The Catholic Church and Birth Control
On June 28, 1966, the Papal Commission on Birth Control submitted a report to the Vatican after they had prayed together, listened to presentations from experts, reviewed surveys taken from over 3,000 dedicated Catholic couples from 18 countries, and argued among themselves about numerous matters pertaining to human sexuality. This report stated that the Church's teaching on the intrinsic evil of artificial contraception was in a state of doubt. It also recommended that the procreative aspect of sex should not be tied to every sexual act, but belong to marriage as a whole and that couples should be free to choose the non-abortive method of family planning that would work best for them.
However, On July 29, 1968, Pope Paul VI published Humanae Vitae (On Human Life), which basically denied the recommendations of the committee. His reasons for this document were that the vote for the commission's report was not unanimous and that his predecessor had established papal teachings based on natural law that he chose to uphold. Although there was no unanimous concordance, but a 30-5 vote is a pretty strong consensus! He chose to assert the power and authority of his office over the collegially discerned recommendations of the Commission, which had acted in the spirit of Vatican Council II. He chose to say that he knew what was better for the good of married couples than the 3,000 or so couples consulted by the Commission, and he understood theology and the moral law more clearly than the bishops, cardinals and theologians serving on the Commission. The consequence of this has been a loss of respect for the teaching office of the Church, and the marginalizing of countless thousands of Catholics.
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... to make one general statement regarding a controversial issue and expect it to work, or be true, for everyone. There will always be "what if…" questions that need to be looked at on a case by case basis. When the pope published Humanae Vitae he completely disregarded the opinions of the people he is supposed to be leading. I feel that because the church says that every sexual act should have the possibility of creating life it is hypocritical to support natural family planning but not contraceptives such as condoms and the pill. Each of these takes away the possibility of having a child and is used with the same intent. I feel that this issue should be decided on each couple based on their situation and should not be decided by someone as removed from the situation as the pope is.
Bibliography:
Catholic Catechism
Humanae Vitae, Pope Paul VI
During the nineteenth century, white women feminist were demanding access to birth control, they wanted to be in control of their reproduction. In this birth control movement, it lacked the participation of women of colored. There was assumption on why women of color didn’t participate: women of color were fighting against racism or weren’t aware of sexism. In reality, women of colored couldn’t associate themselves to the cause because they exhibit sterilization abuse. In the birth control movement, white women were fighting for abortion right, they were fighting for them to have the decision to either keep or abort a child. While, women of color were forced into sterilization without consent. Women of color didn’t support the “Pro-Choice”
There are many different beliefs floating around Christian as well as secular circles as to what it means to be “pro-life”. Some claim that this view equates all forms of contraception to abortion while others claim that to be “pro-life” one must only be against abortion. In his book The Pro-Life/Choice Debate, Mark Herring summarizes the Humanae Vitae, a document released by Pope Paul VI in the late 1960s, saying “it warns against using contraceptives and engaging in sexual relations for their own sake…” The stance that will be taken in this paper will be that to be “pro-life” is to be against abortion and not contraception. Equating all forms of contraception to that of abortion is an ill-founded and uneducated claim that does more to hurt the perception and potential power of the pro-life movement than it does to help it. It allows the discussion to veer far off the path, as can be seen in Christina Page’s book How the Pro-Choice Movemen...
...ly condemned to be aborted, has the face of the Lord" (Pope Francis, pars. 2-4). This being said, the Holy See suggests the implementation of Natural Family Planning services across the world to give a safer alternative to contraceptives and abortion. The Holy See also would like to see governments supporting and helping improve the adoption process to lessen the strain places on expecting mothers, especially in cases of rape or incest. Counseling should also be made available for all abuse victims, regardless of gender, so that such drastic measures can be avoided. Reproductive health is a very prevalent topic in our ever changing world, but the Catholic Church stands firm in its belief to spread peace and love throughout the world. The aforementioned contraceptive practices, other than NFP, go against the Magisterium’s beliefs and therefore will not be supported.
One popular objection is: if it is immoral to deprive someone of a future, or a “future-like-ours”, then it is immoral to deprive a sperm or egg of a “future-like-ours”. Because it is immoral to deprive someone of a future, one must conclude that it is immoral to deprive a sperm or egg of a “future-like-ours”. This objection is in reference to different modes of contraception, such as condoms and birth control. Nevertheless, the biggest problem with Marquis’ argument that allowed for this objection was its indecisiveness and improbability to draw a definitive line. Marquis criticized the pro-lifers and pro-choicers for being unable to have a definitive definition and made the same mistake in his own argument. One could object to his argument by merely questioning where the decision would end; are we to believe that one is depriving a sperm or an egg a future when we use contraception? Another important note is the idea that a “future-like-ours” is even an even more ambiguous term than a “person” or “human being”. It is impossible for the average individual to know which of his sperm or her eggs carries a genetic abnormality that may cause their child to not have a
The fact that the only physician to support contraceptives was a woman speaks volumes about the disconnect between the male and female perspective on the issue. It begs the question: Can a man objectively weigh in on this issue? Since inarguably both the physical sacrifice and emotional burden of carrying to term and caring for an unwanted child lay solely on the
When legally introduced to society in 1960, the Pill stirred up a long period of controversy. The availability of the Pill had great impact on women’s health, social life, laws, religion, family, relationships, morality and sexuality. Initially conceived to be highly effective and safe, the Pill left many women with side effects – few which led to several fatalities. Before the Pill was created, many women postponed sex due to the social norm and fear of becoming pregnant before marriage. Families grew large and it was typical for a woman to have multiple children caused by the lack of birth control. Due to regulations, such as the Comstock laws, many people supported the prohibition of the Pill and other family planning practices. However, many women believed in the right to control their own body when it came to procreation. Despite the controversies, the Pill left lasting impacts, such as by opening society to the sexual revolution and...
For as long as there has been recorded history, there have been recordings of the procedure now known as abortion. The Bible appears to be silent on the topic, which is of no support to Christian groups, especially Catholics, who believe that abortion is a mortal sin. In his book, “The Morality of Abortion: Legal and Historical Perspectives,” John T. Noonan (1970) states that “The Old Testament has nothing to say on abortion” (6). John Connery (1977) agrees with Noonan in his book “Abortion: The development of the Roman Catholic Perspective” where he writes, “If anyone expects to find an explicit condemnation of abortion in the New Testament, he will be disappointed. The silence of the New Testament regarding abortion surpasses even that of the Old Testament” (34). This is a difficult silence to understand when one considers the fact that abortions were widely practiced during the New Testament era in the Middle East. There were few recorded legal prohibitions against abortion in antiquity, and even fewer ancient laws protecting the practice (Gilbert 1).
Sadly, as "legalized abortion" continues, Pope John Paul II says, "There will be a darkening of our conscience, making it increasingly difficult to distinguish between right and wrong, - especially in regard to the respect of human life".
Imagine in today in America’s hyper-sexualized society, not being provided with any knowledge about contraception or sex education. Before Margaret Sanger’s activism, most women were in this position of oblivion about their own bodies. In “Morality of Birth Control”, Sanger argues effectively for the legalization and acceptance of both birth control and sex education using ethos, pathos, and logos to strengthen her argument.
Pope Francis states, “May God help us respect all life, especially the most vulnerable.” (“Abortion is a war against children”). Abortion is a highly controversial issue, and the final choice of life or death is up to the individual. However, pro-life should be the most ethical, humane, and healthy choice. Many factors contribute to the choice to be pro-life, such as being ethical and moral, physical and mental health, and varying options other than abortion, for instance, adoption.
Euthanasia, Abortion and the Church The Catholic Church has consistently taught that respect for human life is one of the most essential aspects of our faith. Life includes love, respect, community, and family. Each person is entitled their right to life, a responsibility to God, to live out their life from natural birth to natural death. Unfortunately, there have been horrifying incidents where people commit murders, assault and manipulate other people. One of the Ten Commandments clearly states
"Sex Education in Christian & Catholic Schools." The Premier Online Debate Website. 8 Mar. 2013. Web. 7 Mar. 2014. .
Although birth control has been practiced since ancient times, the first organized efforts developed during the 19th century as population increased dramatically because of improved medical care, nutrition, and sanitation. However, birth control met with resistance. In 1873 the United States Congress enacted the Comstock Law, which prohibited the distribution of birth-control devices and information.
The female birth control pill became available to the public in 1961. During that time period the acceptance of women sexuality was becoming more common; however, critics felt that the pill promoted unnecessary female sexual behavior. The fact that a woman could partake in casual sex without worrying about becoming pregnant was an issue amongst many people in society. Although premarital sex was not completely shunned as it was a couple decades previous to that time, many still felt as if a woman should not enjoy multiple sexual relationships. Women were expected to only act or feel sexually toward one man who she was in a serious relationship with. With that being said, the grounds for accepting the use of female contraceptive...
One thing the church and science can agree on: life starts at the moment of conception. The Catholic Church has always been adamantly against any form of unnatural birth control, anything that is not considered “natural family planning” as expressed by Pope Paul VI on 1968 in his papal encyclical Humanae Vitae. “Who will prevent public authorities from favoring those contraceptive met...