Finally, in the most weighty language, the Bishop con- demns
the denationalising attitude of Churchmen towards the Deceased Wife's Sister Act. As the result of half-a- century's careful examination, the conclusion has been reached by the majority of the three estates of the realm, containing many earnest, distinguished Churchmen, as well as many devout and learned Nonconformists, that these marriages are not contrary to the law of God as revealed by Holy Scripture. " In these circumstances, when Holy Scripture has left us free, and the national conscience, as declared by its elected representatives, is favourable to these marriages, is the Church going to bind where God has not bound ? " In his view, to set an ecclesiastical Canon cen- turies old against the better trained, more widely illumined national conscience of to-day is to denationalise, mediaevalise, and sectarianise the Church.
Previous page
