Public Service Announcement:
Being “miserable” is no excuse to cheat!
What astounds me is how some pastors do not think this one through very well. They “joke” about their wives “putting up” with them even in the presence of a divorced pastor whose wife cheated on him.
They either fail to see how insensitive that “joke” is or do not care.
Now, they don’t necessarily treat the misery excuse as an excuse. It is usually framed as a way to “understand” why the cheater cheated and/or left the faithful spouse.
As if God gives cheaters a pass on committing adultery if they are “miserable!”
God does not.
In fact, try that excuse on a judge:
The rapist does not get a pass for “acting out” because he was feeling “trapped” and “miserable” in his life. He goes to jail.
The wife beater is not excused for assaulting his wife because she “made” him feel “miserable.” He goes to jail.
The embezzler does not get a pass because her life was so “miserable” and dull without stealing all those thousands of dollars. No, she goes to jail.
It matters not whether the criminal was “miserable.” He or she is still fully responsible for their own actions. It is not the fault of the person he or she blames for her misery.
The same thing goes in marriage and divorce.
Faithful spouses are not responsible for the actions of their cheaters. It matters not whether the cheater claims to have been “miserable.”
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*A version of this post ran previously.
