II. FAMILY IN THE CAODAI
NEW LAW
The making of Tân Luật (say the
New Law) was finished on Monday 07
March 1927. The law consists of:
- Preface;
- Religious Law: Consisting of
eight chapters (thirty-two articles) on dignitaries, disciples, precepts and
regulations, education, penalties, etc.
- Secular Law: Consisting of
twenty-four articles (no chapters) on disciples’ life.
- Meditation House Law:
Consisting of eight articles (no chapters) on meditation.
Published in 1927 at Commerciale C. Ardin printing house (Saigon ), the first edition of Tân Luật consists of fourteen pages (15x24cm).
Why is
the law of Caodaism named the New Law?
According
to Caodai historical viewpoint, the history of mankind’s philosophies and
religious doctrines consists of Three Eras, of which the first two are:
- The First Universalism includes Judaism,
and Brahmanism, etc. Moses and Dipankara the Ancient Buddha belong to this era.[1]
- The Second Universalism includes
Sakyamunism (founded by Sakyamuni), Daoism (founded by Laozi), Confucianism
(founded by Confucius), Pythagoreanism (founded by Pythagoras), and Catholicism
(founded by Jesus Christ), etc.
Coined by Karl Jaspers (German philosopher, 1883-1969), the German term Achsenzeit (Axial Age, Axial Period, or
Axis Time in English) is to some extent similar to
“the Second Universalism” as conceived by Caodaism.[2]
The religions founded in the
two Eras before Caodaism have got their own laws regarded as old laws by Caodaism. The term cựu luật (old laws) can be found in a
Caodai God’s spiritual message dated 17 July 1926. This message was
published in Thánh Ngôn Hiệp Tuyển (An
Anthology of Holy Sayings), volume one, printed at Tam Thanh printing house
(Saigon, 1928, 101 pages 14.8x22.2cm).
Front cover of Thánh Ngôn Hiệp Tuyển (first edition,
Saigon: Tam Thanh printing house, 1928).
The present Era is called the Third Universalism. Thus, the law of
Caodaism is named the New Law in
order to distinguish it from old laws belonging to the two previous Eras.
Bearing humanistic values, the New Law
is based on rule by benevolence or rule by virtues, the key principle of which
is that each individual person should be taught how to rectify himself, then
how to regulate his family, and finally how to behave
with others. Thus, the New Law attaches an individual to his family and then, to an extended family,
which is his Caodai community within a parish (họ đạo) under the management of its head (đầu họ đạo).
The New Law, Religious Law, Chapter III, Article Sixteen stipulates, “Any area
having about five hundred disciples or more is authorized to establish a parish
and a holy house (thánh thất) which
is managed by a dignitary as its head.”
Particularly surveying the family issue
in the New Law, mainly the related articles stipulated in Secular Law, one can realize that the New Law attaches special
importance to, places much emphasis on organising and building good and healthy
families in Caodai communities in order to create steadfast, sustained units of
social foundation.
To express and guide the realization of the above-mentioned legitimate
will, the New Law includes articles concerning the three main purposes as
follows:
- Protecting disciples’ families in
normal cases.
- Protecting disciples’ families in
unexpected cases.
- Protecting and educating future
generations of disciples’ families.
1. Protecting disciples’
families in normal cases
The family
you come from isn’t as important as the family you’re going to have.
RING LARDNER
(American writer, 1885-1933)
When getting married, a couple creates a new unit
of society. If successful, their family is good and happy, then society will
get benefits from it. If unsuccessful, their family is broken, then society
accordingly has to bear a burden. This point is important. As a consequence, in
order to protect families, the New Law is firstly interested in guiding
disciples how to carry out marriage.
Indeed, it is better to teach a couple firstly how to build a good family than to show them later how to
improve or reconstruct a broken home.
But what is a family? It is a marital union
of a man and a woman who pledge to live together and mutually perform their
material and spiritual duties. Lacking such a pledge, their cohabitation is not
called a family. Their pledge must be official, say meeting marriage
formalities fixed by society and the law.
Because a family is
established on basis of marriage, when mentioning a family establishment, one
should firstly pay attention to marriage conditions.
1.1. Marriage conditions
Article Six in
Secular Law stipulates, “Marriage is a very
important event in life.” Everyone admits this fact because each pledge of marriage has
two possibilities: either happiness in success or suffering in collapse. Hence,
Abraham Lincoln (American President, 1809-1865) bitterly said, “Marriage is neither heaven nor hell, it is
simply purgatory.” Accordingly, a certain man says that building a house
requires praying once, and going to a battlefield needs praying ten times, but
praying a hundred or a thousand times is not enough for marriage!
To ensure a happy family and a fruitful matrimony, marriage
should have two indispensable elements, namely harmony and homogeneity. Marriage conditions stipulated in the New Law are mainly aimed at
eliminating every factor which may ruin harmony and homogeneity in disciples’
families.
The New Law anticipates that
one of the factors that most easily causes inharmony and inhomogeneity in a
family is nothing else but different religions between spouses. Thus, marriage
conditions stipulated in the New Law requires a homogeneity in religion.
Article Six in Secular Law demands, “Marriage
is a very important event in life. A spouse
should be chosen among co-religionists; marriage with a person of another
religion is impossible unless the spouse-to-be agrees to follow Caodaism.”
Caodaism is a religion of
great harmony and its disciples have absorbed an open-minded teaching which
aims at developing religious tolerance; consequently, Caodaism excludes
religious discrimination. The proof is that the founders of Buddhism, Daoism,
Confucianism, and Catholicism are seen on Caodai altars.
Founders of Buddhism,
Daoism, Confucianism, and Catholicism on a Caodai altar.
However, anticipations are necessary in making laws, as an
author said, “… law-makers should
anticipate in paving the way and guiding people …” [3]
So, what if a Caodaist’s spouse does not
accept the religion of his or her partner? In case that spouse’s parents and
relatives also discriminate Caodaism, what will occur? Then, the children of
that couple? What will they be like when growing up in a family separated due
to different religions?
Experienced people admit that if a couple of interfaith marriage fail to live
in harmony, their family often seems to be a tragedy. Probably due to this
reason, in November 1990, Hillel International sent to Jewish college students this
warning, “Different religious beliefs
make for bad company.” [4]
Of course, it is undeniable that there
are lots of exceptions: Many interfaith marriages prove to be lasting in
happiness while the ones between co-religionists soon end in collapse. However,
law-makers should pay much attention to more popular cases instead of specific
exceptions. Thus, what is stipulated in Article Six in Secular Law (as quoted
above) aims at preventing disciples’ families from regretable breakdowns in the
future.
It is necessary to realize
that the nature of Article Six mentioned above and the Caodai policy of
religious harmony do not contradict each other at all. It is also necessary to
assert again that the condition of the same religion is laid down only because
the New Law expects homogeneity and harmony in disciples’ families. As a matter
of fact, the New Law does not impose any penalties on offenders of Article Six.
1.2. Caodai marriage
Of course a marriage is legal only when it is performed
before a civil registrar; then, it is a civil marriage. However, besides a
civil marriage, there is also a religious marriage. It means that, according to
some religions as well as Caodaism, parallel with formalities required by the
law of a country, the marriage of a couple of disciples is also performed
before a dignitary of their religion.
Thus, the marriage condition stipulated in Article Six quoted
above aims at ensuring homogeneity and harmony for disciples’ families, and
simultaneously helping every couple enjoy sacred benefits which result from the
marriage sacrament. In the future, when a spouse passes away, his or her spirit
will enjoy requiem sacraments. Their children will also enjoy baptism and other
sacraments. Of course, they will enjoy all of these spiritual benefits only
after having willingly followed Caodaism.
It can be said that Caodai marriage formalities are quite
simple. Article Seven in Secular Law stipulates, “Eight days before the engagement ceremony, the chief
representative of the groom’s side must put a notice of the intended marriage
at the local holy house (thánh thất) in order to prevent any possible
problems.”
This stipulation is advantageous for both sides because such a
notification before engagement implicitly expects their Caodai parish to check
the case and reveal dubious facts, if any.
For example, if a
spouse-to-be is honestly not aware that his or her partner is still bound by a
legal marriage with another person, thanks to the notification before
engagement, the dubious case may be revealed and stopped in time. Thus, it is
possible to prevent bigamy, a crime prosecuted by the law. Indeed:
In South Vietnam, according to Article
33 in the Family Law dated 02 January
1959, “offenders may be sued for bigamy.” [5]
In North Vietnam, Article Five in the Marriage and Family Law dated 29
December 1959 stipulates, “Any partner of
a married couple is prohibited to marry another person.” [6]
Later, Article 4 in the Marriage and Family Law dated 09 June
2000 stipulates, “Any partner of a
married couple is prohibited to marry or cohabit with another person like a
spouse; a single person is also prohibited to marry or cohabit with a married
person like a spouse.” [7]
Similarly, Article 5 (item c) in the Marriage and Family Law dated 19 June
2014 repeats almost every word written in Article 4 in the Law dated 09 June
2000, as just quoted above.[8]
Returning to the marriage in the Caodai
New Law, Article Eight in Secular Law stipulates, “After the engagement ceremony, both the groom’s and bride’s sides must
go to the local holy house (thánh thất) to request a ceremony testifying the
marriage.”
This stipulation is beneficial to the
new married couple. Indeed, when carrying out the marriage sacrament inside the
holy house, the dignitary in charge will let a new couple kneel before the
altar, while Prayer for Marriage is
being rhythmically recited in chorus. Then, the prayer may be regarded as a
teaching by Heavenly Powers, sowing the seeds of sweet love into their hearts
and souls. For instance:
A
righteous husband and a chaste wife,
As
predestined by the Creator,
Will
make a well-matched couple forever,
And lead
a faithful marriage life.
Or:
A couple of predestined
ardent lovers,
Will prolong the line
from ancestors.
And vow of faithfulness
to each other
Is sincerely made before
the God’s Altar.
Gabriel Gobron (French,
1895-1941), becoming a Caodaist in 1931, took lots of photographs on Caodai
activities at the Holy See of Tây Ninh in the 1930s. These photos were later
published in a book entitled Le Caodaïsme en Images (Paris:
Dervy publishing house, 1949, 175 pages, 20x30cm). One can find therein five
images (nos. 105, 106, 107, 108, 109) on a wedding and a related marriage
sacrament carried out inside the main temple.
Pic 1. The couple and
relatives of the two families on their way to the Tây Ninh Temple
Pics 2-3. Marriage sacrament
being made by a dignitary in the Temple
Pic 4. The dignitary seeing
the couple to the Temple
Pic 5. The couple and their relatives returning home.
In short, together with civil marriage to legalise a couple’s
cohabitation, when stipulating religious marriage to bring in good effects and
benefits as mentioned above, the New Law obviously contributes much to the
happy prospect of their family.
Despite such advantages, as a matter of fact, stipulations on religious
marriage in Caodai communities are regarded as optional. Many couples of
marriage have skipped these formalities and the New Law does not impose any
penalties on offenders.
1.3.
Abolishing polygamy
Like most Oriental and Occidental societies, ancient Vietnamese society
used to have polygamy, which allows a man to marry more than one wife. In a
polygamous family, the first legitimate wife is ranked as the principal wife; other wives, married or
unmarried, are called concubines.
Under French colonial rule, polygamy was
not banned in North Vietnam (Tonkin).
Article 93 in the 1931 Tonkinese Civil
Law stipulates, “In general, a
husband absolutely cannot take a concubine without his principal wife’s
consent.” [9]
Under French colonial rule, Hoàng
Việt Luật Lệ (Laws and Decrees of Imperial Việt, often known as the Gia Long Code, promulgated in 1813) was
still valid in Central Vietnam .
Accordingly, polygamy was not banned in
Central Vietnam. Indeed,
the Gia Long Code (vol. 7, item 3) has a stipulation against reversing the right order between the
principal wife and concubines. As stipulated therein, he who downgrades
his principal wife to concubine shall be beaten a hundred times with wooden
staves. He who upgrades a concubine to principal wife while his principal one
is still alive shall be beaten ninety times with wooden staves. He who ranks
another woman as principal wife while his principal one is still alive shall be
beaten ninety times with wooden staves.[10]
In former times, many men of great
wealth or power even used to force poor girls to enter their families, and they
had to play a double role of both maidservants and concubines.
As a bad practice in former societies,
polygamy weakens families. Being born into and growing up in polygamous
families, children generally suffer unhappiness. Direct victims of polygamy are
no ones else but women and children.
When a disloyal husband quits his
family, cohabiting with another woman elsewhere, so pitiful are both his wife
and his young child(ren). In a series of 1933 seances held at the Pope’s Palace
located in the Tây Ninh Holy See, the spirit of Her Holiness Đoàn Thị Điểm, a
famous woman poet (1705-1748), bestowed her 1401-line poem entitled Nữ Trung Tùng Phận (Woman Loyalty to
Fate, published by the Tây Ninh Holy See in 1973). Many touching stanzas of
this holy poem express the inmost sufferings of an unfortunate woman due to her
unfaithful husband’s neglect of family.
It is evident and undeniable that polygamy must be abolished in order to
protect families, liberate women, and guarantee the future of children. To
express this will, Article Nine in Caodai Secular Law stipulates, “Since the promulgation of the Law,
disciples are prohibited to take a concubine.”
With the above-quoted article, the
Caodai New Law shows its progressive nature and it is thirty-two years
(1927-1959) ahead of its time when liberating women from polygamy.
Indeed, the New Law was promulgated in
1927 under French colonial rule; then, polygamy was legally accepted in the
three Vietnamese territories of Tonkin (North), Annam (Central) and Cochinchina
(South).
In South Vietnam, the Family Law was not promulgated until 02
January 1959. At the beginning, the First Article officially declares, “Polygamy is absolutely banned from now on.”
[11]
In North Vietnam
In order to protect disciples’ families
in normal cases, Secular Law stipulates Articles Six, Seven, Eight, and Nine
consecutively. Furthermore, in Religious
Law, Chapter IV, Article Twenty-One, stipulations on the Five Precepts also aim at supporting measures of family
protection:
- The third precept prohibits disciples
to commit wrong sexual intercourse
which means sexual conduct with somebody other than one’s legal spouse. Wrong
sexual intercourse is also a factor resulting in broken homes.
- The fifth precept against making wrong words prohibits disciples “to incite
anger or hatred, or to prompt sues for separation”. It implies that a third
person is prohibited to worsen the discordance between spouses, or to prompt a
spouse to file for a legal separation or divorce.[13]
HUỆ KHẢI
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