Can you marry your cousin?

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Have you fallen in love with your cousin? Are you now afraid that you will be liable to prosecution for incest, because you have often heard that you are not allowed to marry your cousin? There are a few things you should take into account when it comes to the subject.

Problems, even if you can marry your cousin

There are a few things you have to consider when it comes to marrying your cousin.

  • There are cousins ​​1. and 2. Degree. A cousin 2. Degree is someone you share great grandparents with. A cousin 2. You are always allowed to marry.
  • A cousin 1. You are not allowed to get married in Korea, the Philippines or in many Balkan countries. Such marriages are also socially outlawed there. So if you are of this ethnicity it could create a family conflict.
  • In Germany, Austria and Switzerland you can legally marry your cousin, but here, too, such a marriage is not without problems. Until 1750, relationships between brother-in-law and sister-in-law, even between godparents and goddaughters, were considered a punishable incest. To this day, many people refuse to marry their cousin. The idea that it is incest is ingrained in the mind.
  • Another conflict arises if you want to marry in church, because according to canon law, the relationship between cousins ​​and cousins ​​is an obstacle to marriage. If you are a believer, you must go after the civil one wedding Confess any sexual intercourse as fornication and incest if you cannot get a dispensation from the Church and marry your cousin under an exemption.
  • Cousin 2. Marrying a degree - you should take this into account

    Only love counts. Nevertheless: It was that easy in earlier times ...

But there are also cultures in which the desired form of partnership is when you marry your cousin, for example in many Islamic countries. As you can see, it is by no means the case that these marriages are rejected everywhere.

Behavior when you love your relative

Even if you are allowed to marry between siblings in some countries and not in Germany There is a ban, if you want to marry your cousin, you should handle the matter with tact approach:

  • Don't just confront your family with the fact that you love each other and are about to get married. It is better to approach the topic a little cautiously first. Getting married doesn't have to be a family drama.
  • Explain the legal situation: It is not incest if you marry your cousin, you may.
  • Point out the numerous marriages in the high nobility, in which a cousin was often married. Also, mention that many states even encourage you to marry your cousin.
  • You will often be countered with the argument of hereditary diseases, which you can easily refute if you offer to be examined in this regard. This definitely makes sense to soothe heated feelings in the family circle. Such an opinion can only be of use, and not only, if you marry a relative.
  • Talk to the pastor about a dispensation and he can help you with the next steps. If you get one for marrying your cousin, the marriage will surely be accepted by the family as well.

You can marry your cousin, there is no prohibition, but it is often not socially acceptable.

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