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Carriage" ; was a- virtual repeal of the Toleration Act . It is upon this broad and general ground , that the Committee would base their argument for the alteration of the law relative to the solemnization of matrimony , a privilege
already enjoyed by their fellow-subj ret r ^ of ^ Scotta Protestant and Catholic , and ( by virtue of an exception in the Marriage Act iself ) by Jews and Quakers . But although marriage be a civil contract , the Committee feel that there is a suitableness in connecting
so solemn and important * an engagement with religious feelings , and submit that due regard should be paid to such feelings ; yet this advantage is , to a very great degree , by the existing law , denied to
Bissenters , who , consistently with the spirit of the Toleration Act , would greatly prefer being permitted to encourage and enjoy those religious feelings in their own Chapels ,, with the aid of their own spiritul Pastors , rather than be driven to seek such
advantages from Ministers , with , whom they have no religious association . And we may here add , that the present state of the English marriage law casts an unjust reflection , and fixes an unmerited stigma on the Protestant Dissenting
Ministers of England , who are thereby treated as unfit to be trusted with the celebration of . marriage , while , their brethren in Scotland , Ireland , and the British Colonies , and Christian ministers" of all varieties of sect and denomination in the United States of North America , universally possess that privilege .
The Committee do not think it necessary , in this short statement , to notice the various parts of the marriage service , which . are felt to be exceedingly objectionable ; they would rather generally observe , that they entertain conscientious objections to the compulsive conformity with the worship and service of the
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Church , produced by the operation of the Marriage Act . They must not , however , omit to notice , that to One class of
Protestant Dissenters , the Unitarians , the marriage service is peculiarly oiiec tionable in point of doctrine ; it being inconsistent , in several respects , witlrTfie rengiou ^ beliieT ~ which Unitarians conscientiously entertain .
Ihesereasonable objections might , it is hoped , be removed without in any degree interfering with the civil advantages effected by the Marriage Act , every one of which it would be the desire of the Committee to retain , not only unimpaired , but improved . 22 d November , 1832 .
A / Bill having been brought into Parliament in June last , for establishing a University at Durham , ) r our Committee thought it their duty to watch its progress , in order to guard against the introduction of clauses which would have the effect of
excluding Dissenters from the' advantages of the University . Your Committee , therefore prepared a petition to Parliament on the subject ; but the Bill was passed without alteration , being treated as a private Bill for the appropriation of the revenues
of the Dean and Chapter of Durham . Your Committee , however , had the satisfaction of being- informed , that in the . discussion which took place iw _ . the , House of . Commons on ,. the passing of the Bill , it was understood that Dissenters would be admitted
to receive education in the projected University , but that it was intended to confer degrees in Divinity only . Your Committee , at the general meeting on the 24 th of May last , made their report to you' on thu
subject of the proposed alteration of the period for electing and returning Deputies . That report contains all the reasons which have induced your Committee to propose the alteration , and it has been circulated among all the Deputies , with a request
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UNITARIAN CHRONICLE . 61
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Citation
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Monthly Repository (1806-1838) and Unitarian Chronicle (1832-1833), Feb. 1, 1833, page 61, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/mruc/issues/vm2-ncseproduct2607/page/29/
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