It is believed that closely related marriages sharply increase the likelihood of genetic hereditary diseases in such people. A marriage is consanguineous if the man has a common ancestor in 3-4 previous generations. The higher the degree of relationship, the higher the risks. Parents and their children, brothers and sisters have the highest degree of kinship.
Each child receives a certain set of genes from his mother and father. When a child is conceived as a result of a relationship between relatives, the damaged gene of one parent cannot be replaced by the healthy gene of the other, since close relatives have a combined set of genes. Thus, the risk of a child inheriting damaged genes and genetic hereditary diseases increases, as well as the risk of having a congenital development, a stillborn child and the risk of miscarriage.
Influence of various factors
Often, carriers of a recessive damaged gene are healthy themselves and find out about its presence only after they have a sick child who has inherited such a gene. In an ordinary marriage, the probability of having a child with a pathology is 2-4%, and in a related marriage it increases to 4-6%. At first glance, the difference is not that big. But if there were previously hereditary genetic diseases in the family, the risk increases to an average of 12-14%. This possibility can be identified by consulting a geneticist, who will recommend taking the necessary tests.
In general, according to statistics, close relatives often give birth to talented and gifted children, as well as mentally and physically retarded ones, but ordinary children are born less often. It's a kind of lottery. In addition, there is no guarantee that a healthy child will have healthy future offspring.
The danger of incest between siblings is much higher than between first and second cousins. The latter were quite common in ancient times, especially among the families of the nobility and rulers.
Relationships between relatives over several generations are especially dangerous. Over time, the genetic material deteriorates, accumulating mutations and damage, and requires fresh genes to prevent degeneration.
If incest occurs once in a family, the likelihood of having a normal child is quite high. But if it is practiced from generation to generation, then the probability of deformity and birth defects can reach 50% and even 100%. The more genetic diseases there are in the family, the more complicated the situation becomes.
Hello, Artem.
Legal aspects of marriages between relatives
Regardless of your motives for being interested in such things, formal marriage between brothers and sisters is impossible. The point in this case is not even in the moral and moral aspects of the issue - this remains at the discretion of the participants in such relations. Close kinship is a legal obstacle to marriage at the official level.
According to the norms of the Family Code Russian Federation(Article 14) close relatives (i.e. people with close kinship) are parents and children, grandparents and grandchildren, brothers and sisters. These same categories of relatives, according to the same article, are divided into full and half-relative.
If a brother and sister have the same father and mother, then they are considered full-blooded. Those who have:
- common father, but different mothers (half-blooded);
- common mother, but different fathers (half-uterine).
You can often come across the expression “half-brother and sister,” which means half-brother and half-brother and sister. This is fundamentally wrong, because such a sister and brother are not step-brothers. Stepchildren are the children of each spouse from previous marriages, i.e. having neither a common father nor a common mother. It is precisely such brother and sister who may well enter into legal marriages, and this is quite acceptable from a legislative point of view. Cousins can also enter into official relations and register a marriage at the registry office.
I would like to draw your attention to the fact that if an official marriage between siblings is entered into by mistake, it will subsequently be declared invalid in court.
Disorders in children from incestuous relationships
Unfortunately, there are also cases when a brother and sister do not seek to register a legal relationship, but secretly from others they live a sexual life and even give birth to descendants.
Incest is marriage and sexual relations between people who are related by blood. Such connections and the results of these connections lead to genetic purity, and this entails a decrease in the vitality of the organism. The fact is that combinations of genes (when they are different, and this happens if the partners are not related) enhance the ability of descendants to survive. If the genes are the same (for example, in a sibling), then the combinations are minimal, as is the body’s ability to develop normally.
Such risks are directly proportional to how closely related those who give birth to common children are. Genetic pathologies are possible even in the absence family ties, but the percentage of risk is incomparable. “Sick” genes in children from relatives can “sleep” until such a child himself produces a descendant. If this child is also from a close relative, then “sick” genes will definitely occur. If the descendants of children from incestuous relationships give birth to children from those who are not related to them, then the “healthy” gene of the partner will certainly suppress the “sick” one.
Since genetics is an exact science, for the sake of fairness we can add that deviations in children from marriages of close relatives occur only in 2 cases out of 8. And the only advantage of such connections is the transfer of good intelligence, which is not lost (for example, the ability to hear and vision), but, on the contrary, doubles.
Best regards, Natalya.
Almost every married couple dreams of having a son and daughter. Children are born and the older they become, the greater the alienation between them. Why does this happen and is it possible to change the relationship between brother and sister?
When deciding on a second child, mothers and fathers expect that there will be no room for hostility and quarrels between the children. But expectations are often not met, which greatly upsets parents, and they are forced to come to terms with the situation. There is no longer any question, since children’s conflicts are often picked up by adults.
Rice. Why aren't brother and sister friends?
The ideal age difference between children is three to four years. The eldest child is already getting used to doing without his mother, as he makes friends. He treats the baby like a father: he amuses him and tolerates his whims. If the age difference is small, parents will have to work hard to avoid many unpleasant situations. The older child is curious to watch the younger one, but often he is jealous of his brother or sister towards his mother and is afraid that she has begun to love him less. These feelings often manifest themselves in the form of aggression and whims. Parents should help him get used to the new situation by offering a suitable behavior pattern.
It is a big mistake to put responsibility for a younger child on the shoulders of an older child and shame him if he does not cope well with it. Of course, you need to involve the elder in caring for the baby - this develops responsibility and independence, but the requirements should not be excessive. When a child thinks at every step about how not to disappoint his parents, the relationship between him and his little brother or sister will subsequently be quite tense.
If parents are overly strict towards the older one, and cherish and pamper the younger one, then the first one will grow up to be an insecure and uncommunicative person. Psychologists believe that many conflicts will not arise if the eldest boy in the family and the youngest girl. Older brothers usually grow up to be confident people who can stand up for themselves. The role of a younger sister has a positive effect on a girl's development. About Us early years communicates with the opposite sex, so she feels free in the future among men. Parents should develop the gender abilities of their son and daughter: praise the boy for masculine actions and try to draw the girl’s attention to this. The daughter needs to be told more often how kind, gentle and attractive she is.
If the eldest girl in the family, you need to avoid raising her to be a man in a skirt. Often, from an early age, an older sister feels like a leader and tries to subjugate her brother, and subsequently other men. A son, as a result of excessive sisterly care, may grow up weak, constantly expecting care and instructions from the opposite sex.
The firstborn must be prepared for the arrival of a brother or sister. In the future, you should never compare them and hang offensive labels. If a conflict occurs, it is necessary to separate the children into different rooms and give them time to think, and not force them to immediately ask each other for forgiveness and make peace. Ways should be found to rid children of evil and anger. For example, as soon as they start to get angry, give them pencils and paper and ask them to draw themselves in anger. Then unsightly portraits should be torn up and thrown away. This technique contributes to the outburst of momentary aggression and puts one in a peaceful mood.
The British newspaper The Times published on July 15 a confession article by a woman who had been in an intimate relationship with her brother for many years, remembers this period of life with tenderness and truly regrets only that such natural relationships cause disgust in many people. The publication caused many lively comments.
The heroine of the publication, hiding under the pseudonym Joan McFadden, reports that she decided to publicly confess under the impression of the confession of a friend who once in a student club, “in the heat of drink,” started talking about how close people brothers and sisters can be, then She said that she was sure that many of them engage in sexual experiments with each other when they begin to grow up, and then simply outgrow this period.
“I honestly think she was right. This doesn't happen to everyone, but it does happen to some, and I don't want to be made to feel guilty about it. Incest is talked about as often and with the same connotations as rape, but if the age difference between you and your partner is small, and you are equal in degree of relationship, then it is a completely different matter,” writes McFadden.
Her brother Daniel is only a year older, and they have always been close: “I adored him for as long as I can remember, and my parents always enjoyed our closeness when we were little. We had mutual friends, and we moved happily in the same social circles, so I could never understand girls who didn't get along with their brothers."
Things got worse when she turned 14 and he turned 15: “It’s a precarious age when you’re trying to come to terms with your growing body and worrying endlessly about how you look, so his exclamation of admiration was very pleasing to me; he embraced me."
“I lay there in complete confusion. My head was spinning and my body was completely excited. All the sex education I had back then told me it was wrong, that it was a crime and that it was incest. But it didn't feel wrong, and it definitely didn't feel like I was being forced into anything. Rather, it seemed to me that Daniel stopped long before I would have liked. It was only a few hours later that I finally fell asleep, sure of two things: that I really liked it and that I still admire my brother,” the author admits.
McFadden reports that they had sex dates every six months for the next few years, each time going further until she was 17 and they finally made love for real.
According to her, this continued until her brother graduated from university and met the girl he decided to marry. “After several hours of discussion, we agreed that it was time for us to stop making love, and also decided that we should not tell anyone about our relationship, and then we parted in tears.”
“I know that Daniel loves Alison, but she is very distrustful of me,” the author of the article notes. “I’m quite sure that she doesn’t consider me a sexual threat, but a rival in emotional sphere, and I think she's right."
“One day I asked myself: will there ever come a time when I will look back on our relationship with disgust? I think not. Daniel occupies a unique place in my emotional world, just as I do in his, and that will never change.”
“As a scientifically inclined person, I have a habit of drawing logical conclusions. I like to contemplate the subject of thought and the solution for it, so it seriously irritates me that a phenomenon that seems so pleasant and natural to me will cause disgust in most people,” Joan McFadden concludes her confession.
In the days since its publication, the article has attracted thousands of comments on The Times website, spanning dozens of pages, from people around the world engaging in lively debate.
What do you think about this topic, dear Russian-speaking readers? Have you had a similar experience or at least thought about it? Do you consider such a relationship possible or, on the contrary, completely unacceptable?
Is it possible to refuse to participate in Baptism? They say that if you refuse to be a godfather, then you refuse the cross.
Of course, it is not worth giving up the cross that the Lord gives to every person to strengthen his spiritual strength. Yes, this is impossible, because, refusing one cross, a person immediately receives a new one, which most often turns out to be heavier than the previous one. However, the duties of godparents can hardly be considered a moral test from which it is a sin to refuse.
The very name “godparents” (in the rite of the sacrament of Baptism they are called more neutrally - godparents) shows that their responsibilities are very serious. They consist in caring for the correct spiritual development of the godson, in his upbringing in accordance with the moral principles of the Orthodox faith. Godparents guarantee before God that their godson or daughter will grow up to be a decent, worthy, believing person, that he or she will feel the need to live a full church life. In addition, godparents are obliged to help their godchildren with ordinary everyday needs, to provide them not only spiritual, but also material assistance.
If some circumstances do not allow you to confidently accept such responsibility, if there is no sincere love in your heart for the intended godson, it is better to refuse the honorary offer to become a godfather.
Two years ago, my relatives asked me to become a godmother. Now they demand gifts from me, tell me where and what to buy, without asking what my current situation is. financial situation what I can or cannot buy. What should I do?
Perhaps we should remind our godfathers of the Russian proverb: “Stretch your legs according to your clothes.” By becoming a godmother, you, first of all, accepted the responsibility to raise your godson in the spirit of Christian values. These, by the way, include moderation in meeting material needs. Try to conscientiously fulfill this basic duty: teach your child to pray, read the Gospel with him, explaining its meaning, attend divine services. Gifts, especially those that bring spiritual benefit and delight the child, are, of course, also a good thing. But you did not undertake any obligation to fully replace your natural parents. In addition, another proverb is true: “There is no judgment.”
Can my sister, whose son I baptized, become the godmother of my child?
Maybe. There are no canonical obstacles to this.
My husband and I are not married. But we became godparents of our relative, who was baptized as an adult. I didn’t immediately get into the ritual, but then I found out that it wasn’t possible. And now our marriage is falling apart. What to do?!
The circumstance you are talking about can under no circumstances be grounds for divorce. On the contrary, try to save your marriage. If this fails, together with ex-husband continue to diligently fulfill your duties as godparents.
What should the child’s parents do if his godfather has forgotten about his godson and does not fulfill his duties? What should I do?
If the godfather is a relative or close friend of the family, it is worth reminding him of the responsibility that he bears before God for the correct Christian upbringing of his godson. If the godfather turned out to be random, and even not a church person at all, you should only blame yourself for a frivolous attitude towards the choice of a successor.
In this case, the parents themselves must diligently do what the godfather is obliged to do: raise the child in the spirit of Christian piety, accustom him to participate in divine services, and introduce him to the cultural wealth of the Orthodox Church.
Can I adopt my godson's child?
You can; There are no canonical obstacles to the adoption of a godson.
We decided to take relatives as our son’s godparents: our baby’s uncle and cousin, between them they are father and daughter. Please clarify, is this allowed? Let me explain that the choice was made consciously, and these are the people, in my opinion, who can be spiritual mentors for our child.
Your choice is quite acceptable if the intended godmother is not a minor child. After all, the adoptive parents take on adult responsibility; they are obliged to raise their godson in the spirit of Christian values, which means they themselves must know what these values are, love the Church, worship, and live a church life.
Is it possible, being already the godfather of the eldest child in the family, to also become the godfather of the youngest?
If the godfather responsibly and conscientiously fulfills his duties towards his godson, then he may well become a godfather for his younger brother ( Bulgakov S.V. A clergyman's handbook. M., 1913. P. 994).
Please tell me whether siblings can be godparents. And one more thing: can a 12-year-old girl be a godmother?
Siblings can be godparents of the same child. A twelve-year-old girl can also become a godmother only if she was raised in Orthodox tradition, has a strong faith, knows the doctrine of the Church and understands the godfather’s responsibility for the fate of his godson.
Are there dogmatic or canonical obstacles to nepotism between spouses; in other words, can my wife and I become godparents to our friends’ child? Can godfathers and godfathers who were not married at the time of Baptism subsequently become husband and wife? I heard that there is no consensus in the Church on this matter.
Article 211 of the Nomocanon prohibits a husband and wife from being children of the same child. However, some decrees of the highest church authority of the Russian Orthodox Church(see about this: Bulgakov S.V. A clergyman's handbook. M., 1913. P. 994) cancel the specified requirement of Nomocanon. In the current situation, in my opinion, we should adhere to more ancient tradition, especially since in the Russian Orthodox Church it was considered the only correct one for a long time. In the case where the child’s parents absolutely desire to have spouses as his adoptive parents, they should submit a corresponding petition to the Ruling Bishop of the diocese in which the sacrament of Baptism is supposed to be performed.
Recipients of the same child who were not married at the time of Baptism are not considered to be spiritually related. Therefore, in the future they can enter into legal marriage without any obstacles ( Bulgakov S.V. Handbook of a clergyman. M., 1913. P. 1184).
In fairness, it should be noted that there is an opposite opinion on this matter, which was held, for example, by St. Philaret of Moscow. If a priest refuses to marry the successors of the same child, one should also contact the Ruling Bishop of the diocese where the wedding is expected to take place.
Can the godfather have other godchildren?
It is allowed to have any number of godchildren. However, when inviting a godfather for your child, you should think about whether he can adequately fulfill his duties, whether he has enough love, mental strength and material resources for the proper Christian upbringing of his godson.
My cousin had a son with a congenital heart defect 10 years ago. The doctors said that the situation was bad, and the sister decided to baptize him right in the hospital. She was lying in a special box, where no one except doctors was allowed. Only the priest was allowed in to baptize the child. I was only told later that I was registered as a godfather. Later, in Moscow, the child underwent surgery, he got back on his feet, thank God. And in January, my friend’s son was born, and he invited me to become godfather. Can I be a godfather?
I repeat, it is allowed to have any number of godchildren. However, it should be remembered that the responsibilities of godparents are very serious. Baptism is a church sacrament in which Divine grace itself acts. Therefore, you were not just “registered” as a godparent, perhaps without your knowledge, but you were given responsibility for the correct Christian upbringing of your godson. Having several godchildren is quite difficult. But, if you feel love for these children, the Lord will give you spiritual strength and the opportunity to become a worthy godfather for them.
Newspaper “Orthodox Faith” No. 7 (459), 2012
