Second cousins usually share a common set … But let us consider your particular situation. For his second marriage, the famed poet and author of “The Raven” wed his first cousin Virginia Eliza Clemm. As for second, third, and other cousins, however, their degree of consanguinity is farther removed — they are related in the fifth, sixth, and even further degrees of the collateral line. It only forbids you marrying your aunt/uncle. Twenty percent of all married couples are cousins. Some point out that the daughters of Zelophehad married their cousins (Numbers 36:11) so the practice has good precedent. Cousins usually share a common set of grandparents (though it can be only one grandparent) and one-half of the genetic pool. All Collateral Blood Relatives are prohibited to marry up until the seventh degree, that is, up until the second cousin. The two were married when he was 27 and she was 13. Eighth degree and beyond are allowed, such as a male third cousin and a female third cousin, or a male second cousin with the granddaughter of his second cousin. There is some speculation as to whether their marriage was more like a sibling relationship than that of … Therefore we can assume that marrying a cousin is OK. In America, marrying your cousin is legal in 25 states and every year about 200,000 cousins wed. Worldwide, it's much more common. The scientific reason is the threat of congenital defects in the offspring, a reason that is often enforced by civil law. Your contribution was appreciated, but not well proved/guaranteed. (I should point out that for a woman to marry her nephew is forbidden from the Torah – Leviticus 18:12-13.) The Bible teaches us to obey the laws of the country where we live (Romans 13:1-7). The reasoning may be the same for a cousin, but the Talmud doesn't mention it. There are two reasons why we should not have a sexual/marital relationship with a close relative. And the Bible approves of cousin marriages. You refer to your child dating your third cousin. 2 1 Not according to canon 1091.2, which says marriages are invalid up to and including the fourth degree. But paternal cousins are no go area . First cousins, therefore, cannot marry in the Church. 25 states ban the marriage between first cousins and there are no states that ban the marriage of second-cousins. In fact, marrying even your first cousin in legal in many places, such as western European nations and some US states. Yes. What does the Bible say about having a marital/sexual relationship with a close relative? One reason that incest is so strongly discouraged in the world today is the understanding that reproduction between closely related individuals has a much higher risk of causing genetic abnormalities. Many places make it illegal to marry a first cousin or closer relative because of the high incidence of birth defects in children of first cousins or closer relatives. Cousin marriage increases the risk of genetic disorders, albiet a small increase of 3%, but not worth the risk,however if your gene pool is great, then its different, in iceland folks married their second cousins throughout generations without a problem,infact they have superior genes some say. But even in your culture, as you’ve explained it, there’s no prohibition against marrying a 2nd cousin, and neither is there in Western cultures. The Bible doesn’t say who you can marry but Leviticus 18 does list prohibited sexual relationships and they don’t include cousins. materoal cousins can be considered for marriage . Source and more information:Which States Allow First and Second Cousins to Marry? The second generation had to marry their cousins, just as after the flood the grandchildren of Noah had to intermarry amongst their cousins. The Bible didn't forbid you marrying your aunt's/uncle children (your cousins) from that passage.