The early Karaites adopted the principle that marriage was a true and complete union – each spouse should legally be considered the same person, and so someone who was related to one spouse became as if they had exactly the same relationship with the other. [5] Applied to biblical precepts, this led to drastically simple rules that forbade marriage between almost all parents and conjugal relationships, except that a man could always marry his niece (or stepnich) and grandmother (or the grandfather`s wife or the spouse`s grandmother or the spouse`s wife). However, it also prohibits marriage to the parents of each subsequent husband of a divorced woman; [5] If only a few women practiced serial monogamy here and there (repeated marriage, then divorce, with different people), there would be no one on the planet who would be able to marry absolutely someone else. 3. Marriages, even of first cousins, are hardly unknown in frum communities. Mazel Tov for your neighbor and that Hashem only gives them healthy offspring. Not only that, but the incestuous relationships forbidden in Leviticus 18 and Leviticus 20 also seem to be more extensive than the prohibitions in other biblical books, as we can see in Abraham`s marriage to his half-sister (20:12)[6] and Jacob, who married two sisters (19:21-30). [7] Traditionalists explain this difference by arguing that before the revelation at Sinai, the Israelites only had to abstain from the shorter list of incestuous relationships that rabbinic tradition associated with the Noahide law. [8] Modernity, however, assumes that these differences reflect changes in Israelite law on incest over time. [9] An attempt has been made to determine the proportion of first-degree marriages among English Jews using the method invented by G. H.
Darwin (“Fortnightly Review,” July 1875), based on the number of marriages in which the bride and groom have the same surname. This method gives a share of about a fifth. Judging by this criterion, the percentage of cousin marriages in the English peerage was 4.50 among landed nobles, 3.75 in rural districts, 2.25 in London. Jacobs applied the same method to English Jews, calculating that 7.52% of their marriages were first cousins. Using another method, W. Stieda found that among the Jews of Alsace-Lorraine, there were 23.02% for a thousand blood marriages, compared to 8.97% among Catholics and 1.86% among Protestants (“Marriages in Alsace-Lorhringen”, 1872-76, Dorpat, 1878). So it appears that the proportion of first-degree marriages among Jews is about three times higher than among the non-Jewish population. None of the second-level prohibitions affect a man and a woman of the same generation (for example, first-degree cousins), and only the two above-mentioned extensions of the “female uncle” concern a man and a woman who are separated by only one generation. In short, the additions of Talmudic rabbis to the list did not significantly limit sexual behavior or marriage possibilities.
[8] See, for example, Rashi`s commentary on Gen 20:12, where he explains that Abraham married his half-sister on his father`s side because בת אב מותרת לבן נח, a Noahid man is allowed to marry his father`s daughter (as long as the two do not have the same mother). See also Abarbanel`s similar arguments (commentary on Lev 18) regarding Jacob`s marriages to two sisters and Amram`s marriages to his aunt. 2. Halakha has always allowed the marriage of even first cousins (both cousins have common grandparents). Canon law, which combined Jewish and Roman law, was more restrictive, as they took certain Roman rules to count relationships, added them to certain Jewish legal rules, and proposed a partial prohibition of marriage between first cousins and second cousins (much more restrictive than Jewish or Roman law), some of which have entered Anglo-American law. although this has largely disappeared. Hence “degrees” and “once removed”. So, my first observation is that if you have a problem with cousin marriage, you not only disagree with most of human history, but also with the overwhelming majority of today`s world. They agree with about half of the U.S.
states and a few dictatorships, and that`s about it. As for the United States, 20 states and the District of Columbia allow inbreeding; Six other states allow it under certain conditions, usually in terms of age and/or fertility. The same is true in Alabama, Alaska, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont and Virginia and possibly Arizona, in Illinois, Indiana, Maine, Utah and Wisconsin. One caveat: North Carolina does not allow a “double cousin marriage,” that is, if two siblings from the same family marry two siblings from another family, so each couple`s children have the same grandparents. (You know, that daily event.) Do you know which countries do not allow cousins to marry? Russia, China and North Korea, which are generally not seen as countries that others want to emulate. Anyone in a state who does not have a first cousin marriage can simply visit another state that allows it (for example, New York State), obtain a marriage license from that state, and return home that same evening. I wouldn`t, but I understand why people would. I only have male cousins in my age group, some of whom are in the field of marriage. I`d probably be interested if they weren`t my cousins. I would be afraid that some of the family quirks that are normal in us as individuals would be reinforced in our children.
But for your information, right after the chag, I marry my niece. Even a closer relative than my cousin. Everyone is so excited about our next Chassunoh. Chernobler Rebbe von benei berak`s eldest daughter, r` nochum twersky, is married to her younger brother – her uncle. His second daughter is married to his nephew, his first cousin. These two sisters were meshadech at the time!!!! The Chossons and Kallahs were first cousins, as were three of the parents!!! “But what about all these health problems?” I hear you asking. Well, actually. Inbreeding is not as risky as most people think, and genetic testing is popular in orthodox circles – this article for more information.
(First cousins have 12.5% of their DNA in common. Yes, this leads to a slightly higher risk of birth defects, but it`s not as high as in unrelated parents as most people would expect (3-4% for unrelated parents versus 4-7% for first-degree cousins). On a completely independent tangent, I would like to point out that although I very often disagree with the opinions expressed in this Akuperma forum, the posts are among the most intelligent, well-reasoned and articulated posts I have read on talkbacks anywhere. Take a look at the note here about first cousins; Short but complete, precise and precise. 4. Some people have suggested that marriage between cousins increases the likelihood of birth defects because they are likely to share negative recessive traits (which are only displayed when two people marry with the same recessive characteristics). When talking about first cousin marriage, it may be quite useless to mention people who have not married first cousins (for example, Kevin Bacon unknowingly married his ninth cousin, who is practically not related at all). @ I said: Are they these cousins by blood or by marriage.
Are they Safarades/Ashkenazi/Jews? According to Torah law, cousins are allowed to marry. In fact, the wise seem to consider marriages between parents to be desirable. The Talmud recommends that a person marry his niece (Yevamot 62b). (There is debate among commentators as to whether this applies specifically to a sister`s daughter or even a brother`s daughter.) The assumption is that a person will have a particularly close relationship with a close relative, perhaps because of their likely similar personalities and values.