A ruling of the Italian Supreme Court has recently generated widespread discussion, and it could not have been otherwise because it is a unique case: according to the Court, if a spouse theorizes marital infidelity, the marriage can be annulled.
How Can You Prevent Marital Infidelity
The civil court follows in the path of the Ecclesiastical Court, which established a sort of “trial on intention” of preventing marital infidelity. In practice, both according to the Vatican Court and the civil court which followed its indications, if one of the spouses says that he or she is going to see marriage as a so-called “open relationship“, the marriage is void, even if infidelity is not actually carried out.
In fact, open couple affects the relationship of trust and mutual exclusivity which is at the foundation of marriage, which can therefore be declared invalid.
This ruling has raised eyebrows abroad, especially in the United Kingdom, where all “unusual” news from Italy often receive in-depth coverage from the media.
Of course, also in Italy the decision of the Court has given rise to discussion. In Italy, in fact, according to the laws concerning marriage and infidelity, cheating on your spouse can be sanctioned, and lead to dissolution of the marriage bond, only if it actually takes place, not only in the presence of a “declaration of intent” to do so.
In short, infidelity is to be the cause and not the consequence of the marital crisis and you can prevent marital infidelity. It is precisely for this reason that it is difficult to prove that a marriage crisis starts after a betrayal and not before, and therefore more than half of actually consumed betrayals are not sanctioned by the court.
Obviously, if in the United Kingdom it is difficult to understand the fact that a secular court follows the instructions of an ecclesiastical authority, it should all be seen through the eyes of a country (Italy), where Catholic morality is deeply rooted, and the Vatican, while in theory has no power over the Italian State, is still able to interfere in its political life.
Learn how to prevent marital infidelity