Birth Control and the Catholic Church

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And the Catholic Church

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Let’s begin by defining a few terms. Contraception is commonly known as birth control. An ARTIFICIAL METHOD of birth control, is the use of something other than Natural Family Planning, to prevent conception and procreation, the subsequent birth of a child. NFP or Natural Family Planning is NOT FORBIDDEN by the Church and classes in NFP are often offered in many parishes. Sex is a powerful drive, and for most of human history it was firmly linked to marriage and childbearing. Only relatively recently has the sex act commonly been divorced from marriage and procreation. Modern contraceptive inventions have given many an exaggerated sense of safety and prompted more people than ever before to move sexual expression outside the marriage boundary. 1 Contraception is not a modern invention, it has been around for thousands of years and can be traced back to 1900 B.C. and was practiced in the Roman empire during the apostolic age, the time of Jesus.

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At least one method of birth control is mentioned and condemned in the Bible (Gen. 38:8-10). 8 Then Judah said to Onan, “Go in to your brother’s wife, and perform the duty of a brother-in-law to her, and raise up offspring for your brother.” 9 But Onan knew that the offspring would not be his; so when he went in to his brother’s wife he spilled the semen on the ground, lest he should give offspring to his brother. 10 And what he did was displeasing in the sight of the Lord, and he slew him also. God has built into the human race “natural law,” a set of rules that govern moral behavior that has validity everywhere. Even the most harden criminal has the sense of right and wrong and therefore complies with natural law by having a conscience. The biblical penalty for not giving your brother’s widow children was public humiliation, not death (Dt. 25:7-10).

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Why then did Onan receive death as a punishment? Because the act violated the natural law which says the purpose of sex is procreation. The pleasure derived from the act is an added benefit not the main goal of the act. Certain forms of contraception have historically been known as “Onanism,” after the man who practiced it. Homosexuality is also known as “Sodomy,” after the men of Sodom who practiced it (Gn. 19). I’m willing to bet that you didn’t know that ALL Protestant denominations agreed with the Catholic Church’s teaching condemning contraception as a sinful until 1930. It is important to note that even today the Catholic Church does not stand alone in its opposition to artificial methods of birth control. The Anglican church was the first Protestant religion to allow contraception but only in “certain circumstances,” and in time then allowed all of its congregants to practice it without any exclusions.

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As you can see the Bible condemns Onanism and Sodomy. The birth control pill wasn’t available during biblical times and some say that “God wouldn’t have allowed the invention if it wasn’t good for us.” That is an illogical argument because God has given mankind many gifts that mankind has perverted, or made abnormal. Take the video camera that is an invention of mankind and has given many hours of pleasure to its users in recording family events, to the movie industry in the creation of films for our viewing pleasure but I would argue the use of a video camera to create pornographic movies is a perversion and violates natural law and the intention of the inventor.

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The birth control pill might be helpful in certain female medical conditions but the use of the pill to prevent conception is a perversion of the health benefits. Some say that contraception is a better option than abortion while that statement is somewhat true, because abortion is a greater evil, it overlooks the fact the performance of the marriage act outside of marriage and or within a marriage without the openness to procreation is still intrinsically wrong and a violation of natural law. Condemnation of birth control and abortion can be traced back to the Church Fathers, who were the early and influential theologians of the Church.

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Around 307 AD the concept of marital abstinence was addressed in the Divine Institutes 6:20. St. Augustine in 419 even wrote against Oral contraceptives (poisons of sterility) in Marriage and Concupiscence 1:15:17. Many famous Protestant theologians such as Martin Luther, John Calvin and John Wesley also warned against contraception (Cf. The Bible and Birth Control (June 1989) by Charles D. Provan)

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Unlike Protestant Churches the Catholic Church’s teachings on abortion or contraception has not changed to appeased the will of the world. The Catholic Church’s position as a Bible Believing Church, is consistent with the unchanged Scripture. Pope Paul VI predicted the outcomes of artificial contraception when he said, “It is also to be feared that the man, growing used to the employment of anti-conceptive practices, may finally lose respect for the woman and, no longer caring for her physical and psychological equilibrium, may come to the point of considering her as a mere instrument of selfish enjoyment, and no longer as his respected and beloved companion" (HV 17).

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Unfortunately the Pope’s prediction has been and continues to be exactly on target. Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STD) are on the rise and some cases result in premature death because they are incurable. A Columbia University study found that, “About 40% of cohabiting unions (Fornication) in the U.S. break up without the couple getting married." Yale University sociologist Neil Bennett reported that cohabiting women were 80% more likely to separate or divorce than were women who had not lived with their spouses before marriage. The National Survey of Families and Households indicates that "unions begun by cohabitation are almost twice as likely to dissolve within 10 years.

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One study, done over a five-year period, reported in Sexual Attitudes and Lifestyles indicates 90% of married women were monogamous, having one partner, compared to 60% of cohabiting women. Statistics were even more dramatic with male faithfulness: 90% of married men remained true to their brides, while only 43% of cohabiting men stayed true to their partner (Ciavola 1997). Contraception has opened the door to many problems and these studies clearly demonstrate: A lack of respect for the unborn. A lack of respect for marriage. A lack of respect for both male and female. Larger numbers of people cohabitating and an Increased likelihood of unfaithfulness among cohabiting partners. There are also 19 million new STD infections reported each year

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Remember that Natural Family Planning is and has always been accepted by both Catholic and Protestant Churches. Remember that contraception was forbidden by both Catholic and Protestant Churches until 1930 when the Protestant Churches broke with their founding fathers prohibition of contraception. Ultimately the decision for premarital sex and contraception is an individual choice that is burdened with many risks. One needs to ask themselves if both the long-term and short-term risks are worth the rewards?