It is not known what adulterous love is, unless it be known what conjugial love is, n. 424. Adulterous love is opposed to conjugial love, n. 425. Adulterous love is opposed to conjugial love, as the natural man viewed in himself is opposed to the spiritual man, n. 426. Adulterous love is opposed to conjugial love, as the connubial connection of what is evil and false is opposed to the marriage of good and truth, n. 427, 428. Hence adulterous love is opposed to conjugial love as hell is to heaven, n. 429. The impurity of hell is from adulterous love, and the purity of heaven from conjugial love, n. 430. In the church, the impurity and the purity are similarly circumstanced, n. 431. Adulterous love more and more makes a man (homo) not a man (homo), and a man (vir) not a man (vir); and conjugial love makes a man (homo) more and more a man (homo) and a man (vir), n. 432, 433. There are a sphere of adulterous love and a sphere of conjugial love, n. 434. The sphere of adulterous love ascends from hell, and the sphere of conjugial love descends from heaven, n. 435. In each world those two spheres meet, but do not unite, n. 436. Between those two spheres there is an equilibrium, and man is in it, n. 437. A man can turn himself to whichever sphere he pleases; but so far as he turns himself to the one, so far he turns himself from the other, n. 438. Each sphere brings with it delights, n. 439. The delights of adulterous love commence from the flesh, and are of the flesh even in the spirit; but the delights of conjugial love commence in the spirit, and are of the spirit even in the flesh, n. 440, 441, The delights of adulterous love are the pleasures of insanity; but the delights of conjugial love are the delights of wisdom, n. 442, 443.
ON FORNICATION, n. [444*-460].
Fornication is of the love of the sex, n. 445. The love of the sex, from which fornication is derived, commences when a youth begins to think and act from his own understanding, and his voice to be masculine, n. 446. Fornication is of the natural man, n. 447. Fornication is lust, but not the lust of adultery, n. 448, 449. With some men, the love of the sex cannot without hurt be totally checked from going forth into fornication, n. 450. Therefore in populous cities public stews are tolerated, n. 451. Fornication is light, so far as it looks to conjugial love, and gives this love the preference, n. 452. The lust of fornication is grievous, so far as it looks to adultery, n. 453. The lust of fornication is more grievous as it verges to the desire of varieties and of defloration, n. 454. The sphere of the lust of fornication, such as it is in the beginning, is a middle sphere between the sphere of adulterous love and the sphere of conjugial love, and makes an equilibrium, n. 455. Care is to be taken, lest by immoderate and inordinate fornications conjugial love be destroyed, n. 456. Inasmuch as the conjugial principle of one man with one wife is the jewel of human life, and the reservoir of the Christian religion, n. 457, 458. With those who, from various reasons, cannot as yet enter into marriage, and from their passion for the sex, cannot moderate their lusts, this conjugial principle may be preserved, if the vague love of the sex be confined to one mistress, n. 459. Keeping a mistress is preferable to vague amours, provided only one be kept, and she be neither a maiden nor a married woman, and the love of the mistress be kept separate from conjugial love, n. 460.
ON CONCUBINAGE, n. [462-476].
There are two kinds of concubinage, which differ exceedingly from each other, the one conjointly with a wife, the other apart from a wife, n. 463. Concubinage conjointly with a wife, is altogether unlawful for Christians, and detestable, n. 464. It is polygamy, which has been condemned, and is to be condemned by the Christian world, n. 465. It is an adultery whereby the conjugial principle, which is the most precious jewel of the Christian life, is destroyed, n. 466. Concubinage apart from a wife, when it is engaged in from causes legitimate, just, and truly excusatory, is not unlawful, n. 467. The legitimate causes of this concubinage are the legitimate causes of divorce, while the wife is nevertheless retained at home, n. 468, 469. The just causes of this concubinage are the just causes of separation from the bed, n. 470. Of the excusatory causes of this concubinage some are real and some not, n. 471. The really excusatory causes are such as are grounded in what is just, n. 472, 473. The excusatory causes which are not real are such as are not grounded in what is just, although in the appearance of what is just, n. 474. Those who, from causes legitimate, just, and really excusatory, are engaged in this concubinage, may at the same time be principled in conjugial love, n. 475. While this concubinage continues, actual connection with a wife is not allowable, n. 476.
ON ADULTERIES AND THEIR GENERA AND DEGREES, n. [478-499].
There are three genera of adulteries,—simple, duplicate, and triplicate, n. 479. Simple adultery is that of an unmarried man with another's wife, or of an unmarried woman with another's husband, n. 480, 481. Duplicate adultery is that of a husband with another's wife, or of a wife with another's husband, n. 482, 483. Triplicate adultery is with relations by blood, n. 484. There are four degrees of adulteries, according to which they have their predications, their charges of blame, and after death their imputation, n. 485. Adulteries of the first degree are adulteries of ignorance, which are committed by those who cannot as yet, or cannot at all, consult the understanding, and thence check them, n. 486. In such cases adulteries are mild, n. 487. Adulteries of the second degree are adulteries of lust, which are committed by those who indeed are able to consult the understanding, but from accidental causes at the moment are not able, n. 488. Adulteries committed by such persons are imputatory, according as the understanding afterwards favors them or not, n. 489. Adulteries of the third degree are adulteries of the reason, which are committed by those who with the understanding confirm themselves in the persuasion that they are not evils of sin, n. 490. The adulteries committed by such persons are grievous, and are imputed to them according to confirmations, n. 491. Adulteries of the fourth degree are adulteries of the will, which are committed by those who make them lawful and pleasing, and who do not think them of importance enough to consult the understanding respecting them, n. 492. The adulteries committed by these persons are exceedingly grievous, and are imputed to them as evils of purpose, and remain in them as guilt, n. 493. Adulteries of the third and fourth degree are evils of sin, according to the quantity and quality of understanding and will in them, whether they are actually committed or not, n. 494. Adulteries grounded in purpose of the will, and adulteries grounded in confirmation of the understanding, render men natural, sensual, and corporeal, n. 495, 496. And this to such a degree, that at length they reject from themselves all things of the church and of religion, n. 497. Nevertheless they have the powers of human rationality like other men, n. 498. But they use that rationality while they are in externals, but abuse it while they are in externals, n. 499.
ON THE LUST OF DEFLORATION, n. [501-505].
The state of a virgin or undeflowered woman before and after marriage, n. 502. Virginity is the crown of chastity and the certificate of conjugial love, n. 503. Defloration, without a view to marriage as an end, is the villany of a robber, n. 504. The lot of those who have confirmed themselves in the persuasion that the lust of defloration is not an evil of sin, after death is grievous, n. 505.
ON THE LUST OF VARIETIES, n. [506-510].