Why I Do Not Believe Artificial Birth Control is Wrong
First off, I am not about to say that premarital sex or extramarital sex is ok. The Bible clearly states that any sex outside of marriage is a sin. So I will not go into that discussion here. When I say birth control, we can now presume that this applies only to married couples. So if you’re looking for something naughty, you’re looking at the wrong place. This will be a mature discussion.
Eventhough many religions and churches do, Catholics do not believe in artificial birth control. This includes condoms, pills, injectibles, vasectomies, etc. Catholics only believe in natural birth control. The three specific birth control methods allowed by the Catholic church are the calendar method, the temperature method and the withdrawal method. I personally do not see anything wrong with the withdrawal method, albeit it can be a very ineffective birth control method, so there is no need to discuss that further. But apart from their large probability of ineffectivity, there is something wrong with the other two; they are against what the Bible teaches. I will prove that in this text.
Catholics believe that sex is for procreation. Obviously, there is nothing incorrect about believing that sex can produce babies. However, what is wrong is if it is implied that sex is not an activity done by married couples to enjoy one another, but only for procreation. Granted, it’s really not that strict, but I just needed to emphasize: Sex is for procreation and sex is also for a married couple to enjoy each other, and those two can be mutually exclusive. But the Catholic church is against the concept of sex for enjoyment of a married couple if procreation is inhibited unnaturally. This can be seen in Pope Pius XI’s statement in Casti Connubii (1932), “any use whatsoever of matrimony exercised in such a way that the act is deliberately frustrated in its natural power to generate life is an offense against the law of God and of nature, and those who indulge in such are branded with the guilt of a grave sin.” By that statement, contrary to what was taught to me in Catholic school, the withdrawal method seems to be considered also as a grave sin by the Catholic church. However, I must emphasize, that statements such as these were made by man. However, since Catholics believe in Papal Infallability (everything a pope says is correct), they consider such a statement correct, eventhough the Bible does not say it.
I will now quote 1 Corinthians 7:2-6, “But since there is so much immorality, each man should have his own wife, and each woman her own husband. The husband should fulfil his marital duty to his wife, and likewise the wife to her husband. The wife’s body does not belong to her alone but also to her husband. In the same way, the husband’s body does not belong to him alone but also to his wife. Do not deprive each other except by mutual consent and for a time, so that you may devote yourselves to prayer. Then come together again so that Satan will not tempt you because of your lack of self-control. I say this as a concession, not as a command.”
I quoted the five verses to show the context, but I can focus on verse 5. “Do not deprive each other except by mutual consent and for a time, so that you may devote yourselves to prayer. Then come together again so that Satan will not tempt you because of your lack of self-control.” The Bible acknowledges the need for sex in a marriage, and it says that a married couple should not deprive each other, except if both agree, and only for a limited time, and it is specifically mentioned that the time out is so that the couple can pray. It does not say, deprive each other during times the woman could get pregnant, so that you can avoid having more children; it says time out only when you both agree, only for a short time, and specifically for prayer. Thus, depriving one another only to avoid pregnancy will be giving the devil the opportunity to tempt you, the way an unsatisfied partner could be tempted. Thus, I argue that methods such as the calendar method and the temperature method are actually not in accordance with the words of the Bible; depriving each other for days simply to avoid pregnancy can even cause problems between either person in the marriage relationship, and giving opportunity to no less than Satan himself.
If the only reason why a married couple cannot have sex with each other is because they are trying to avoid pregnancy, this may lead to temptation with either of them. The Bible does not encourage such mentality and I even show that it is contrary to what is written. The Bible is practical too, and in these verses, it shows the importance of sex in a marriage relationship, and nowhere in the Bible can you find that sex should be avoided by a married couple to avoid pregnancy; rather, sex may be abstained from for prayer, and even then, only “for a time.” Thus, avoiding sex to avoid pregnancy causes undue temptation, when there is nothing written in the Bible about artificially inhibiting pregnancy being a sin; those were words of a Pope. Thus, I can infer, that between avoiding sex to avoid pregnancy, or artificially inhibiting pregnancy and having sex, the latter seems more allowable, to avoid temptation.
Of course some artificial birth control methods are safer than others, and I will not pretend to be a doctor (as some people who are against artificial birth control seem to equate themselves as when they speak) so I leave it to you to research and study and determine which method is safest and surest. I also understand how inconvenient some methods are to women, and I have been long waiting for an equivalent to the pill or injectibles for men. I saw in a news report once that one research was showing promise in that particular field, but as of the time of this writing, such a product has yet to be released. But once it does, if it is safe, I would be willing to take it, when I am married, of course.
Many of us are well aware of the difficulties of having a large family, and for those of us who cannot afford so many children, in terms of finances, attention, or anything else, we must plan our families accordingly. And if someone will tell us to just not have sex with our marriage partner, or to wait for days before we can have sex, it would be a needless, and even dangerous advice, if the only reason to deprive oneself of sex with one’s spouse is to avoid pregnancy. Better to inhibit the possibility of pregnancy and to enjoy the gift God has given in a marriage relationship.
- A. L. E. -
(Originally written: 2009, March 16, 12:47 am)
Eventhough many religions and churches do, Catholics do not believe in artificial birth control. This includes condoms, pills, injectibles, vasectomies, etc. Catholics only believe in natural birth control. The three specific birth control methods allowed by the Catholic church are the calendar method, the temperature method and the withdrawal method. I personally do not see anything wrong with the withdrawal method, albeit it can be a very ineffective birth control method, so there is no need to discuss that further. But apart from their large probability of ineffectivity, there is something wrong with the other two; they are against what the Bible teaches. I will prove that in this text.
Catholics believe that sex is for procreation. Obviously, there is nothing incorrect about believing that sex can produce babies. However, what is wrong is if it is implied that sex is not an activity done by married couples to enjoy one another, but only for procreation. Granted, it’s really not that strict, but I just needed to emphasize: Sex is for procreation and sex is also for a married couple to enjoy each other, and those two can be mutually exclusive. But the Catholic church is against the concept of sex for enjoyment of a married couple if procreation is inhibited unnaturally. This can be seen in Pope Pius XI’s statement in Casti Connubii (1932), “any use whatsoever of matrimony exercised in such a way that the act is deliberately frustrated in its natural power to generate life is an offense against the law of God and of nature, and those who indulge in such are branded with the guilt of a grave sin.” By that statement, contrary to what was taught to me in Catholic school, the withdrawal method seems to be considered also as a grave sin by the Catholic church. However, I must emphasize, that statements such as these were made by man. However, since Catholics believe in Papal Infallability (everything a pope says is correct), they consider such a statement correct, eventhough the Bible does not say it.
I will now quote 1 Corinthians 7:2-6, “But since there is so much immorality, each man should have his own wife, and each woman her own husband. The husband should fulfil his marital duty to his wife, and likewise the wife to her husband. The wife’s body does not belong to her alone but also to her husband. In the same way, the husband’s body does not belong to him alone but also to his wife. Do not deprive each other except by mutual consent and for a time, so that you may devote yourselves to prayer. Then come together again so that Satan will not tempt you because of your lack of self-control. I say this as a concession, not as a command.”
I quoted the five verses to show the context, but I can focus on verse 5. “Do not deprive each other except by mutual consent and for a time, so that you may devote yourselves to prayer. Then come together again so that Satan will not tempt you because of your lack of self-control.” The Bible acknowledges the need for sex in a marriage, and it says that a married couple should not deprive each other, except if both agree, and only for a limited time, and it is specifically mentioned that the time out is so that the couple can pray. It does not say, deprive each other during times the woman could get pregnant, so that you can avoid having more children; it says time out only when you both agree, only for a short time, and specifically for prayer. Thus, depriving one another only to avoid pregnancy will be giving the devil the opportunity to tempt you, the way an unsatisfied partner could be tempted. Thus, I argue that methods such as the calendar method and the temperature method are actually not in accordance with the words of the Bible; depriving each other for days simply to avoid pregnancy can even cause problems between either person in the marriage relationship, and giving opportunity to no less than Satan himself.
If the only reason why a married couple cannot have sex with each other is because they are trying to avoid pregnancy, this may lead to temptation with either of them. The Bible does not encourage such mentality and I even show that it is contrary to what is written. The Bible is practical too, and in these verses, it shows the importance of sex in a marriage relationship, and nowhere in the Bible can you find that sex should be avoided by a married couple to avoid pregnancy; rather, sex may be abstained from for prayer, and even then, only “for a time.” Thus, avoiding sex to avoid pregnancy causes undue temptation, when there is nothing written in the Bible about artificially inhibiting pregnancy being a sin; those were words of a Pope. Thus, I can infer, that between avoiding sex to avoid pregnancy, or artificially inhibiting pregnancy and having sex, the latter seems more allowable, to avoid temptation.
Of course some artificial birth control methods are safer than others, and I will not pretend to be a doctor (as some people who are against artificial birth control seem to equate themselves as when they speak) so I leave it to you to research and study and determine which method is safest and surest. I also understand how inconvenient some methods are to women, and I have been long waiting for an equivalent to the pill or injectibles for men. I saw in a news report once that one research was showing promise in that particular field, but as of the time of this writing, such a product has yet to be released. But once it does, if it is safe, I would be willing to take it, when I am married, of course.
Many of us are well aware of the difficulties of having a large family, and for those of us who cannot afford so many children, in terms of finances, attention, or anything else, we must plan our families accordingly. And if someone will tell us to just not have sex with our marriage partner, or to wait for days before we can have sex, it would be a needless, and even dangerous advice, if the only reason to deprive oneself of sex with one’s spouse is to avoid pregnancy. Better to inhibit the possibility of pregnancy and to enjoy the gift God has given in a marriage relationship.
- A. L. E. -
(Originally written: 2009, March 16, 12:47 am)
