Annulment.Dear editor, A correspondent (History Lesson, Journal Letters, May) said that King Henry VIII Henry VIII, king of EnglandHenry VIII, 1491–1547, king of England (1509–47), second son and successor of Henry VII.Early LifeIn his youth he was educated in the new learning of the Renaissance and developed great skill in music and sports. He was created prince of Wales in 1503, following the death of his elder brother, Arthur. established the right to divorce in the Church of England. He received an annulment, not a divorce in the modern sense. The English universities and courts agreed that the king hadn't been legally married in the first place, because marriage with a brother's wife was prohibited by Lev. 20:21. While it was true that the Pope had granted a dispensation to allow the marriage anyway, it was decided that the Pope couldn't abrogate abrogate v. to annul or repeal a law or pass legislation that contradicts the prior law. Abrogate also applies to revoking or withdrawing conditions of a contract. (See: repeal) the word of God. This decision to rank Scripture above papal authority reflected the teaching of the English Reformation. Alan L. Hayes Oakville, Ont. |
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