Converts: Was Humanae Vitea covered in your RCIA?

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I learned most of the Church’s teachings on sexuality just listening to Catholic Answers Live for about a year before I came into the Church. My fiancee also belongs to a very orthodox parish in Washington, DC. On our first meeting with Father at her parish about getting married, he handed us a copy of Christopher West’s book The Good News on Sex and Marriage and said, “If you don’t read this, when we sit down to talk next it will be obvious!” He then sent us to a very orthodox marriage retreat in Bethesda where NFP and the Church’s teachings were covered in depth with multiple presentations by couples practicing NFP. We did an NFP class in Arlington. The class was packed with young couples. Apparently, it is a requirement for couples getting married in that diocese to attend.

Later, I went through RCIA at a parish in my hometown led by a Priest (deep south). I was shocked that Humanea Vitea was never mentioned. All that was said was that “sex is for marriage” and 'the Church used to be against certain birth control methods due to an outdated understanding of human reproduction…" :rolleyes: I didn’t say anything but it did upset me. I have seen some announcements about NFP classes in the bulletin at the parish. I was just wondering what everyone else’s experience was. Did your RCIA go over Humanea Vitea and the Church’s teachings on sexuality?

JMR
 
Our pastor (at the time, he has since been reassigned, but he was a great pastor to have during RCIA) gave us a copy of West’s book, and in the RCIA class, led by a deacon and some lay people, we were taught about the Church’s teachings and were encouraged to read Humanae Vitae, and take the NFP course, if it was applicable to our state in life.
 
Our RCIA class did not cover Humanae Vitae, but there was a lot of ground to cover just with basic prayers and sacramental preparation, not to mention Mass responses.

I think we didn’t talk a lot about specifically Catholic moral teachings, although I remember Sister B talking about the sin of detraction.
 
Our RCIA class didn’t cover this, but we were a small group and three of the five of us didn’t speak English as a first language. Because of this (I assume), we kept to more general discussion, really. It was still a good course of instruction, I should add.
 
I believe it was. We glossed over some of it, so maybe I should have answered partially. I had no qualms about NFP as I had used it many years ago before I was Catholic because I was so pro life. I was given the book by Christopher West and read it. I’m not certain that it was given to me in RCIA or during a one on one counseling session with the RCIA instructor. I believe I must have donated it to the church library, and now I wish I had it to read again. They certainly did not go over NFP in depth, but offered more instruction if anyone was interested.

Most of the couples yawned and nodded, but I’m not sure they were on board with no birth control. Even I gasped :eek: when the priest said that IVF was flat out wrong (dh and I are infertile and had tried IVF in the past with no luck) and that no one has a right to have a child… I now understand why. I have a hard time accepting it, but I understand more fully. 😊 God did end up growing our family to include 2 living children, and we’re praying for a 3rd gift.
 
nope only when I raised my hand and asked about it they said that catholics cannot abort or use birth control but that if having more kids caused financial hardship or health risks then birth control was not a grevious sin:eek: I only found out years later when I was coerced into an IUD how grevious a sin it was, I was so disappointed with RCIA in that parish I loved the people I met but alot of the instruction well it was misleading at times and very liberal I’ve actually thought about reporting the DRE of that parish for just that since other members have had similar experiences with her encouraging birth control 😦
 
RCIA is an" undergraduate course", if you will, in the Faith.

There is much to be covered, in comparison to the allotted time.

I think of RCIA in terms of the closing verse of the Gospel of John where he says that all that Christ did can not be written in a single book (paraphrased).

Catechesis is a lifetime endeavor, not an in-and-out in 9 months you are going to know it all.

“Graduate work” in the faith entails a lot of independent study.

Peace and all Good!
 
Neofight said:
RCIA is an" undergraduate course", if you will, in the Faith.

There is much to be covered, in comparison to the allotted time.

I think of RCIA in terms of the closing verse of the Gospel of John where he says that all that Christ did can not be written in a single book (paraphrased).

Catechesis is a lifetime endeavor, not an in-and-out in 9 months you are going to know it all.

“Graduate work” in the faith entails a lot of independent study.

Peace and all Good!
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THIS is spot on!!!

As I recall, it was touched upon in the part on the Ten Commandments and Christian Morality from a Catholic perspective. We did not read the encyclical but there was reference to it in an article that was handed out by our DRE. It is a topic one better comprehends as they further their walk with the LORD and His Church in my view, as it can be a bit too esoteric and philosophical for many who are in the the “undergraduate” class that is RCIA.
 
If by “Humanae Vitea” you mean “contraception”, no, our catechists were completely silent on it. When our priest was in talking briefly to us on one occasion he mentioned that issues such as contraception weren’t going to change in the Church, and that’s all I ever heard about it.

I don’t think it’s on account of our catechists being unorthodox though. The DRE at my parish isn’t very bright. The program felt poorly oiled throughout.
 
We briefly touched on Catholic teaching in this area, although not in great depth. Now that I think of it, I don’t remember whether birth control was mentioned. It may have been, at least indirectly, because our assigned reading was always from the USCCB Catholic Catechism for Adults, and I believe that there was a chapter in there about Church teaching on sexual morality.

But we didn’t specifically read Humanae Vitae.
 
No, but I’ve been studying the Catholic faith for five years, so I had already heard and read a lot about it before coming into the Church this Easter.
 
Stillsosola said:
nope only when I raised my hand and asked about it they said that catholics cannot abort or use birth control but that if having more kids caused financial hardship or health risks then birth control was not a grevious sin:eek: 😦
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I am wondering if there is some confusion. Birth control in the sense of being responsible, and not having more children than can be provided for, or birth control in the sense of taking the Pill for medical reasons, the Church has no problem with.

But if you are using the term to mean contraception - yes, that IS against church teaching.

It all depends on the method. Birth control to limit the size of the family for serious reasons, by using abstinence or NFP, is not against church teaching.
Birth control by using a contraceptive method such as condoms, the diaphragm, the Pill for not-medical reasons IS.

So the term ‘contraception’ is best used for methods that are contrary to the Church’s teaching, not the phrase ‘birth control’, to avoid confusion.
 
NO. DRE very liberal and a “follow your conscious” type. I think she would have flipped out if anyone mentioned NFP.
 
paperwight66 said:
I am wondering if there is some confusion. Birth control in the sense of being responsible, and not having more children than can be provided for, or birth control in the sense of taking the Pill for medical reasons, the Church has no problem with.

But if you are using the term to mean contraception - yes, that IS against church teaching.

It all depends on the method. Birth control to limit the size of the family for serious reasons, by using abstinence or NFP, is not against church teaching.
Birth control by using a contraceptive method such as condoms, the diaphragm, the Pill for not-medical reasons IS.

So the term ‘contraception’ is best used for methods that are contrary to the Church’s teaching, not the phrase ‘birth control’, to avoid confusion.
Click to expand...
no the RCIA teacher said that any kind of contraception is ok to reduce family size if financial hardship occurs she was not talking about taking “the pill” for medical reasons she was literally talking about reducing family size to improve quality of life for the existing kids. She was and is to this day wrong in that sense of contraception. But she did say it was not ok to use just to close yourself to life. Thus I was very confused since she contradicted herself first saying that it was wrong unless your poor and can’t afford the kids you have:shrug:

She’s still the DRE at that parish near orlando FL, it’s a very liberal parish though maybe that’s why?
 
It was talked about during one lesson for maybe a few minutes. The priest expressed happiness that it got brought up (he doesn’t really run the course, he’s just their to help in other ways). I don’t remember if it was all that boldly stated in the course material (which is why I voted “partially”).

I wanted to ask if the Canadian bishops’ outright defiance of Papa Paulo VI in the so-called “Winnipeg Statement” still meant that us as Canadian Catholics could outright defy the church’s teaching as well, but I forgot.

The course at least explained a simple reason why this teaching exists, because it separates the unitive and procreative functions of intercourse, which as the priest said is really behind all sexual sins, but I think it would have been good to offer a little primer on natural law ethics, because the problem with the church’s teaching is that so many people just reject it out of hand, since we live in a culture that is steeped in the contraceptive mentality. But if you offer people a completely rational explanation to go behind it, then people really have no excuse.
 
I knew the Church’s teachings extensively. I’d read Humanea Vitea. It was covered in RCIA.

My opinion of it is less than favorable.
 
Darn it. I just read that the thread is for converts. I was not a convert to Catholicism - I was a cradle Catholic. Please disregard, as the time limit for editing posts has passed.
 
I am the RCIA leader at my parish (and a former RCIA student myself). We definitely spend some time on Humanae Vitae. We have one class (1.5hrs) on the Sacrament of Matrimony, which includes a discussion of the document and NFP [at least in broad strokes, with resources provided for those who want or need to learn more]. And it comes up now and then during other classes along the way, as appropriate.

I’m saddened by the poll results. This is such an important (and beautiful) part of Catholicism, but it is also a part that is subject to many misconceptions and misunderstandings. I wouldn’t feel like I was doing my job as RCIA leader if I didn’t make sure we covered it, and covered it with more than a brief mention.

We are also very blessed in my parish with good, orthodox, serious priests. If I didn’t have some time in the schedule for Humanae Vitae and related topics, they would make sure I added it, or make sure I was replaced if I wouldn’t ;).
 
Yes, we spent one class speaking specifically about the marriage bed, infidelity, birth control, abortion, ivf, etc.
 
We discussed it on more than one occasion. We had a 2 hour session on the sacrament of matrimony which included a discussion on contraception, etc. We then discussed it at length during a session on the commandments. Prior to that session, we were asked to listen to a CD about the Church’s teaching on sexuality and birth control. This RCIA session was more of a discussion than lecture and we spent almost the entire time discussing life issues - birth control, abortion, fertility treatments, end of life care, euthanasia, etc.

Some of us also had to get our marriages convalidated, so we got additional teaching on marriage, including NFP classes.
 
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