The Council of Trent, at its twentj'-fourth session, held Nov. 11, 1563, legislated upon the subject of matri- mony in twelve canons, as follows :
" CanonX. Whoever shall affirm that matrimony is not truly and properly one of the peven sacraments of the evangelical law, instituted by Christ onr Lord, but tbat it is a human invention, introduced into the Church, and does not confer grace: let him l)e accursed.
"2. Whoever shall affirm that Christians may have more wives than one, and that this is prohibited by no divine law ; let him be accursed.
"3. Whoever shall affirm that only those degrees of consanguiuity or affinity which are mentioned in the book of Leviticus can hinder or disannul the marriage- contract; aud that the Church has no i)o\ver to dispense with some of them, or to constitute additional hnider- ances or reasons for disannulling the contract ; let him be accursed.
"4 Whoever shall affirm that the Church cannot con- stitute any impediments, with power to disannul matri- mony, or that in constituting them she has erred ; let him be accursed.
"5. Whoever shall affirm that the marriage-bond may be dissolved by hcreisy, or mutual dislike, or voluntary absence from the husband or wife ; let him be accursed.
"6. Whoever shall affirm that a marriage solemnized
but not consummated is not disannulled if one of the par- ties enters into a religious order; let him be accursed.
"7. Whoever shall affirm that the Church has erred in teaching, according to the evangelical and apostolic doc- trine, that the marriage-bond cannot be dissolved by the adultery of one of the parties, aud that neither of them, not even the innocent party, who has given no occasion for the adultery, can contract another marriage while the other party lives ; and that the husband who puts away his adulterous wife, and marries another, commits adul- tery, and also the wife who puts away her adulterous hus- band, aud marries another (whoever shall afBrm that the Church has erred in maintaining these sentiments) ; let him be accursed.
"8. Whoever shall affirm that the Church has erred in decreeing that for various reasons married persons may be separated, as far as regards actual cohabitation, either for a certain or an uncertain time ; let him be accursed.
"9. Whoever shall affirm that persons in holy orders, or regulars, who have made a solemn profession of chastity, may contract marriage, and that the contract is valid, not- withstanding any ecclesiastical law or vow ; and that to maintain the contrary is nothing less than to condemn marriage ; aud that all persons may marry who feel that, though they should make a vow of chastity, they have not the gift thereof; let him be accursed; for God does not deny his gifts to those who ask aright, neither does he suffer us to be tempted above that we are able.
" 10. Whoever shnll affirm that the conjugal state is to he preferred to a life of virginity, or celibacy, and that it is not better and more conducive to happiness to remain in virginity, or celibacy, than to be married ; let him be accursed.
"11. Whoever shall affirm that to prohibit the solemni- zation of marriage at certain seasons of the year is a ty- rannical superstition, borrowed from the superstition of the pagans ; or shall condemn the beuedictions and other ceremouies used by the Church at those times ; let him he accursed.
"12. Whoever shall affirm that matrimonial causes do not belong to the ecclesiastical judges ; let him be ac- cursed."
Mari-iage as a Sacrament unhihlical. — 1. In many most important points respecting marriage, Protestants and Roman Cathiilics agree ; yet, when the Church of Kome advances matrimony to a sacrament instituted by Christ, and endows it with sacramental qualities, there are sev- eral points of considerable importance to Christianity in which Protestant and Romanist must disagree. The latter asserts that matrimony as a sacrament was insti- tuted by Christ, and confers grace, and supports this dogma by quoting Ephesians v, 32 : " This is a great iwariipiov ; but I speak in Christ and in the Church," where the Douay translation renders by sacrament the word fivarripioi', which we Protestants prefer to trans- late mystery. " Or, indeed, if we render the word ' sac- rament,' stiU they have no advantage, inasmuch as the original word fivaTt^piov, ' mystery,' which they read * sacrament,' is employed on other subjects — as ' myste- ry of godliness' (1 Tim. iii, IG), ' a mystery, Babylon the great' (Rev. xvii, 5). Papists must know that there is no force in their argument. The text, as found in their version, can only influence the minds of ignorant per- sons, who know not the Scriptures. The apostle does not say that marriage is a mystery, for he speaks con- cerning Christ and the Church. It is acknowledged that marriage is instituted of God, and is a sign of a holy thing, yet it is no sacrament; the Sabbath was ordained of God, and signified the rest in Christ (Heb. iv, 8), yet it was no sacrament. All significant and mys- tic signs are not necessarily sacraments" (Elliott, Jio- jna7i{sm, p. 428). " Romanists," says the same able po- lemic whom we have just had occasion to cite, " further quote the following passage to support their doctrine : ' >S'/(e shall be saved in cMdheariny, if they contimie in faith and love' (1 Tim. ii, 15), inferring that the grace of sanctification is given to the parties married. To this we answer : (1.) We deny that any sacraments give or confer grace ; they are only means or instruments of its communication. (2.) It is allowed that God does give to pious married persons grace to live in piety and holiness ; but it is unnecessary to constitute marriage into a sacrament for this purpose. (3.) Those who are not married may possess the sanctifying grace of God, which is sufficient to preserve all in a state of inward as well as outward holiness."