Unholy Matrimony

"'Twas in the temple where I first beheld her,

and now again the same; what omen yet

follows of that?  None but imaginary.

Why should my hopes or fate be timorous?"  

As many have pointed out, the first four lines of The Changeling introduce us to the idea of omens, fate and time.  What strikes me about Alsemero's first four lines is that while he claims to put no stock in fate or omens, there still seems to be a hint of doubt.  He formulates questions, not declarations.  If his hopes and fate are not, in fact, timorous, then why is he wondering if they should be?  Though he justifies his union with Beatrice-Joanna with the fact that they met in a holy place, the temple, I wonder just how sure he is of their "holy" union.  As we discussed in class, the last thing one should be doing in church is flirting with potential conquests, especially conquests that are already claimed!  It seems to me that Alsemero is misreading "the signs", misreading his own assuredness: he thinks his union with Beatrice-Joanna shall succeed because they met in a holy place, yet he "forgets" that it was in an unholy manner.  Perhaps from the very onset, Beatrice-Joanna and Alsemero are not blessed, but doomed by God because of their sacrilegious conduct.