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Catholic theologians appeal to natural law and divine revelation when
constructing their ethic of life. Natural law refers to what human reason can
discover about human nature and its moral duties apart from divine revelation.
However, since everything has God as the ultimate source of being, natural law
actually declares the will of God. In other words, the same Spirit who gives
divine revelation through scripture also reveals truth through natural law .
According to the Roman Catholic view of natural law, the purpose of human
sexuality is both reproductive and unitive. Thus, every sexual act should embody
both aspects.
So while a couple is not expected to reject the pleasure and intimacy of a
sexual act, every sexual act must be open to the possibility of procreation .
The papal encyclical Humanae Vitae states, There must be a rejection of all acts
that attempt to impede procreation, both those chosen as means to an end and
those chosen as ends. This includes acts that precede intercourse, acts that
accompany intercourse, and acts that are directed to the natural consequences of
intercourse. . . The Church has taught repeatedly, direct sterilisation of the
male or female, whether permanent or temporary, is equally to be condemned .
Thus, Early this century more was being understood about the female reproductive
cycle and the process of ovulation.
In 1952 Pope Pius XII and again in 1968 Pope Paul VI allowed the use of
“rhythm” and other “natural” methods and abstinence for their followers. It was
taught that artificial contraception, which separates the unitive and
procreative aspects of intercourse, breaks moral law. These views still stand
official today. Therefore it is obvious that much of Christian tradition was
opposed to the use of birth control . Scripture There is said to be biblical
text that is opposed to the use of contraception. It is believed that in as
early as the book of Genesis, contraception was addressed. The account of Onan
(who practiced coitus interruptus) was interpreted as teaching that any form of
contraception was wrong.
As Onan is having sexual intercourse he withdraws and ejaculates on the
ground. He is then struck deac by the hand of God. It is traditionally believed
that he was stuck dead because he performed a form of contraception. In Genesis
1:28 God tells his creations to “be fruitful and multiply. ” This is interpreted
in the light that God’s moral will is for humans to procreate. The most
abundantly documented truth in the Bible concerning children is that they come
from God as his gift and that he, and he alone, has the privilege of giving and
withholding children. This choice is God’s choice… not a choice to be made by
humans. Science and Philosophy Science also plays a part as an authority of
religious ethics.
Although this branch mostly supports birth control for Christians there are
biological issues that help the arguing side. One is that, a casual observation
of nature indicates that the natural purpose of sex is reproduction. Animals are
driven by hormones, not pleasure. The sexual act is instinctive. The soul
purpose of the egg has merely one function in life; to be present when the sperm
reach it (which is the soul purpose of the function of sperm) . And so, it is a
logical statement that reproduction is the natural purpose of the sexual act. A
second understanding that science and philosophy give us about contraception, is
that some forms of contraception are not contraception at all. They are actually
forms of birth control, that are not always only hindering conception but often
times just not allowing the already fertilized egg to be embedded in the
endomitrium layer to grow .
This fact leaves Christians unaware of their actions. Are they hindering the
conception of the sperm and the egg? Or are the killing an already conceived
child? The question leaves some Christians opposed to the use of any birth
control or contraceptives. The Other Side Tradition Tradition also serves to
support the use of birth control. The traditional view of the Presbyterians is
in the support of a woman’s right to practice birth control. The normative
beliefs most important for understanding the Presbyterian perspective are, “sex
is a good gift from God”, and “justice is the primary desire of God” . Saying
sex is a good gift from God is different than saying sex is the means of
procreation.
From the Presbyterian perspective, sex is a gift like bread, sunshine, and
friendship; things to be enjoyed, but not abused. This means that procreation is
simply one possible outcome of sex. Pleasure is another, and equally as valuable
. Saying that justice is the primary desire of God not only allows for birth
control - justice for a woman to choose - but actually can be seen as
encouraging birth control. Given that the human population is rapidly
approaching the carrying capacity of our planet's eco-system, promoting large
families can be seen as irresponsible, and in fact, threatening to the health of
the larger community and future generations. Justice for all creation - both the
natural world and human society - may require stewardship of reproduction
through birth control .
Also, there is now influence of today’s culture that challenges the views of
tradition, specifically the Vatican, which is against contraception. It strikes
many Catholics as bizarre that the men of the Vatican, who haven’t had children,
live celibate lives, and seem hopelessly out of touch with the realities of day
to day Christians lives, made the decision and interpretation of the Bible as
the one that doesn’t let Christians choose to use or reject contraception .
Thus, there are many tradition views that support the use of birth control, and
many of the traditional views that did not condone contraception are now being
re-evaluated by the followers of Catholicism and Christianity. Scripture The
main argument for the condonence of contraception as it pertains to Scripture is
that there isn’t much, if any, of God’s word on birth control portrayed in the
Bible.
What is said in the Bible is interpreted by the traditional Christians to
pertain to contraception. It has been said by other traditions that by
practicing the use of birth control, that you are thwarting God’s sovereign
will, but what they fail to acknowledge is that by very definition, God’s
sovereign will is not something that can be thwarted. His sovereign will is
always fulfilled. His sovereign will even entails evil actions. He takes those
into consideration to accomplish His sovereign goals. So it must be His moral
will that birth control allegedly violates. But His moral will is always clearly
revealed, so we are careful to obey it.
What do we have revealed in the Scriptures pertaining to birth control?
Nothing . We have one reference in Genesis 38 that some have taken to be a
reference to birth control where Onan spills his seed on the ground (coitus
interruptus). He withdraws in the act of intercourse, ejaculates on the ground,
and God strikes him dead . The big question is, why does God strike him dead? It
seems foolish to assume that God struck him dead for practicing birth control.
It seems like very strong punishment, and if that is what happened, the God must
feel very strongly about such a thing as birth control. If God feels so strongly
about such a thing, why are we left up to our own devices to figure this out
from one verse in the book of Genesis?
Why wouldn’t God confirm such a hatred for this act in the Law? There are no
direct or even mildly indirect statements about birth control, or even one form
of birth control – coitus interrupts. Thus, God did not intend for us to reject
birth control. Lastly, it is argued above that the natural function of sexual
intercourse is procreation. It wasn’t taken into account that the Bible clearly
shows that there are more purposes for sex within marriage than simply
procreation. In any case children are looked upon as an additional blessing in
the Scriptures; “Children are a gift from God: They are his reward. Children
born to a young man are like sharp arrows to defend him.” Children are not an
automatic event. God provided a companion for Adam in the Garden with no mention
of children in that contact. The unity between husband and wife in marriage,
throughout the Old Testament and the New Testament, is spoken as a mystery
expressing the relationship between Christ and his Church. In that contest is
seems to have nothing to do with producing children.
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