A question that was posed to me is “Is it still adultery if my spouse is unfaithful ?” The simple answer to the question is yes. Unfaithfulness is the essence of adultery. Some cheater attempt excusing their behavior by claiming that since there was ‘no intercourse’ that no ‘adultery’ occurred. Such semantics amount to word games. Couples caught up in such word games often have intense arguments over the meanings of words. At times they may bring in a third party to act as a neutral source to provide a ruling on the definition of terms.
The bottom line is that unfaithfulness is unfaithfulness. When you feel that the heart of the cheater is attached to someone or something other than the person they pledged their loyalties and love to, you feel cheated. The term ‘alienation of affection’ addresses how the affections that you are deserving of are being diverted to other sources.
The cheater may in their own twisted mind view as not meeting the definition of adultery while you are suffering from emotional starvation. The love that you should be receiving are now being sent elsewhere. Whether what the cheater did meets the ‘legal’ definition of adultery is a moot point. The reality is that there has been unfaithfulness. That unfaithfulness will need to be dealt with and not dismissed with word games if you want to improve the relationship.
If you are dealing with such word games, you may want to consider my e-book on surviving your partners affair.
Best Regards,
Jeffrey Murrah
