The Catholic Church and Contraception

1. The Catholic Church and Contraception

2. History • For centuries, contraceptive methods consisted of more primitive types of barrier methods (typically maid from animal skins). • Thomas Malthus, An Essay on the Principle of Population, 1798, caused concerns regarding overpopulation, pushing for contraceptive practices. He predicted exponential future population growth without enough resources to sustain it(has since been refuted)1 • Invention of vulcanized rubber in 1829 allowed for more current kinds of barrier methods to be developed. • Margaret Sanger founds first clinic in 1916 (would ultimately become Planned Parenthood) for the purpose of promoting contraceptives for the liberation of women from the consequences of intercourse - although her ulterior motive was that of eugenics). • "Eugenics is … the most adequate and thorough avenue to the solution of racial, political and social problems.” • "The most merciful thing that a family does to one of its infant members is to kill it."

3. History (cont.) • Up until 1930 every major Christian denomination taught the contraception was immoral. • In 1930, the Anglican bishops decided at the Lambeth conference that contraception could be legitimate under limited circumstances for married couples. • This decision opened the flood gates for almost every other church to allow for contraception. • Pope Pius XI reaffirms consistent teaching in 1930, CastiConnubii

4. History (cont.) • Genesis of “the pill” in the early 1960s • Pope Paul VI reaffirms teaching in Humanae Vitae (1968) and made certain predictions of widespread contraceptive use (that have all come to pass).2 • general lowering of moral standards throughout society (promiscuity) • rise in infidelity (contraception facilitates infidelity and promiscuity) • lessening of respect for women by men (women should be manipulated so as to be available for sex without consequence) • coercive use of reproductive technologies by governments (economic aid to 3rd world countries often tied to acceptance of contraception) • Between 1965 (when the pill began to be available) and 1975 (when the pill was readily available to all who wanted it) there was a doubling of the divorce rate – 25% in 1965 to 50% in 1975. It has remained steady since then. • During this times, as well, we see a drastic increase in the number of abortions (although the claim was that contraception would help reduce the need for abortion) – Contraception gives a false sense of security and facilitates promiscuity.

5. History (cont.) • Widespread rejection and dissent of Humanae Vitae • Many theologians (particularly the case of Charles Curran at Catholic University) dissented in a very public manner. • Many priests were misinformed and preached a flawed moral theory advising people to simply do what their conscience told them to do. • Pope John Paul IIreaffirms consistent teaching particularly through his Theology of the Body • Media claims that today 98% of Catholics use some form of contraception. This number is based on a flawed study performed by the Guttmacher Institute (research arm of Planned Parenthood).3 Although, the number is certainly high.

6. Why does the Church maintain that contraception is immoral? • Contrary to popular terminology, the Church is not opposed to “birth control”; it is opposed to contraception. • Contraception has negative consequences on societal health (as predicted by Paul VI), on women’s health, and on marriage (will be discussed later). • But ultimately, the Church is opposed to contraception a) because it changes the very meaning of the sexual act and makes an interpersonal act, which is meant to express a total act of love, into and act that can easily regress into an act of use. b) because it fails to honor the procreative meaning of the sexual act given by God.

7. What does sexual act mean? • Sex is an “interpersonal act” meant to deepen personal communion with the other. It is not simply a physical act without consequence or meaning. The body expresses the person. Sex is meant to truly be unitive. • There is a “language of the body”. When a husband and wife engage in sexual intercourse they are meant to express this total self-giving and total acceptance of the other. • This is why the Church teaches that sex outside of the bond of marriage is immoral. The language of total self-giving and acceptance is only honest within the total (necessarily means forever) bond of marriage. • We intuitively recognize the total self-giving nature of the sexual act (This is why infidelity is such a betrayal of marriage and does such irreparable damage – One spouse speaks this language of total self-giving and total acceptance to a person he should not say this to).

8. Contraception – Negation of total self-giving and acceptance • If sexual intercourse is meant to express (through our bodies) totalself-giving love, and total acceptance of the other person, then contraception negates this language. • “I give my self to you totally, and I want you totally, but I don’t want your fertility (or I don’t want to give you my fertility).” “I don’t want this part of you that makes you a man, or makes you a woman.” • “I love you, but I resent the fact that I could become a mother or a father through this act with you.” • A sexual relationship devoid of the total life-long commitment to each other as persons and the complete self-giving love and acceptance that comes in marriage would fall prey to utilitarianism where the focus would be more about simply using each other for the pleasure associated with this act.

9. Love and Marriage • More than half of all marriages end in divorce. • Only about 1 out of 10 married couples in America say they experience real joy and emotional intimacy in their relationship. • A good marriage is not one that simply stays together. A good marriage is one in which spouses experience deep personal communion with each other. The greater the love and self-giving toward the other, and greater the total acceptance of the other, the greater the personal communion can be attained. • Ultimately, the sexual act within marriage is meant to be a sign of God’s absolute, unconditional love for His people, and Christ’s sacrificial love for his bride, the Church (this does not mean that God’s love is a sexual kind of love. Rather, the intimacy and personal communion attained in the sexual act is meant to be a sign and foretaste of the the love of God). Many theologians have gone so far as to say that “sex is sacramental”.

10. Contraception – Failing to honor the procreative potential of the sexual act • God has designed the sexual act such that this is the vehicle by which he creates a new human soul (procreative). • The sexual act is intrinsically tied to God’s creative power. • By intentionally sterilizing an act of intercourse we thwart God’s prerogative and fail to honor the fact that God has created the sexual act for a specific purpose (sex is by nature unitiveand procreative). • Thus every act of intercourse must at least remain open to the possibility of procreation for it to respect God’s plan.

11. Life-giving kinds of acts • One does not have to specifically intend to procreate with every act of intercourse, but every act of intercourse should be the kind of act that is a life-giving kind of act / open to life / open to each other's fertility/honors the procreative potential of the act given by God. • Sexual intercourse that has intentionally been sterilized (temporarily or permanently) or that includes a “barrier” is not a life-giving kind of act. • At the end of the day, one cannot logically oppose homosexual acts if one approves contraception. Both are sterile sexual acts that are not life-giving kinds of acts that thwart the very meaning and purpose of the sexual powers.

12. Periodic Continence and Natural Family Planning • Periodic continence using Natural Family Planning allows couples to space their children (when they have good reasonsto do this) without changing the life-giving nature of sexual intercourse. • Couples who use NFP have done nothing to sterilize their acts of intercourse. They simply recognize God’s design and cooperate with their fertility. They cooperate with God’s design and are open to each others’ fertility rather than treating their fertility like a disease (which one needs to take medicine for, or put a barrier to).

13. Benefits of NFP • The Church has been at the forefront of these sophisticated methods of understanding fertility (not the old rhythm method). • NFP, when practiced properly, is 98-99% effective. • Does not involve ingesting dangerous chemicals with serious side effects including blood clots, high blood pressure and stroke. (Studies have shown a significant link between oral contraceptives and breast cancer).4 • Couples who practice NFP have a much lower divorce rate – less than 5%. Couples also report much higher levels of intimacy and satisfaction in their marriages. (Certainly there are other factors associated with this, but such a drastic difference should make us take note).5

14. Benefits of NFP (cont.) • NFP is not a magic solution. It has positive effects on marriage precisely because fosters the virtue of chastity and allows couples to attain true personalcommunion. • Fosters communication (forces couples to talk about very intimate things, and ask questions about having children on a regular basis) • Makes couples focus on other areas of intimacy during periods of abstinence. • It is undoubtedly much harder than contraception and involves much more self-mastery. (Practically speaking, using NFP is practically very different than contracepting, but this should give us an indication that there is a serious moral difference as well). • NFP is not simply a biological methodology. In order to really embrace God’s plan for marriage and sexuality, NFP must be understood as a spirituality (trusting in God’s plan).

15. Misconceptions • Sex is only for having babies (false: sex is meant to express total self-giving love which is open to God’s procreative power). • Sexual pleasure is wrong and dirty (false: sexual pleasure is a product of sexual love, but is not the only or ultimate purpose – just like pleasure is not the only or ultimate purpose of eating, which is why we consider bulimia is a disorder) • Contraception is “unnatural”, therefore it is wrong (false: the Church has no problem with technology or medicine. “Unnatural” refers to acts contrary to the natural moral law). • A couple should have as many children as physically possible (fasle: the Church asks that couples have the number of children that they can responsibly care for and educate. The means by which you space your children is what is at issue with contraception).

16. Misconceptions (cont.) • The Church’s teaching on contraception is a matter of opinion (false: The Church claims that this is a teaching which has it’s foundation in the revealed teaching of God). • The Church’s teaching is simply a matter of faith (false: This teaching is a matter of faith, but it is also based on the natural moral law which binds all people). • The Church’s teaching on contraception is a matter of conscience (false: The Church teaches that contraception is an intrinsic evil, meaning that there are never circumstances which make contraception or intentional sterilization morally justifiable).

17. Misc. • Taking the pill for medical reasons • Should only be for grave reasons due to abortifacient qualities of the pill. • According to Dr. Kathleen Raviele, GYN, there are very few instances where the pill is medically necessary with no other options existing. • What to do if contracepting • May be complicated pastoral situation (due to other spouse’s difficulty accepting teaching) requiring personal conversation • Make a good confession with the firm intention of rectifying the situation and begin to take steps to do this (Begin to learn NFP)

18. Studies Referenced 1 Debunking the claims of overpopulation http://www.pop.org 2 Consequences of Humanae Vitae http://www.firstthings.com/article/2008/07/002-the-vindication-of-ihumanae-vitaei-28 3 Challenge to claim that 98% of Catholics are contracepting http://www.catholicvote.org/discuss/index.php?p=26675 4 Link between oral contraceptives and breast cancer http://www.mayoclinicproceedings.org/article/S0025-6196(11)61152-X/fulltext http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/factsheet/Risk/oral-contraceptives 5Link between NFP and decrease in divorce http://www.physiciansforlife.org/content/view/193/36 http://www.canonlaw.info/a_contraceptionanddivorce.htm

19. NFP Resources • Couple to Couple League http://www.ccli.org/ • NFP Teachers in Archdiocese of Atlanta http://www.archatl.com/offices/ofd/family/nfp-teachers.html • NFP Doctors in Georgiahttp://www.nfpdoc.com/http://thecatholicsnextdoor.newevangelizers.com/2009/01/21/dr-kathleen-raviele-nfp-doctor/ • Marquette Method of NFP http://nfp.marquette.edu/

20. Good References • Humanae Vitae by Pope Paul VI • Love and Responsibility by Karol Wojtyla • Men and Women He Created Them: A Theology of the Body by Pope John Paul II (ed. Michael Waldstein) • Good News about Sex and Marriage by Christopher West • Theology of the Body for Beginners by Christopher West • Men, Women and the Mystery of Love by Edward Sri • Sex au Naturel by Patrick Coffin • Men and Women Are From Eden by Mary Healy • Contraception Why Not by Janet Smith (Audio)