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The Sixth Commandment

The sixth commandment has always read: “You shall not commit adultery.” In a newer Bible, “The Good News” it reads: “Do not destroy a marriage”. Whether we commit adultery or destroy a marriage – what is the difference?

To destroy a marriage means that we, a man or a woman, interfere in our neighbour’s marriage, by inciting the woman against the man, or the man against the woman.

On the other hand, “You shall not commit adultery” means: If I, as wife or husband, for example, have made a bond before God with my partner, I will remain true to him, in thought, word and deed. It is already a case of adultery when I am unfaithful in my thoughts, when I imagine another partner or imagine that I will have a physical relationship with him.

But all this begins with little signals – words, looks and gestures – which activate the thoughts and imagination. What sort of energies are those that flow, for example, when flirting – no matter how seriously. Are they divine? Is the goal of flirting to remain true to our partner and to our yes to our partner?

In this sense, Jesus said in the Sermon on the Mount: “You shall not commit adultery, but I say to you: The one who just looks at a woman in a covetous way has already committed adultery with her in his heart.”

So, I can commit adultery even in my thoughts. We see that “adultery” and “to destroy a marriage” are not the same. And so, the Bibles are saying different things.

What did God say to the Israelites through Moses? Did He say: “You shall not commit adultery”? Or did He say: “Do not destroy a marriage?” Whom do we believe more? God through Moses, or those who corrected the Bible?

Let’s ask again for the reasons behind this. When a formulation changes so much, there must be something behind it. Did the correctors perhaps think that “adulterous behaviour” – for example, a little affair – doesn’t necessarily have to destroy a marriage? From this it would follow that such behaviour is allowed as long as it doesn’t destroy a marriage.

Why did the Bible correctors want to “allow” this adulterous behaviour?

Let’s think about this: When the wife or the husband know about their partner’s adulterous behaviour, what do they feel? What do they think? How do they feel? Perhaps they feel an unspeakable sorrow, disappointment, hurt feelings. Perhaps animosity, hate, strife and discord with their partner develop from this. Thoughts and words are set free as a result of this affair. We know that no energy is lost, and so where does this energy go? It falls partly back on the one who thinks these things and partly on the one who caused them.

As Original Christians, we believe in the words of God through Moses: “You shall not commit adultery.” And we believe in the words of the Christ of God in Jesus who said: “You have heard that it was said ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ But I say to you: The one who just looks at a woman in a covetous way has already committed adultery in his heart.”

No person is perfect; therefore such things can happen sometimes. Perhaps the person brought an earlier act of adultery into this life with him as a soul burden. Now he should recognize this guilt in his feelings, sensations and thoughts and clear it up, but instead of clearing it up, he commits adultery again. If this happens, it now depends on how he acts in this situation. If he then recognizes what he has caused with this behaviour, feels remorse from his heart, clears it up with Christ and no longer does this, then he is forgiven by God. If his partner also forgives him, then this sin is wiped out. But if his partner does not forgive him, then this guilt still needs to be forgiven.

Adultery – how is it with those who aren’t married? How is it with celibacy, for example? Is celibacy something wanted by God or isn’t it a reformulation of the sixth commandment, possibly, among other things, a concession resulting from many indiscretions by priests. Who introduced celibacy?

Jesus, the Christ, didn’t talk about celibacy. We can’t say that Jesus wasn’t married and thus His so-called followers also aren’t allowed to marry. This would be wrong. Jesus came as the Son of God, in order to bring redemption. And Jesus, the Son of God, never said that marriage is sinful. He spoke  for  marriage, but not for adultery. Thus, celibacy can’t have come from Jesus either.

Can a person remain celibate, when in his soul he brought with him the desire for marriage, for a physical relationship? As Original Christians, we know about reincarnation and know that we bring again into this incarnation what wasn’t cleared up in previous incarnations. And so, it is possible that the desire for living together with a partner is active in a priest. Thus, if soul burdens from a marriage in previous incarnations are present, then he will again act in the same or like manner, if he doesn’t want to repent and clear up this potential of sin with the strength of the Lord. This holds true for all people and it also holds true for priests. This is why there is much sinning among priests in this regard.

We do not free ourselves by castigating and repressing, but only by recognizing our human, sinful, programmes and working them off step by step. No person is perfect. A true Christian struggles for perfection every day.

And how do the Original Christians act in their marriages?

As Original Christians, we remain faithful in our marriages, faithful to the person to whom we have said “yes”. We make every effort in our daily lives to live according to the Ten Commandments and the Sermon on the Mount. This is why when disagreements come up in a marriage or partnership, we don’t ignore them until mutual disappointment builds up, but we clear them up each day.

An Original Christian told about how he clears things up when feelings or thoughts come up in him that are directed against his partner. He said: “I know the law of correspondence and I know exactly that what annoys me about her, what I criticize in her, has to also be present in me – at least to some extent. And so, before I criticize the splinter in my neighbour’s eye, I make every effort to take the beam out of my own eye, by asking myself what is still in me in relation to this sinfulness. I know that I can change only myself. And if I want to change my neighbour, then I have to ask myself whether I don’t want to change  myself.”

No person is perfect, including an Original Christian, who strives every day to live according to the Ten Commandments and the Sermon on the Mount. We asked the brother: “What do you do, for instance, when suddenly the desire comes up in you to approach another woman? What do you do when you are suddenly attracted to another woman and develop feelings for her?”

The brother answered: “I know that everything has a cause. And so, I ask myself what lies behind these feelings. My feelings, sensations, thoughts and possibly images tell me this. It can be a burden, a guilt from this life or also from a past life on earth. If I really want to know and also want to change, then I will recognize it. It will become clear to me against whom and in what way I have acted wrongly. I can then repent, ask for forgiveness, forgive and make amends for what is still possible. Then, concerning this, I will firmly resolve to think and act differently in the future, that is, lawfully. This is now said in a general way, but many very different circumstances can be the cause of this, depending on what I did wrong in the past.

It can also be that a disharmonious body rhythm causes sinful programmes to become active again. For when I am balanced and in harmony, the pressing desire for human, that is, female, energy doesn’t come so easily. Thus, there must be certain causes behind this wish. I then ask myself what has built up in my world of feelings, sensations and thoughts and why this has happened. There can be a discontentment in me, a disappointment, perhaps even unfulfilled wishes and the like. These are the thoughts and images in which I recognize myself, and which I can then clear up. I don’t have to live them to the full, but they become clear to me through the energy of the day, so that I can bring them into order with the help of Christ.”

More questions to the brother: “How do you put your desires into order? How do you clear up what moves and pushes you? Do you force yourself not to think about it anymore, or do you tell yourself: If I give in to these desires, then I’m just heading for adultery and so I’d better just let go of them. Or what else do you do?”

The brother: “When unlawful, pressing desirous thoughts come, it depends on how I react to them, how I deal with them. If I give my thoughts and imagination free rein and let a desire, which came up, continue to build up, then I intensify the desire. However, I want to grasp my thoughts and desires and look into them, in order to recognize myself and clear them up with the help of Christ. This is why I say “stop” to the desirous thoughts, but don’t repress them. I have to find the root, in this case, the root of my discontentment. Maybe the discontentment lies in a disappointment at work, or that I don’t fulfil some wish or other, possibly small, harmless, lawful wishes. Or I’ve been postponing for some time a clarifying conversation that needs to take place; or I’m avoiding a decision. There are many possibilities. If I find this root and put these things in order with Christ, then the cause of my desirous thoughts has been cleared up. Then I will also become free from the desire for another woman.”

Much disappointment in marriage and partnership comes from the fact that we live too close to each other, that is, that we have too little “free room”.

As Original Christians, we have experienced that if faithfulness is the commandment in Christ, then there are so many possibilities of being with one another in marriage and partnership. Then we try to find ways that both can develop in personal freedom. For example, each one should have a room for himself, to which he can withdraw at times; a room which he can furnish as he likes, and where he can live the  way  he wants to. In every case, the prerequisite for this is being faithful to one’s partner. And we can remain faithful to our neighbour only when we stay faithful to Christ, by striving daily to fulfil the Ten Commandments and the Sermon on the Mount.

The key to a peaceful life with each other lies in being oriented to the same goal. If we both have the same goal, then we won’t hold back our neighbour or bind him to us, but we will let him have his freedom and thus become free ourselves.

God created us as independent beings and not to live dependent on each other. This is why as Original Christians we actualize equality, also as regards the husband trying to sometimes do the work of the wife and the wife likewise doing her best not to be dependent on her husband, but to stand on her own two feet. And this brings about independence and satisfaction on both sides. Every person should develop the talents and abilities that God gave to him. Each one should be there for the other one and not against the other one.

It is said: “On earth as it is in heaven.” Marriage is wanted by God – but not limitation. Not adultery, but being with each other.

We Original Christian are not perfect either. There is also strife in many of our marriages. But the partners try again and again to settle this strife with the question: What is my part in this? For it is said: Remove the beam from your own eye, before you work on the splinter in your neighbour’s eye.

And so, we do our best to resolve disharmonies, by actively conquering our difficulties together, and finding solutions upon which a life of being together can be built.

We have experienced that partners who have disagreements again and again in their marriage or partnership can attain a more relaxed and positive relationship again when each of them can set up a small realm for himself within the house or apartment. Thus, the partners don’t have to separate.

If it is possible for each one to form this small realm in the house, then the individual can withdraw when he feels the need for this. Then he can live his personal life. The partners are not constantly grating on each other, and understanding and benevolence build up again. Each one works on his point in peace and they can reconcile with each other. Thus, peace is the result in many cases. The prerequisite for such a development is remaining faithful to each other and the willingness to reconcile.

In our marriages and partnerships, we strive to live in such a way that we both orient ourselves to Christ and turn to Him. In this way, a basis for the marriage is formed, which is worth upholding, which we don’t want to break. The orientation towards Christ together gives us the strength for a real and deep partnership. Only in this way can we be successful in building a family together in His name and in raising children who feel a secureness in Christ, who see that there is more to life than just egoism and materialism.

If there is harmony between the partners, this also has a positive effect on the children. The atmosphere in the family is of benefit for the development of each family member – even the family pets. The peaceful atmosphere at home radiates into other areas of life and into the surroundings. Light can do nothing but attract, because it is bright and warm. Where the commandments of God are kept, there is secureness in God and trust in one another and there is freedom.

But when one partner doesn’t want to fulfil these original Christian principles, when he or she has other interests, then despite this the Original Christians remain true to their principles. They won’t let their partner out of their heart, but will remain faithful to him, no matter what he does – even when one of them leaves the other and turns to another man or woman. For the commandment: “You shall not commit adultery” means: I have promised to be faithful to my partner; this means that I will give him his freedom when he turns away from me. However, I myself will not break this bond of faithfulness.

If the husband or wife wants a divorce because they want to remarry, then the Original Christian will agree to this. Then he or she is free to turn to a new partner, for he or she has not committed adultery. Nevertheless, he, too, will have to examine his feelings, thoughts and desires.

In the Sermon on the Mount, we have the instructions which help us recognize why we have made a mistake and how we can clear it up.

No matter what sin we have to recognize in ourselves, we can always turn back and change. For God loves all of His children. He doesn’t lock any of them out of His heart. This is why there is no eternal damnation, but the turning back through the grace of God. This means that when we fall into sin, we should neither stay lying there nor continue to persist in these thoughts, these sins, but should gather up the courage to take the hand of the Eternal and to stand up. And we should clear up our sins with the help of Christ in us and no longer commit them. This is the path to freedom. This is the path to our neighbour and with our neighbour. This is for us original Christian life.

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