceremon
of the church, or without them, he has
alternative than to abide with his wife,
to aspire together with her to free the
selves of their sin. This is the Christ
view of marriage. and there cannot be
other for the man who honestly endeay
to shape his life in accordance with
teachings of Christ
Meeting of the Travellers Protective ASS