Selected quad for the lemma: woman_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
woman_n	brother_n	father_n	sister_n	2,882	5	9.8000	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A47706	The history of the rites, customes, and manner of life, of the present Jews, throughout the world. VVritten in Italian, by Leo Modena, a rabbine of Venice. Translated into English, by Edmund Chilmead, Mr. of Arts, and chaplain of Christ-Church Oxon; Historia de' riti hebraici, vita ed osservanze de gl'Hebrei di questi tempi. English	Modena, Leone, 1571-1648.; Chilmead, Edmund, 1610-1654.	1650 (1650)	Wing L1099A; ESTC R216660	90,789	288

Purim Notwithstanding they at this time observe nothing at all that is essentiall to the said Feast neither have these Daies any thing in Common betwixt them save onely the bare Name PART IV. CHAP. I. Of the several Kinds and Degrees of Adulterie and Fornication THe Severall Degrees of Adultery and Fornication are these that follow The First is to Lie with Another Man's Wife or with any Woman that is but onely Betroathed to Another man And This is among the Jews accounted for one of the Greatest and most Hainous Crimes that can be committed The Next to this is to Lie with any of ones Kindred that is to say with any of those specified Levit. cap. 20. and the Children that are begotten by any such Unlawful Copulation are to be esteemed Bastards whom they call 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Mamzer Spurious neither may they acknowledge or make Alliances with them according to that which is written Deuter. 23. ver 2. Non ingredietur Mamzer hoc est Spurium in Ecclesiam Domini c. A Bastard shall not enter into the Congregation of the Lord even unto his tenth generation shall he not enter into the Congregation of the Lord. Next to the aforesaid Degrees of Adulterie followes the Having Carnall Knowledge of a Woman that is not a Jew because they say this was Forbidden by Esdra or to Lie with any Strumpet that is a Jew the Publick Toleration of which kind of People is not in reason to be thought of amongst the Jewes seeing it is against the Expresse Text of the Scripture in the aforesaid Deut. 23. ver 17. Non erit Meretrix de filiabus Israel c. There shall be no Whore of the Daughters of Israel c. 2. It is also a Sin to have to do with any Woman whatsoever although she be free from all the aforesaid Particulars unlesse she be a Man 's own Wife or to deflowr any Virgin unlesse he afterwards marry her because all these things are accounted Fornication 3. They may not lie with any Menstruous Woman as you may find written Levit. cap. 18. ver 19. Ad mulierem quae patitur menstrua non accedes c. Also thou shalt not approach unto a Woman to uncover her Nakednesse as long she is put apart for her Uncleannesse neither may they have knowledge so much as of their own Wives so long as they are in this Condition as we shall shew hereafter CHAP. II. Of their Marriages Every Jew is bound by the Law to Marry and the most Convenient time to do this is determined by the Rabbines to be at Eighteen Years of Age But they must by no means live Unmarried after Twentie and what man soever is not Married after he is of This Age he is accounted as One that lives in Sin The reasons of this are First because all men are bound to Endeavour the Procreation of Children according as God Commanded Adam Gen. cap. 1. ver 28. Crescite Multiplicamini et replete terram c. And God said unto them Be fruitful and Multiply replenish the Earth c. and they conceive themselves not to have fulfilled this Precept here given till they have begotten One Son and One Daughter at least And besides they say they are bound to marrie that by having Wives of their own they may by this means the easier avoid all Occasions of falling into the sins of Adulterie or Fornication which if they should live Unmarried they would be apt to fall into 2. They may marrie as many Wives as they please as we find practised by the Ancient Hebrewes Examples whereof we frequently meet withall in the Scriptures and this Custome is in Use still among the Levantines or Eastern Jewes But the Having of Many Wives is not at all either permitted or practised among the Dutch and among the Italians also it is very Rare and seldome or never used save onely in case that a man hath lived many Years with his Wife and hath not been able to have any Children by Her 3. A man may marrie his Niece that is to say the Daughter of his Brother or Sister and yet a man may not Marry his Aunt to whom he is Nephew In like manner may Cousen-Germans marrie that is to say Brothers and Sister's Children both by Father and Mother All the Other Degrees of Alliances specified Levit cap. 20. are Prohibited from marrying with each other 4. There are many among them that will not Marrie a Woman that hath had Two or More Husbands before calling Her a Husband-killer but however This is not any where Forbidden And the like is to be understood of a man that hath had more then Two Wives 5. A Widow or a Woman that hath been put away by a Former Husband cannot marrie within the space of Ninety daies after the Death of her Husband or of her Divorce to the end that it may be known whether or no she be with Child by her Former Husband and that there may not be any Controversie whose the Child is 6. If a man die and leave behind him a Young Child sucking at the Mothers breast his Widow may not marrie again till the Child be full Two years old And this is so Ordered by the Rabbines that the Infant might be sure not to be neglected till it should come to be of some strength CHAP. III. Of their Contracts and Manner of Marrying THe Manner of their making of Contracts or Espousalls is thus There is a Writing drawn betwixt the Man and the Kindred of the Woman and then doth the Man take the Woman by the Hand and acknowledgeth Her for his Spouse and the business is done as to the Matter of Contract In some places they use at this time to put a Ring upon her finger and so betroath her but in Italy and in Germany they do not use this Ceremony for the most part when they are Contracted onely Afterwards they continue thus Promised some a Year others Two Four Sixe Moneths more or lesse as they please themselves and according as they conceive it to be most Convenient for them during which time the Man hath libertie to visit and to sport and toy with his betroathed Mistresse but he must not know her Carnally 2. When the time of their Marriage approacheth and the Day is now set which useth to be in the Increase of the Moon and for Virgins on Wednesday or Friday and for Widowes on Thursday if the Bride hath passed the time of her Monethly Courses she then goeth to a Bath and washeth her self as we shall shew more fully hereafter Chap. 5. Otherwise she may not lie with her Bridegroom although the Marriage may however be solemnized betwixt them till such time as she shall be in case to go and wash her self 3. It is a Custome with many that the Bridegroom and his Bride should both fast upon their Wedding day till such time as the Ceremonie of the Benediction is finished 4. Upon the

in her hand and saies Take here thy Bill of Divorce behold thou art now put away from Me and hast liberty to marry any other man Then the woman taking the Writing in her hand delivers it to the Rabbine who readeth it over again which being done She is from thenceforth a Free Woman There are many other Ceremonies and Nice Circumstances to be observed which are purposely made so Numerous by the Rabbines to render the businesse of Divorce the more Difficult and hard to be exactly performed as hath been formerly touched a more particular Enumeration of all which Circumstances I have not here set down that I might not be too Prolixe and tedious to the Reader 8. After this the Rabbine gives the woman notice that she is not to marrie for the space of Ninety daies for the reason before given concerning a Woman that buries her Husband who may haply have left her with Child by him And from this time forward it is not Lawfull for that Man and that VVoman to be together Alone in any place and either of them hath thenceforth liberty to marrie again CHAP. VII Of their Ibum and Calitzah that is to say of the Next Kinsman 's Taking or Refusing the Relict of his Deceased Kinsman IF a man die without leaving any Children by his VVife which he last had or by any Former and hath any Brother surviving the VVidow of the person Deceased must then come to the Next of Kin who is either to take her to Wife or else to release her and set her Free as it is written Deut. cap. 25. Quando habitaverint fratres simul c. If Brethren dwell together and one of them die and have no Child the Wife of the Dead shall not marry without unto a stranger her husbands Brother shall go in unto her and take her to him to Wife c. And if the person deceased chanced to leave behind him more Wives then One if his Brother Take or Release One of them he is Free from all the rest And if the Deceased had many Brothers they must begin with the Eldest and so down in Order and if any one of them either Take or Release the woman it serveth the Turn 2. To take to VVife a Brothers Relict is called 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Ibem that is to say to take to wife a Kinsman's VVidow and if any one resolve so to do it is sufficient that he take her home to him without any Formalitie of Nuptials or the like although the Rabbines have Ordained that a man in this case is to make a new Marriage of it And if he take her to him all the Goods of his Deceased Brother and his Wives Dowrie are His and she becometh to him as any other VVife 3. It was Anciently accounted the more Laudable thing to Take her then to Release her but now the Corruption of the times and the Hardnesse of Men's Hearts is such as that they onely look after worldly Ends either of Riches or of the Beauty of the woman so that there are very Few that in this case will marry a Brother's VVidow especially among the Dutch and Italian Jews but they alwaies Release her 4. To Release her is called 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Chalitzah that is to say The Taking off the Shoe as it is described in the aforementioned Chapter of Deuteron where it is said that if a man refuse to take his Brothers VVife she is to take off his shoe and to spit in his Face in the Presence of the Elders Accedet mulier ad eum coram senioribus tollet calceamentum de pede ejus spuétque in faciem illius c. The manner of this Ceremonie is thus Three Rabbines and Two other who are to stand as Witnesses are to go the Evening before and appoint the place where this businesse is to be done which being agreed upon they say In this place do we intend to morrow God willing to perform the Chalitza Then do they give notice to the VVoman that she must Fast on the morrow and not eat any thing till This be done They also inform themselves by Other women if the signes of VVomanhood do not manifestly appear upon her whether she be of that Age which is required or not 5. The next morning when they come from the School all the People gather together to the Place appointed and there the Rabbines and the Two Witnesses placing themselves upon their Seats the Kinsman comes before them with his Right Foot Unshod and Washed and with some cloath wrapped about it and the Kinswoman also cometh being covered with a Mantle and they both sit before the Rabbines Then doth the Senior Rabbine gravely demand of them What businesse have you in this place Then the man answereth I am come to perform the Chalitza and to Release this my Kinswoman Then saith he to the VVoman And will you Mistris be released She answereth Yes Sir Then saith the Rabbine unto them Stand up then and so turning himself to the VVitnesses he asketh them whether This be the Woman and This Man her next Kinsman and whether it be Ninety daies since her husband died and whether he had not any Children by Her and many other the like Questions After this he tells the man that if he will take his Kinswoman to wife he shall do very well in it and withal exhorts him so to do which the man utterly refusing He then saith unto him Wilt thou Release her then he answereth Yes Sir After this he asketh them both whether they have either of them made any Oath or Protestation to this purpose telling them if they have so done that they ought not to keep it but should be absolved from it but they deny that they have done any such thing Then do they set up a Plank or Board against the wall and they take a certain Shoe which the Rabbines use to have made for the same purpose in such a manner that it may be made wider or Straighter by certain buttons and strings fastened to it as Occasion shall require This shoe they give to the Kinsman and then doth the Rabbine ask them again saying Are you still of the same mind you were and they answer him Yes Let us proceed then to the Chalitza saith the Rabbine And so takeing heed that the man put it not on upon the Left foot instead of the Right nor that the VVoman use the Left Hand instead of the Right the Man putteth the said Shoe upon his foot which when it is well fitted on to his foot and tied with the aforesaid Strings then doth He walk Four Paces forward and so returneth to his place again where leaning against the aforesaid Planks or Board and the Woman being commanded to stand before him face to face the Rabbine repeats those words out of the above named Chapter of Deut. ver 7. My Husbands Brother refuseth to raise up unto his Brother a name in Israel he

will not perform the duty of my Husbands Brother the VVoman saying it after him VVord for word Then doth He speak to the Man who answereth him as it followeth ver 8. I like not to take her Then doth the VVoman stoop down and with her Right Hand untyeth and taketh off the shoe from off the man's foot and lifting it up on high she throweth it against the Ground before the place where the Rabbines sit who presently command her to Spit in his face then doth she spit upon Him as it followeth ver 9. Then shall his Brothers Wife come unto him in the Presence of the Elders and loose his Shoe from off his foot and Spit in his face and the Rabbine saying the words before Her she goes on and saith So shall it be done unto that man that will not build up his Brothers house And his name shall be called in Israel The house of him that hath his Shoe loosed repeating these last words three times and at every several time all the People with a loud voyce answer and call Him One that hath had his Shoe loosed Then doth the Rabbine tell the man that he is at Liberty now to marry when he please and if he desire a Certificate from them of this setting Free his Kinswoman they presently give him one and if there be found any Writing or Contract about her Dowry it is presently torn in pieces And as the people depart many of them use to pray and say May it please the Lord that the Daughters of Israel come not any more to such Acts as these All these Circumstances and many other the like petty Ceremonies which they use to observe in this case are grounded upon the aforecited passage Deut. cap. 25. as may appear to any that mark well the place 6. And for as much as when the Case of this Ibum happeneth a Woman cannot have her Dowry nor marry again without this Release or being set at Liberty therefore do many of these Kinsmen hold them off and bear them in hand a long while that so they may vex them and get money of them for their Release Many therefore when they marry their Daughter to a man that hath Brothers do get the Brothers to enter into Bond that if need require they will give her a Release Others there are that cause the Husband to bind himself that in case at any time he should be sick if the Physitians conceive his sicknesse to be of any danger he shall be bound to give his Wife a Bill of Divorce that so she may be Dis-engaged from the next Kinsman CHAP. VIII Of their Circumcision WHen a Male Child is born to any one his friends come to him and make merry with him wishing him much joy in it Some of them use to set up certain Scrols or Billets in the four quarters of the Chamber where the woman lies in with these Four Words written in Hebrew 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Adam Chavah Chutz Lilith that is to say Adam Eve Out Lilith And they also write the Names of Three Angels conceiving this to be a means of defending the Child from the Strix or Night-Witch But they that please may chuse whether they will do this or not it being grounded upon no Precept at all but looks rather like an Act of Vanity and Superstition 2. Upon the Eight day they are bound to circumcise the Child according to the Command given to Abraham Gen. cap. 17. Infans octo dierum circumcidetur in vobis c. He that is eight daies old shall be circumcised among you which is also reiterated Levit. cap. 12. Et die octavo circumcidetur infantulum c. And in the eight day the flesh of his foreskin shall be circumcised This may not be done before the Eight day and in case the Child should be sick or very weak it may be deferred longer till such time as he shall be in health and able to endure it 3. The Night before the Day of Circumcision they call The Watching-Night because that all the People of the house watch all that Night to guard the young Infant and in the Evening the Friends of the Father of the Child go to visit him as the women likewise do to the Mother and there they spend that Evening in Feasting and Mirth 4. They are to be provided before-hand of a God-father who is to hold the Infant in his armes while it is circumcised and also of a God-mother who is to carry it from the House to the School and to bring it home again which for the most part use to be some Man and his Wife of the Parents Kindred They also use to make choice of a Circumciser which they call 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Mohel which may be whomsoever they please so he be but an Expert skilfull man at the businesse and they account it to be the most meritorious thing that can be to be a Circumciser And if by chance the Father of the Infant be one of These he then circumciseth his own Child himself 5. On the morrow morning there are Two Seats made ready in the School or if they please at Home where they sometimes use to circumcise them These Seats are covered with Cushions of silk and are provided the one for the God-father to sit upon while he holdeth the Child to be circumcised the other as some say for the Prophet Elijah whom they believe to be alwaies Invisibly present at All Circumcisions as having been very jealous for the Observation of the Covenant of Israel as it is written Reg. 3. cap. 19. ver 14. And he said I have been very Jealous for the Lord God of Hosts because the Children of Israel have forsaken thy covenant c. At this time there useth to be a great Congregation of People together and then comes the Circumciser with a Charger in his hand wherein are the Instruments and other Necessaries for the present Businesse as Namely a Razor Restringent Powders with little clouts dipt in Oyl of Roses and some also use to provide ready a dish full of Sand to put the foreskin into when it is cut off then do they begin a certain Hymne till such time as the God-mother accompanied with a Train of women bringeth the Child in her arms where the Godfather meeteth her at the School door and receiveth it of her then do all the People present cry aloud 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Baruch haba Benedictus qui venit Blessed be he that coneth 6. The God-father sitteth upon the seat provided for him and so taking the child in his arms and fitly placing him upon his knees the Circumciser unswathes him and some use to have silver Pincers with which they take up as much as they mean to cut of the foreskin Then doth he take his Razor and saith Blessed be thou O Lord c. who hast commanded Circumcision then doth he cut off that Thicker skin of the Prepuce and afterwards