Fornication

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Fornication, sometimes referred to as premarital sex, is a term which refers to any sexual activity between consenting unmarried partners. Sex between unmarried persons is distinguished from adultery by use of the term 'simple fornication'; whereas relations in which at least one of the parties is married is considered 'adultery'.

The origin of the word derives from Latin. The word fornix means "an archway" or "vault" (in Rome, prostitutes could be solicited there). More directly, fornicatio means "of the archway"; thus a euphemism for prostitution.

Fornication is dealt with differently in various religions, societies and cultures.

Contents 1 Religions 1.1 Abrahamic Faiths 1.1.1 Judaism 1.1.2 Christianity 1.1.2.1 Roman Catholic 1.1.2.2 Modern Progressive View 1.1.3 Islam 1.2 Dharmic Faiths 1.2.1 Hinduism 1.2.2 Buddhism 1.3 Neopaganism 1.3.1 Reconstructive 1.3.2 Wicca 1.4 Atheism 1.5 Secular Humanism 2 Laws 2.1 United States of America 2.2 Islamic Countries 3 See also 4 External links 5 References

[edit] Religions

For a broad overview, see Religion and sexuality.

[edit] Abrahamic Faiths

[edit] Judaism

Orthodox Judaism restricts sexual activity to a legally permissible marriage between a Jewish man and a Jewish woman. A man and woman are even prohibited from being in a closed room alone together if they are not married (a law called yichud), nor are they allowed to have physical contact (a law referred to as negiah).

Sexual relations between a man and a woman who are not married are considered less serious (they are referred to as zenut) than the Biblically prohibited unions such as adultery (a married woman having relations with another man) and incest; the latter are referred to as ervah (literally "nakedness"), have more severe penalties and there are serious restrictions on children of these prohibited unions (mamzerim).

Sexual relations is one of the ways the Talmud (Kiddushin 1) specifies for effecting a marriage, though this method is frowned upon by the Rabbis. Children of a Jewish woman are considered Jewish regardless of whether she was married.

Conservative, reformed, reconstructist, liberal and alternative jews do not have such stringent views on the subject. Sexual relations between a man and a woman who are not married are considered less serious (they are referred to as zenuth) than the Biblically prohibited unions such as adultery (a married woman having relations with another man) and incest; the later are referred to as ervah (literally "nakedness"), have more severe penalties and there are serious restrictions on children of these prohibited unions (mamzerim).

[edit] Christianity

Sex outside of marriage is frowned upon in many Christian denominations. Reactions to it are mixed, ranging from ostracism to acceptance of those who participate in it.

The accepted form marriage (civil marriage), has not always existed as it does today. Historically, Christian churches were not involved in marriage prior to the middle ages and weddings were considered family and community affairs. "The role of the clergy at a medieval wedding was simply to bless the couple. It was not official church policy until the council of Trent in the 15th century that a third party (i.e., a priest), as opposed to the couple themselves, was responsible for performing the wedding."^[1] It is unclear when the first forms of weddings originated but it reasonable to believe that people before the advent of civilization and organized religion did not become married through any type of ceremony.

Some translations of the New Testament forbid fornication: "Fornicators, idolaters, adulterers,... will not inherit the kingdom of God". The original Koine Greek word translated as fornication is porneia. The Greek term is used by some churches to include any form of sexual misconduct and there is some debate as to the precise meaning of the word, which in Classical Greek refers specifically to prostitution and is etymologically the same root as in the English "pornography"; in a religious sense it is generally accepted to refer to any form of sexual immorality.

[edit] Roman Catholic

The Catechism of the Catholic Church [3] lists fornication as one of the "Offenses Against Chastity" and calls it "an intrinsically and gravely disordered action" because "use of the sexual faculty, for whatever reason, outside of marriage is essentially contrary to its purpose."^[2]

[edit] Modern Progressive View

Mainstream Christianity accepts civil marriage by the Church as marriage although this view is never presented in the Bible. The most commonly used Biblical definition of marriage is presented in Genesis 2:24 in which "a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh". This verse is quoted 4 times in the New Testament: two quotes are attributed to Jesus (Matt. 19:5 and Mark 10:8) and two are attributed to Paul (1 Cor. 6:16 and Eph. 5:31). Paul explains the significance of sexual immorality by writing, "Do you not know that he who unites himself with a prostitute is one with her in body? For it is said, 'The two will become one flesh.'" (1 Corinthians 6:15). In quoting Genesis 2:24, many believe Paul is referring to sexual intercourse with a prostitute as marriage. If this view of Paul's teaching is correct, premarital sex is philosophically impossible because sexual intercourse is one form of marriage therefore the technical phrasing is simply "marital sex".

[edit] Islam

Main article: Zina (sex)

In the Qur'an, sex before marriage is strictly prohibited. Islam stresses that sexual relations should be restricted to the institution of marriage in order for the creation of the family; and secondly as a means to protect the family, certain relations should be considered prohibited for marriage. Fornication and adultery are both included in the Arabic word 'Zina'. Belonging primarily to the same category of crimes, entailing the same social implications and having the same effects on the spiritual personality of a human being, both, in principle, have been given the same status by the Qur'an.

[edit] Dharmic Faiths

[edit] Hinduism

Hinduism has historically not approved of fornication. Due to the recent impact of the western culture, however, many Hindus do not follow tradition, especially among young people, and in the larger cities.

Alternative Hindu schools of thought such as the Tantric branches of Hinduism, the Hindu practices native to India that predates centuries of conservative Islamic and Victorian English influences, is markedly less reserved, teaching that enlightenment can be approached through divine sex.^{[citation needed]} Divine sex is one path whereby one can approach Moksha (Nirvana), a oneness with a higher spiritual level. As such, the Tantric practices, through writings such as the Kama Sutra seek not to repress sexuality, but to perfect it. By perfecting the act of divine sex, including masturbation, as seen depicted at the 10th century Hindu temple of Khajuraho, one clears the mind of earthly desires, leaving the soul on a higher level devoid of such worries, filled with bliss, and relaxed.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Buddhism

In the Buddhist tradition, under the Five Precepts and the Eightfold Path, one should neither be attached to nor crave sensual pleasure. The third of the Five Precepts is "To refrain from sexual misconduct". For most Buddhist laypeople, sex outside of marriage is not "sexual misconduct", especially when compared to, say, adultery or any sexual activity which can bring suffering to another human being. Each may need to consider whether, for them, sexual contact is a distraction or means of avoidance of their own spiritual practice or development. To provide a complete focus onto spiritual practice, fully ordained Buddhist monks may, depending on the tradition, be bound by hundreds of further detailed rules or vows that may include a ban on sexual relations. Vajrayana or Tantric Buddhism, on the other hand, teaches that sexual intercourse can be actively used to approach higher spiritual development.

[edit] Neopaganism

[edit] Reconstructive

Polytheistic reconstructionist pagans place emphasis on reconstructing historically accurate forms of paganism. Due to this, beliefs vary considerably depending on the form of polytheism being reconstructed.

[edit] Wicca

The "Charge of the Goddess" is an instruction of unknown antiquity that is recognized by many Wiccans. One part of it reads: "All acts of pleasure are my rituals." As such, the Wiccans consider pleasurable sexual activity not only normal, and healthy, but also sacred, as well as charged magically. Sex magic is considered one of the more potent branches of thelema, with sex being key to the Great Rite, itself. The Council of American Witches issued a statement about their religion during their Spring Witchmeet of 1974, held in Minneapolis, MN. It says, in part:

"We value sexuality as pleasure, as the symbol and embodiment of Life, and as one of the sources of energies used in magickal practices and religious worship."

[edit] Atheism

Since atheism is not strictly a religion but a philosophical position, there is no specific "atheist standpoint" on the matter of fornication; however, many atheists subscribe to a libertarian position on sex, believing in general that people have a right to decide sexual morality on their own terms as long as it is handled responsibly. Likewise, a great many agnostics and deists take the same position.

[edit] Secular Humanism

Most secular humanists believe that, in the overwhelming majority of cases, sexual intercourse does no harm in this world. Secular humanism therefore considers most sex acts as morally irrelevant and up to the individual.

[edit] Laws

The laws on fornication have historically been tied with religion, however in many countries there have been attempts to secularise constitutions, and laws differ greatly from country to country.

[edit] United States of America

Historically, in the context of the laws of states of the United States, fornication is generally defined as (vaginal) sexual intercourse between two unmarried persons of opposite sex and has been a crime. Most of these laws were either repealed, are not enforced, or were struck down by the courts as unconstitutional. See also State of New Jersey v. Saunders, 381 A.2d 333 (N.J. 1977), Martin v. Ziherl 607 S.E.2d 367 (Va. 2005).

With respect to fornication between same-sex persons, or sodomy, the U.S. Supreme Court decision in Lawrence v. Texas rendered the states' remaining laws unconstitutional.

Some states though, continue to enforce laws on fornication and adultery.^[3]

In recent years the rightness or wrongness of premarital sex has become a politically divisive issue in the United States, since the moral prohibition of premarital sex is the cornerstone of abstinence-only sex education, a program advocated by President George W. Bush and many conservative members of Congress. The policy is opposed by groups such as Planned Parenthood and many liberal and progressive members of Congress, and the debate over abstinence-only education has brought the issue of premarital sex to the forefront of the Culture Wars.

[edit] Islamic Countries

Fornication is a crime in many Muslim countries, and is often harshly punished. However, there are some exceptions. In Pakistan, for example, occasionally a charge is filed in order to prevent the accused from leaving the judistriction (for instance it is often used against drug smugglers, against whom it may not be possible to show a prima facie case for trial, but a charge of fornication, which requires a lower threshold, can be filed in the interim as the investigation unfolds.) In certain countries where parts of Islamic law are enforced, such as Iran and Saudi Arabia, fornication of unmarried persons is punishable by lashings. This is in contrast to adultery, whereas if one of the convicted were married, their punishment would be death by stoning. Historically speaking, corporal punishment for sexual crimes are part of law enforcement in the Abrahamic faiths when comprehensively carried out.

[edit] See also

• Free love
• Illegitimacy

[edit] External links

• Social Determinants of Attitudes Towards Women's Premarital Sexuality Among Female Turkish University Students
• Sexuality, the Modern World, and the Catholic Church
• Sex, Children, Nature

[edit] References