Adultery
August 5, 2008 advice, TheBuzz
Adultery is the voluntary sexual intercourse between a married person and another person who is not his or her spouse, though in many places adultery takes place only when a married woman has sexual relations with someone who is not her husband. In most cases, in western countries, only the married party is said to have committed adultery, and if both parties are married (but not to each other) then they both commit separate acts of adultery. In other countries, both parties to the adultery are considered guilty, while in others again only the woman is able to commit adultery and to be considered guilty.
Adultery is also referred to as extramarital sex, philandary or infidelity but does not include fornication. The term “adultery” for many people carries a moral or religious association, while the term “extramarital sex” is morally or judgmentally neutral.
The interaction between laws on adultery with those on rape has and does pose particular problems in societies which are especially sensitive to sexual relations by a married woman, such as some Muslim countries.[1] The difference between the offenses is that adultery is voluntary, while rape is not. If a woman claims that she has been raped, and the offense cannot be proved, then a conclusion that the sexual relations were voluntary may be drawn, and the consequences of adultery may result. In those circumstances, the woman victim would tend not to report a rape against her.
The term adultery has a Judeo-Christian origin, though the concept of marital fidelity predates Judaism and is found in many other societies. Though the definition and consequences vary between religions, cultures and legal jurisdictions, the concept is similar in Judaism, Christianity and Islam, and Hinduism has a similar concept. But the word should be used cautiously when discussing various cultures, some of which permit less permanent forms of marriage, or even sexual “lending”.[2]
Historically, adultery has been considered to be a serious offense by many cultures. In some countries, adultery is a crime. However, even in jurisdictions where adultery is not itself a criminal offense, it may still have legal consequences, particularly in divorce cases. For example it may constitute grounds for divorce, it may be a factor to consider in a settlement, it may affect the status of children, the custody of children, etc. Moreover adultery can result in social ostracism in some parts of the world.
Although the legal definition of “adultery” differs in nearly every legal system, the common theme is sexual relations outside of marriage, in one form or another.
For example, New York defines an adulterer as a person who “engages in sexual intercourse with another person at a time when he has a living spouse, or the other person has a living spouse.” North Carolina defines adultery as when any man and woman “lewdly and lasciviously associate, bed and cohabit together.” Minnesota defines adultery as: “when a married woman has sexual intercourse with a man other than her husband, whether married or not, both are guilty of adultery”. Adultery is against the governing law of the U.S. military.
Adultery was known in earlier times by the legal term “criminal conversation” (another term, alienation of affection, is used when one spouse deserts the other for a third person).
A marriage in which both spouses agree to accept sexual relations by either partner with another person is a form of nonmonogamy, and the spouses would not treat the sexual relations as adultery, although it could still be considered to be adultery in some legal jurisdictions.
Some cultures distinguish adultery from infidelity: for example, Germany defines adultery as a “crime against marriage”, while infidelity is not.
In Canada, though the written definition in the Divorce Act refers to extramarital relations with someone of the opposite sex, a British Columbia judge used the Civil Marriage Act in a 2005 case to grant a woman a divorce from her husband who had cheated on her with another man, which the judge felt was equal reasoning to dissolve the union.
Biblical sources
The Hebrew Bible (the Tanakh or Christian Old Testament) prohibits adultery in the seventh of the Ten Commandments (Exodus 20:14).
Deuteronomy 22:22 defines adultery as sexual relations between a married woman and a man other than her husband. Both are guilty, and the penalty is death:
If a man commits adultery with another man’s wife — with the wife of his neighbor — both the adulterer and the adulteress must be put to death.
A consequence is that, under biblical law, sexual relations by an unmarried woman does not lead to adultery, whether the man is married or not.
These provisions are consistent with the provisions covering the practice of polygyny. It also fits with the prohibition of polyandry, as a woman cannot be married to more than one man without committing adultery. It has been suggested that the reasoning of these rules is to ensure that a child’s paternity is always known, and not in doubt.
“But I tell you that any spouse who looks at a person lustfully has already committed adultery with in their heart. Your lustful think and desire for someone other than spouse is seen as adultery” (Matthew 5:28)
From the Bible
Corinthians 6:9-10 (New International Version)
New International Version (NIV)
“Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor male prostitutes, nor homosexual offenders ,nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor slanderers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God.”
This verse basically says if you do any of the above, You will not be granted entry to the kingdom of God.
“Thou shall not commit adultery” seventh of the ten commandments.
