Who is guilty of adultery

Under the law of many states, a single act of adultery constitutes a crime, whereas in others, there must be an ongoing and notorious relationship. The punishment set by statute may be greater for an individual who engages in repeated acts of adultery than for one who commits an isolated act. Defenses An individual who has been charged with committing adultery may have a valid legal defense, such as the failure or physical incapacity to consummate the sex act.

A woman is not guilty of adultery if the sex act resulted from rape. Some states recognize ignorance of the accused regarding the marital status of his or her sexual partner as a defense. In a few jurisdictions only the married party can be prosecuted for adultery. If the other party to the relationship is not married, he or she may be prosecuted for fornication instead of adultery. Learn More About adultery.

Time Traveler for adultery The first known use of adultery was in the 15th century See more words from the same century. From the Editors at Merriam-Webster. Style: MLA. Legal Definition of adultery. Get Word of the Day daily email! Test Your Vocabulary. Test your vocabulary with our question quiz! Love words? Need even more definitions? Homophones, Homographs, and Homonyms The same, but different.

Merriam-Webster's Words of the Week - Nov. Ask the Editors 'Everyday' vs. That is, the first marriage stills exists even though the first couple has divorced and thinks their marriage no longer exists. The answer is that there is only one reason for which a divorce can occur that does not cause the wife to commit adultery when she remarries. That reason is that unchastity has occurred. That is, both a husband and wife can cause their spouse to commit adultery.

The only exception is given by Jesus in Matthew That reason is unchastity. The Greek word for unchastity is porneia. This word includes a wide range of sexual sins: sex outside of marriage, incest, homosexuality and sex with animals. If one of the spouses committed porneia, then the other spouse is free to divorce the offending partner and remarry. Consequently if porneia has not occurred, adultery will be committed when one of the original spouses remarries another person.

It is important to understand that without porneia God considers the original marriage to still be in effect. So they are no longer two, but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let no man separate.