One Wife in the Laws of the Church
In the Canons of the Apostles
(1/27, 62 concerning those entering the faith):
“If a man has a wife, or a woman has a husband, let them learn to be content — the man with his wife, and the woman with her husband.”
“Any layman who sends his wife away from his house without reason or cause that justifies it, or marries another with her, or marries a woman divorced because of adultery, let him be excommunicated from the Church of God.”
Canon 45 of the Canons of Clement:
(Concerning the qualities of a Christian: “…and let him not be greedy, nor a lover of the world, nor a lover of women, but let him marry one wife.”)
Canon 38 of the Canons of Hippolytus, from the Canons of St. Basil:
“If one of the two who are joined dies, the other is permitted to marry. But if one marries before the death of the other, the one who marries is condemned with the condemnation of a fornicator.”
“And let no one be married while having a spouse, except if his wife has died.”
Canon 10 of St. Basil:
“No clergyman shall ever pray over a second marriage.”
Canon 72 of St. Basil:
“Polygamy, for us, is a sin greater than adultery; therefore, let those guilty of it be subjected to the canons.” (Basil’s Third Letter: Canon 80)
Canon 18 of the Council of Ancyra (2314) (concerning those married after a vow of virginity):
“Let them be imposed a repentance equal to that which is imposed on those who have married two women and have kept both together. And let them be subject to the canon of the adulterers, for they were the brides of Christ.”
Ibn al-‘Assal comments on this canon, saying:
“Shall the one who unites two wives have his repentance accepted unless he leaves the adulteress? Likewise also the adulterers — shall their repentance be accepted unless they abandon and separate from the sin?”
Ibn al-‘Assal: Canon 10, 72:
From the Canons of Pope Cyril Ibn Laqlaq (No. 8 of the prohibited marriages):
“No believer shall marry an unbelieving woman, nor one steadfast in adultery, nor shall he unite two or more wives.”
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Article by His Holiness Pope Shenouda III – Al-Keraza Magazine, Year 9, Issue 17, April 28, 1978
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