Tolle Lege: An Augustinian Journal of Philosophy and Theology

African scholars have found themselves in an array of doctrinal and cultural dilemmas, especially after the 19th and 20th-century European missionary expeditions that ushered in a vibrant Christian movement in Africa. The new Christian religion was, on arrival, largely dismissive of religio-cultural dialogues with the local Africans. One of the most contested subjects that went beyond the missionary era and reverberates across the twenty-first century is the practice of wife inheritance, otherwise known as “levirate marriage.” The missionaries continually maintained that wife inheritance, especially where the male inheritor is already a married man, is a sin. African people respected marriage to the extent that they tried to protect it at all costs. One of the protective measures was the introduction of levirate marriage, in which the deceased’s brother was expected to marry his brother’s widow. Similarly, a man who lost his wife would marry her sister to replace her. Though levirate marriage is practiced in some African communities, current economic and legal realities have come to bear upon its continued practice. Thus, this article aims to examine whether the practice of forced marriage, particularly in instances of the death of a husband, still has a place in contemporary Africa, especially considering the democratic changes that currently hold sway on the continent. The study further highlights the roots of the practice from an Afrocentric philosophical perspective while pointing out its cultural and legal implications given the array of modern local and international legal instruments aimed at the protection of human rights and the rights of women. The paper concludes that having been caught up by modern civilisation, the practice needs to be re-assessed based on extant local and international legal instruments. This would ensure that women are not trapped in marital situations that are contrary to the law. The paper shall adopt a qualitative and analytical research method to interrogate the discourses in Levirate marriages in African cultures. 

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