Chastity
Many faiths have strict guidelines about chastity and the Mormon faith is hardly an exception. One of the truths the Church presents is that the ability to bear children is a sacred one that should never be abused—and, in Mormon belief, to use the creative power outside of marriage is indeed a misuse. Church members believe birth to be the means by which new spirits come into the world and they would that every new spirit is wanted and loved, and able to grow up in homes that are neither indifferent or outright broken. And, except to preserve the life of the mother, or in the case of incest, abortion is a very terrible sin indeed.
The Lord’s commandments about marriage and sex are taken very seriously. Many Mormon marriages are performed inside temples, buildings very sacred to their faith. Marriages that take place inside Mormon temples are eternal marriages that last beyond this life—and, in this life, Mormons see the process of marriage and having a family as one of the most (if not simply the most) profound and powerful things we can do in this life. To have sex outside of marriage can tear a family apart—or strain your future family.
Mormons who commit fornication (sex before marriage) or adultery may lose their membership in the Church. These sexual sins are believed to be very serious. Only murder and denying the Holy Ghost are more serious. In short, this is the Mormon law of chastity: Always be faithful to your spouse and don’t look for sexual experiences outside of marriage.
Children in the Mormon religion learn from their youth that their bodies are sacred gifts from God, and they must treat them well. Beyond chastity, Mormons are supposed to strive for good health and are not supposed to treat their body in any way that might harm it. This respect for the body doesn’t extend to letting the pleasures of the body ever come before spiritual happiness. Not everything that feels good, at first, is either spiritually or physically healthy, and a pleasure taken in sin can have consequences that last far longer than any temporary “benefit.”
Obeying the law of chastity also involves avoiding those things which might excite those powerful emotions related to sex. These emotions are also supposed to be reserved for marriage. The youth in Mormonism are frequently reminded of the spiritual dangers of acting carelessly in a date. They are not to kiss passionately, lie on top of each other, or touch another person’s private parts. Sexual actions like this can break the law of chastity in themselves and can also lead to sex very quickly. And, also, Mormons believe that the focus of a relationship should never be on the body and that such focuses can poison the relationship at the start. Couples should be more interested in becoming friends and partners.
In Mormons’ beliefs, to break the law of chastity is encouraged by the very devil. Not only does violating this law make our path back to God more difficult, but it makes us miserable. The media is full of images of beautiful people who act as if beauty is all they have, and need, to exploit and be exploited. Why obsess over our bodies? Why reduce ourselves to only our bodies, when we are more than that, spirits and minds? A life purely of the body is an empty one that does not even respect the body. And, indeed, Mormons don’t dress modestly because of a hatred of the body, but because they love and respect it, while, at the same time, acknowledging they are more than it.
To break the law of chastity is to bring ourselves great unhappiness. But repentance is open to us through Christ’s Atonement, even when our sin is serious. Healing and forgiveness is possible. A Mormon who wishes to repent of a sexual sin must also confess to a priesthood authority like a bishop.
What do Mormons believe about things like rape and sexual abuse? We do note that people who have been raped or sexually abused are not guilty of breaking the law of chastity.