Would it make a difference in our society if a law were created making adultery illegal? A law much like the one enforced by the U.S. Military, UCMJ A

[Jimmy_B]

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**Would it make a difference in our society if a law were created making adultery illegal? A law much like the one enforced by the U.S. Military, UCMJ Article 134. **

Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ)
Article 134 “Adultery”
***Elements. ***
(1) That the accused wrongfully had sexual intercourse with a certain person;
(2) That, at the time, the accused or the other person was married to someone else; and
(3) That, under the circumstances, the conduct of the accused was to the prejudice of good order and discipline in the armed forces or was of a nature to bring discredit upon the armed forces.

Moreover, do non-Catholic**, Protestant Christian denominations view adultery differently and why don’t Protestant, non-Catholic Christians view multiple marriages and adultery in the same way as the Roman Catholic Church?**

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Finally, should adultery be against the law?**
**

Your thoughts?

 

[Simon_X]

I am not in favor of adultery (big surprise ), but it’s virtually unenforceable. Sorry, but it ain’t gonna happen…

 

[4Squarebaby]

Being against the law along with no divorce, except for people married under sharia law, has NOT worked in the Philippines.

 

[gcnuss]

Jimmy,

My comments come from a position that adultery is sinful and surely ought to be discouraged. However, I don’t believe that making it a criminal offense is the best way to do that any more than I believe that heresy is best combated by making it a criminal offense.

Making adultery a criminal offense has some ramifications that disturb me. Will we be headed toward a society that places cameras in bedrooms to see who is bedding whom? Proving adultery beyond a reasonable doubt may be very difficult absent graphic evidence of the crime.

Finally, I would not consider the UCMJ to be a valid model for use in the civilian world.

 

[1ke]

It **was ** against the law in the US, and **still is **in some states.

However, the 1965 US Supreme Court decision regarding privacy (which paved the way for striking down laws against Contraception, Abortion, Adultery, Sodomy, etc) was the beginning of the end for adultery statutes.

 

[ahollars]

I’m a military veteran, and I can remember a few men and women who actually were punished for violating that article. I can honestly say that it is not unenforceable. All that is necessary is a complaint from someone in the family, or from someone in the unit when the behavior affects their duty, and commanders have wide discretion as to defining what interferes with duty. Consider if it was a misdemeanor for a first offense that required one court appearance before a judge, unless you plead guilty and pay the fine. This was the norm in this country and it didn’t tie up the courts. You could argue that if the adulterer has children that by definition, child neglect is occurring. I have no problem with adultery being illegal and punishable. It is not impossible, and would be good for society.