Why adultery and fornication must be avoided
Thus, God forbids adultery both to men and women. Now, it must be known that, although some believe that adultery is a sin, yet they do not believe that simple fornication is a mortal sin. Against them stand the words of St. Paul: “For fornicators and adulterers God will judge” [Hb 13:4]. And: “Do not err: neither fornicators... nor adulterers, nor the effeminate, nor liers with men shall possess the kingdom of God” [1 Cor 6:9]. But one is not excluded from the kingdom of God except by mortal sin; therefore, fornication is a mortal sin.
But one might say that there is no reason why fornication should be a mortal sin, since the body of the wife is not given, as in adultery. I say, however, if the body of the wife is not given, nevertheless, there is given the body of Christ which was given to the husband when he was sanctified in Baptism. If, then, one must not betray his wife, with much more reason must he not be unfaithful to Christ: “Know you not that your bodies are the members of Christ? Shall I then take the members of Christ and make them the members of a harlot? God forbid!”[13]. It is heretical to say that fornication is not a mortal sin.
Moreover, it must be known that the Commandment, “You shall not commit adultery,” not only forbids adultery but also every form of immodesty and impurity. There are some who say that intercourse between married persons is not devoid of sin. But this is heretical, for the Apostle says: “Let marriage be honorable in all and the bed undefiled” [Hb 13:4]. Not only is it devoid of sin, but for those in the state of grace it is meritorious for eternal life. Sometimes, however, it may be a venial sin, sometimes a mortal sin. When it is had with the intention of bringing forth offspring, it is an act of virtue. When it is had with the intent of rendering mutual comfort, it is an act of justice. When it is a cause of exciting lust, although within the limits of marriage, it is a venial sin; and when it goes beyond these limits, so as to intend intercourse with another if possible, it would be a mortal sin.
Adultery and fornication are forbidden for a number of reasons. First of all, because they destroy the soul: “He who is an adulterer has no sense, for the folly of his heart shall destroy his own soul” [Prov 6:32]. It says: “for the folly of his heart,” which is whenever the flesh dominates the spirit. Secondly, they deprive one of life; for one guilty of such should die according to the Law, as we read in Leviticus (20:10) and Deuteronomy (22:22). Sometimes the guilty one is not punished now bodily, which is to his disadvantage since punishment of the body may be borne with patience and is conducive to the remission of sins; but nevertheless he shall be punished in the future life. Thirdly, these sins consume his substance, just as happened to the prodigal son in that “he wasted his substance living riotiously” [Lk 15:13]. “Do not give your soul to harlots, lest you destroy your inheritance” [Sir 9:6]. Fourthly, they defile the offspring: “The children of adulterers shall not come to perfection, and the seed of the unlawful bed shall be rooted out. And if they live long they shall be nothing regarded, and their last old age shall be without honor” [Wis 3:16-17]. And again: “Otherwise your children should be unclean; but now they are holy” [1 Cor 7:14]. Thus, they are never honored in the Church, but if they are clerics their dishonor may go without shame. Fifthly, these sins take away one’s honor, and this especially is applicable to women: “Every woman who is a harlot shall be trodden upon as dung in the way” [Sir 9:10]. And of the husband it is said: “He gathers to himself shame and dishonor, and his reproach shall not be blotted out” [Prov 6:33].
St. Gregory says that sins of the flesh are more shameful and less blameful than those of the spirit, and the reason is because they are common to the beasts: “Man when he was in honor did not understand; and became like senseless beasts that perish” [Ps 48:21].
ARTICLE 9
THE SEVENTH COMMANDMENT
“You Shall Not Steal.”
The Lord specifically forbids injury to our neighbor in the Commandments. Thus, “You shall not kill” forbids us to injure our neighbor in his own person; “You shall not commit adultery” forbids injury to the person to whom one is bound in marriage; and now the Commandment, “You shall not steal,” forbids us to injure our neighbor in his goods. This Commandment forbids any worldly goods whatsoever to be taken away wrongfully.
Theft is committed in a number of ways. First, by taking stealthily: “If the goodman of the house knew at what hour the thief would come” [Mt 24:43]. This is an act wholly blameworthy because it is a form of treachery. “Confusion... is upon the thief” [Sir 5:17].
Secondly, by taking with violence, and this is an even greater injury: “They have violently robbed the fatherless” [Job 24:9]. Among such that do such things are wicked kings and rulers: “Her princes are in the midst of her as roaring lions; her judges are evening wolves, they left nothing for the morning” [Zeph 3:3]. They act contrary to God’s will who wishes a rule according to justice: “By Me kings reign and lawgivers decree just things” [Prov 8:15]. Sometimes they do such things stealthily and sometimes with violence: “Your princes are faithless companions of thieves, they all love bribes, they run after rewards” [Is 1:23]. At times they steal by enacting laws and enforcing them for profit only: “Woe to those who make wicked laws” [Is 10:1]. And St. Augustine says that every wrongful usurpation is theft when he asks: “What are thrones but forms of thievery?”[ City of God IV, 4].
Thirdly, theft is committed by not paying wages that are due: “The wages of him whom you have hired shall not abide by you until the morning” [Lev 19:13]. This means that a man must pay every one his due, whether he be prince, prelate, or cleric, etc.: “Render therefore to all men their dues. Tribute, to whom tribute is due, custom, to whom custom” [Rm 13:7]. Hence, we are bound to give a return to rulers who guard our safety.
The fourth kind of theft is fraud in buying and selling: “You shall not have divers weights in your bag, a greater and a less” [Deut 25:13]. And again: “Do no unjust thing in judgment, in rule, in weight, or in measure” [Lev 19:35-36]. All this is directed against the keepers of wine-shops who mix water with the wine. Usury is also forbidden: “Who shall dwell in your tabernacle, or who shall rest in your holy hill?... He who has not put his money out to usury” [Ps 14:1,5]. This is also against money-changers who commit many frauds, and against the sellers of cloth and other goods.
Fifthly, theft is committed by those who buy promotions to positions of temporal or spiritual honor. “The riches which he swallowed, he shall vomit up, and God shall draw them out of his belly” [Job 20:15], has reference to temporal position. Thus, all tyrants who hold a kingdom or province or land by force are thieves, and are held to restitution. Concerning spiritual dignities: “Amen, amen, I say to you, he who does not enter by the door into the sheepfold but climbs up another way is a thief and a robber” [Jn 10:1]. Therefore, they who commit simony are thieves.
Why stealing must be avoided
“You shall not steal.” This Commandment, as has been said, forbids taking things wrongfully, and we can bring forth many reasons why it is given. The first is because of the gravity of this sin, which is likened to murder: “The bread of the needy is the life of the poor; he who defrauds them of it is a man of blood” [Sir 24:25]. And again: “He who sheds blood and he who defrauds the laborer of his hire are brothers” [Sir 24:27].
The second reason is the peculiar danger involved in theft, for no sin is so dangerous. After committing other sins a person may quickly repent, for instance, of murder when his anger cools, or of fornication when his passion subsides, and so on for others; but even if one repents of this sin, one does not easily make the necessary satisfaction for it. This is owing to the obligation of restitution and the duty to make up for what loss is incurred by the rightful owner. And all this is above and beyond the obligation to repent for the sin itself: “Woe to him who heaps together what is not his own; for how long will he load himself with thick clay?” [Hab 2:6 Vulgate; “clay” should be “debts”]. For thick clay is that from which one cannot easily extricate himself.
The third reason is the uselessness of stolen goods in that they are of no spiritual value: “Treasures of wickedness shall profit nothing” [Prov 10:2]. Wealth can indeed be useful for almsgiving and offering of sacrifices, for “the ransom of a man’s life are his riches” [Prov 13:8]. But it is said of stolen goods: “I am the Lord that love judgment, and hate robbery in a holocaust” [Is 41:8]. And again: “He who offers sacrifice of the goods of the poor is as one who sacrifices the son in the presence of his father” [Sir 34:24].
The fourth reason is that the results of theft are peculiarly harmful to the thief in that they lead to his loss of other goods. It is not unlike the mixture of fire and straw: “Fire shall devour their tabernacles, who love to take bribes” [Job 15:34]. And it ought to be known that a thief may lose not only his own soul, but also the souls of his children, since they are bound to make restitution.
ARTICLE 10
THE EIGHTH COMMANDMENT
“You Shall Not Bear False Witness Against your Neighbor.”
The Lord has forbidden anyone to injure his neighbor by deed; now he forbids us to injure him by word. “You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.” This may occur in two ways, either in a court of justice or in ordinary conversation.
In the court of justice it may happen in three ways, according to the three persons who may violate this Commandment in court. The first person is the plaintiff who makes a false accusation: “You shall not be a detractor nor a whisperer among the people” [Lev 19:16]. And note well that it is not only wrong to speak falsely, but also to conceal the truth: “If your brother offends you, go and rebuke him” [Mt 18:15]. The second person is the witness who testifies by lying: “A false witness shall not be unpunished” [Prov 19:5]. For this Commandment includes all the preceding ones, inasmuch as the false witness may himself be the murderer or the thief, etc. And such should be punished according to the law. “When after most diligent inquisition, they shall find that the false witness hath told a lie against his brother, they shall render to him as he meant to do to his brother.... You shall not pity him, but shall require life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot” [Deut 19:18-21]. And again: “A man who bears false witness against his neighbor is like a dart and a sword and a sharp arrow” [Prov 25:18]. The third person is the judge who sins by giving an unjust sentence: “You shall not... judge unjustly. Respect not the person of the poor, nor honor the countenance of the mighty. But judge your neighbor according to justice” [Lev 19:15].