“If a man commits adultery with his neighbor’s wife, both the man and the woman who have committed adultery must be put to death.”
-Leviticus 20:10, NLT
I do NOT advocate bringing back the death penalty for adultery.*
However, I DO believe something ought to exist legally to right the myriad of injustices faithful spouses experience.
We imprison physically abusive spouses. Fines and/or steep financial penalties are levied for breaking contracts or other behavior deemed destructive to society.
Adultery is highly destructive to society. And it is abusive behavior.
Even if jail time is taken off the table, financial penalties ought to be considered, IMO, as cheating so often takes tangible wealth from faithful spouse besides their ill-placed trust.
Making it a criminal matter would be another way to make it more difficult for these bad actors to operate in professions giving them easy access to the vulnerable. Just a thought.
I doubt we will return to a time in society where real penalties are placed upon those who violate the trust of both the faithful spouse and the community in this way.
However, I do think it is worth noting the state leaves faithful spouses in a position where they endure grave injustices with no legal recourse in reality as far as I can tell as a non-lawyer.
Sure, many states will allow faithful spouses to obtain a divorce from a cheater on the basis of infidelity. But that is like saying a beaten wife is allowed to divorce her abusive husband.
Allowing for divorce in the case of deadly dangerous abuse is a good start, but that does not truly address the wrong of the abuse.
I see it as the same thing as it comes to allowing divorce for adultery and then considering the situation addressed. It is not, IMO.
*As a reminder, I write as a concerned citizen, NOT a lawyer. This post is not legal advice.
