How Necking and Petting Allure and Tempt Millions to Adultery

"Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God" - Matt. 5:8.
"Intreat... The elder women as mothers; the younger as sisters, with all purity." -I Tim. 5:1, 2.

"Flee also youthful lusts: but follow righteousness, faith, charity, peace, with them that call on the Lord out of a pure heart." - II Tim. 2:22.

"That every one of you should know how to possess his vessel in sanctification and honour; Not in the lust of concupiscence, even as the Gentiles which know not God." -I Thess. 4:4, 5.

The movies, the dance, the fad for nudity, and the shameless uncovering of the bodies of women and girls lead to necking and petting. And necking and petting are the last step before adultery. I think we might say that cases of criminal attack and rape occur without petting, fondling and embracing, and perhaps some cases of adultery with professional prostitutes do. But adultery rarely or never occurs between ordinary, decent people who want to do right, except through fondling, kissing and embracing, touching the bodies or seeing the exposed bodies of the ones with whom the sin of adultery is committed. Necking and petting are, in countless cases, the road to adultery, a road that soon turns down-hill, where people slide, even against their wills perhaps, to horrible sin. And all the other factors that lead to necking and petting, fondling and caressing between people who are not mar­ried, are leading straight toward adultery. Strip tease and leg shows, bathing suits which unduly expose the body, particularly women's bodies, magazine stories and pictures that turn the mind specially toward love-making, the movies, the embrace of the dance - these lead to sex desire and so to necking and petting.

All these have broken down the modesty and natural inhibitions of purify, have even broken down the sense of respectability and decency, till on every bathing beach, in every darkened movie theater, on front porch swings, even on the dance floor and (most deadly of all) in automobiles far from chaperons, young people make free with each others' bodies; hug, kiss and fondle each other. They pet when there is no pretense of actual love nor holy intention to marry. They do it promiscuously, as shamelessly as the mating of promiscuous barnyard animals. They cheapen holy love; they prostitute holy instincts; they arouse the passions of their bodies and inflame lust in their minds. Then in countless millions of cases they take the next step, one that naturally follows, and commit the scarlet sin, adultery.