He’s 48, the girl is 17. Yes, their relationship is legal here; legality is not the point, but morality and ethics - I don’t think it’s okay. They’ve been dating for a few months now. I only found out about it recently when he started bringing her home to spend the night (I’m 19 and live with him). Dad’s been widowed since 2023. Her parents know and support this relationship - heard it straight from their mouth when they came to visit. My family believes the girl is a gold digger so she’s the one in the wrong. My dad and I are very close, he’s always been an amazing dad, supports me in every way a person can be supported… I’m queer and being queer in Romania isn’t well received to say the least, but he’s always had my back and I feel safe because of him. Now for him to go and do something like this… I talked to both him and the girl, he says it’s just something that happened (he didn’t go looking for it); she says she loves being spoilt and how “chill” my dad is (she characterized the relationship as a cold day in bed under the warm covers). I don’t really know what I’m looking to hear honestly, but I want to talk about it.
I must disagree with that point of your argument. In Nigeria for example, the age of consent for sexual intercourse is 11. Does that mean it would be morally acceptable for OPs dad, were they in Nigeria and not Romania, at 49 to have a sexual relationship with an 11 year old child?
Morality and legality are not the same thing.
In this instance however, if we take OPs dad at face value and it occurred naturally and there’s been no grooming or coersion or external pressure put on the girl then I agree that it’s between two consenting adults. But where does a 17 year old girl and a 49 year old man even meet to have any form of interaction, let alone one that’s evolved into a sexual relationship. I find it hard to believe there wasn’t some level of “courting” where the father has actively persued a relationship with this girl and that raises all sorts of other questions.
edit I’m - > in | me - > be