Emergency Contraception

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HeleneMarie

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I for one see no problem with contraception that prevents (and does not destroy) a pregnancy. I am not in need of contraception now since I’m gay(not to be debated in this thread) but I’ve used emergency contraception before. When I was 15, I was raped. The next day I took a pill that made the walls of the uterus unfavorable for the egg to implant in to prevent a pregnancy from occurring. Basically it was a high dose of birth control. Imagine what it would have been like for a 15 year old to have a baby, let alone a rapist’s baby?
 
I for one see no problem with contraception that prevents (and does not destroy) a pregnancy. I am not in need of contraception now since I’m gay(not to be debated in this thread) but I’ve used emergency contraception before. When I was 15, I was raped. The next day I took a pill that made the walls of the uterus unfavorable for the egg to implant in to prevent a pregnancy from occurring. Basically it was a high dose of birth control. Imagine what it would have been like for a 15 year old to have a baby, let alone a rapist’s baby?
Being gay is just as big a grave sin as using contraception. Contraception is NOT permitted under any circumstances including the one you mentioned.
 
I was f****** 15 years old!!! And gay, I didn’t want to marry a man and definitely not be a single mother!!!
 
I for one see no problem with contraception that prevents (and does not destroy) a pregnancy. I am not in need of contraception now since I’m gay(not to be debated in this thread) but I’ve used emergency contraception before. When I was 15, I was raped. The next day I took a pill that made the walls of the uterus unfavorable for the egg to implant in to prevent a pregnancy from occurring. Basically it was a high dose of birth control. Imagine what it would have been like for a 15 year old to have a baby, let alone a rapist’s baby?
I’m sorry to hear about you being raped. That’s terrible and doubt anyone would question that :(. However, I just wanted to clarify a common misconception on emergency contraception.

It actually does destroy a pregnancy (if fertilization occurred). Commonly, fertilization of the egg occurs in the oviduct. After fertilization the newly created blastocyst (which is life at that point) drifts further down the female reproductive system to be implanted in the wall of the uterus. Emergency contraception (as you mentioned) prevents the implantation of the fertilized egg. By preventing such an action an abortion is occurring.

Life begins at conception (fertilization) which occurs in the oviduct. By preventing the implantation one is aborting a pregnancy. Of course, with emergency contraception one never knows if there is a fertilized egg or not. However, the act of using emergency contraception is taken to cause an abortion.
 
Being gay is just as big a grave sin as using contraception. Contraception is NOT permitted under any circumstances including the one you mentioned.
Actually, being gay is not a sin. Acting upon homosexual impulses sexually is a sin. There is nothing wrong with being gay. However, one should try to prevent homosexual activity.

But, as she mentioned in her original post, that was not the topic of the thread. Just wanted to clarify that.
 
God is Almighty. We confess this everytime in the Creed. The Father almight shows his mighty power in forgiving our sins and healing us from all courses and infirmities. He allows evil because he will conquer it and derive even a greater good out of it. Jesus is the proof. He was a descendent from a line where all kinds of horrible sins happened including incest. In him all courses and infirmities were conquered.

When we are baptised, we are the same, new Creation. No Jew, no Samaritan, no Greek, no result of incest, or of rape, etc. We are all new creations in Christ our Savior.

Contaception is evil because it denies the power and mercy of God. Once again, it makes us gods, putting in our own hands the power to decide what is good and evil!

God bless
 
HeleneMarie,

The church permits a rape victim to defend herself against the conception of a child from an unjust agressor. Women should seek medical care and may avail herself of any treatments available that will do this. We are not permitted to use contraception in marriage (of course we are not permitted to use it outside of marriage as we are not supposed to be having sex outside of marriage). We are not permitted to directly abort a child under any circumstances.

The Church teaching on medical care after a rape-
Compassionate and understanding care should be given to a person who is the victim of sexual assault. Health care providers should cooperate with law enforcement officials and offer the person psychological and spiritual support as well as accurate medical information. A female who has been raped should be able to defend herself against a potential conception from the sexual assault. If, after appropriate testing, there is no evidence that conception has occurred already, she may be treated with medications that would prevent ovulation, sperm capacitation, or fertilization. It is not permissible, however, to initiate or to recommend treatments that have as their purpose or direct effect the removal, destruction, or interference with the implantation of a fertilized ovum.19
I’m sure it would be difficult for a 15 year old to have a child conceived through rape. We do have support for such a thing to help her through it. We have medical care, counseling and adoption agancies. Difficult but not impossible with compassionate care.
I’m sorry to read you went through such a violent , traumatic act.
 
Quote:
Compassionate and understanding care should be given to a person who is the victim of sexual assault. Health care providers should cooperate with law enforcement officials and offer the person psychological and spiritual support as well as accurate medical information. A female who has been raped should be able to defend herself against a potential conception from the sexual assault. If, after appropriate testing, there is no evidence that conception has occurred already, she may be treated with medications that would prevent ovulation, sperm capacitation, or fertilization. It is not permissible, however, to initiate or to recommend treatments that have as their purpose or direct effect the removal, destruction, or interference with the implantation of a fertilized ovum.19

Where is that from? I’m not doubting you, just wondering.:rolleyes:
 
I’m sure you know the idea that something good comes out of everything.

This is how I think of a pregnancy as a result of rape- what better a gift than a child, a whole new life, after something so horrible? It seems to me that an innocent, pure baby would be the a nice reward after that suffering.

You might say, well, how could that be good if it came from something bad?

What if the rapist was aware of the result of his sin and learnt from it, or converted to the Catholic faith??? Would you day that his conversion was unwanted? Would you KILL IT?

:highprayer: :signofcross:

By having this baby, the victim could be saving TWO LIVES, TWO WHOLE LIVES! Even MORE!! I think that would be wonderful!!

Something good comes out of everything.
Something good comes out of everything.
Something good comes out of everything.
 
I recently just learned of this myself.

HeleneMarie–every life has value. “A rapist’s baby” would be just as valuable as a baby conceived through wedlock. You never know which baby could grow up to find a cure for cancer, become the next president, etc.

I’m sorry you went through such terrible tragedies, both the rape and the emergency contraception. St. Rose of Lima, pray for us!
 
I for one see no problem with contraception that prevents (and does not destroy) a pregnancy. I am not in need of contraception now since I’m gay(not to be debated in this thread)
You brought it up. Perhaps putting that little bit of information out there might be a subconscience reach for help.

I hope you will seek counseling through a Catholic organization such as Courage (regarding your SSA) and Catholic Charities (regarding your sexual assault).

I also invite you to study Catholic teaching regarding the purpose and nature of marital sexuality, and why contraception is intrinsically evil.
but I’ve used emergency contraception before. When I was 15, I was raped. The next day I took a pill that made the walls of the uterus unfavorable for the egg to implant in to prevent a pregnancy from occurring.
The Church has recently clarified that “emergency contraception” is immoral:

usccb.org/comm/Dignitaspersonae/Dignitas_Personae.pdf
Basically it was a high dose of birth control. Imagine what it would have been like for a 15 year old to have a baby, let alone a rapist’s baby?
The moral choice, should pregnancy occur, would be to have the child and either parent or give the child up for adoption.

Killing the child is never a moral option.

Society encourages people to think they could “never” do “such and such.” This is simply not true. Virtue and Grace can assist us in doing what is right.
 
Actually, being gay is not a sin. Acting upon homosexual impulses sexually is a sin. There is nothing wrong with being gay. However, one should try to prevent homosexual activity.

But, as she mentioned in her original post, that was not the topic of the thread. Just wanted to clarify that.
You are right. I typed and pressed the button too quickly. I should have said actively gay. Same sex attraction per se is not a sin but the Church teaches nonetheless that it is objectively disordered. In other words although same sex attraction is not a sin it is not normal.
Again you are right about homosexual activity. The Church teaches “homosexual acts are intrinsically disordered”, and “acts of grave depravity” and “Under no circumstances can they be approved.”.

However this is digressing and further discussion can be kept for a new thread.
 
Yes, the Chruch teaches that adoption would have been the best thing to do in this situation.

I’m very sorry that you had to go through such a difficult situation. There is a good chance that you wouldn’t have gotten pregnant. There are more factors required than simply having sex for a pregnancy to occur.

The teaching is in place, partly, because of this fact. We don’t know if God intended for a baby in this situation. Our teaching suggests that we should not interfere with God regarding the creation of life.

With all due respect the place that supplied you with the pill is instructed to tell you that it’s a “strong birth control” and that it will prevent a pregnancy. Those places have a definition of pregnancy that is very different from Church teaching of conception. This is in fact by Church teaching, an abortion. This skewing of the facts is a trick by the evil one to convince us that everything is ok, and there is nothing wrong with this. A clever trick by the sneaky “serpant”.

If you are Catholic and were aware at the time this occurred that this was a sin, this should be confessed.

I will pray for you.
 
Helen Marie: Is is understandable what you did when you were 15and this terrible thing happened to you. I have compassion for you in your poignant situation. It doesn’t make it right. I think you are acknolwedging that. It seems on one level, you are sorry. You don’t need to try to justify it now because you were in terrible state at the time. You can and may already be totally forgiven. Being forgiven doesn’t mean the church tells you it wasn’t wrong in the first place. Because you were a victim, doensn’t make it right. It sounds like you are trying to justify it. It can’t really be justified but you seem to be sorry and if you are Catholic you can confess it and Christ through the priest will wipe out the stain of the sin. Actually wipe it out.

Regarding the being gay issue. You seem to have accepted that this is the way you are. Maybe so, maybe not. I’m don not think it’s been proven one way or the other. It’s clearly become more acceptable in our society. Years ago, I worked with a number of gay men and women and I still think, for the most part, it is a deep emotional disturbance. Because of the very nature of men and women, it can’t really lead to happiness. And gayness is not an identity. It is not your personhood. That’s just propaganda by the gay community who have an agenda to declare any kind of sexual interaction, anywhere, anytime as acceptable. They cannot and have not been able to offer a religious argument in support of this main contention.

I’m not trying to “convert” you but I think you should try privately reading some things that discuss the religious perspective on this. Just consider them. Our culture has twisted this into a civil rights issue which it actually isn’t. If you are a religious person, wouldn’t you want to satisfy yourself that gay actions are really ok? See what the curch says on this. Read about those who have become celebite. See what they say. Don’t just dismiss the arguments as bigoted without actually working through them.

If there is actually a nature of gayness, I think it is an incredible difficult thing to bear for your life, no matter what you do, lean into it or refuse to act on it. One theological issue you might give serious thinking to is the doctrine of salvific suffering. If this is an inherent thing, and gay actions are indeed wrong, then it must be a life long cross to bear, which takes faith and constancy to bear it. Just consider these things. This is your life, now and in the hereafter. Best to you.
 
I for one see no problem with contraception that prevents (and does not destroy) a pregnancy. I am not in need of contraception now since I’m gay(not to be debated in this thread) but I’ve used emergency contraception before. When I was 15, I was raped. The next day I took a pill that made the walls of the uterus unfavorable for the egg to implant in to prevent a pregnancy from occurring. Basically it was a high dose of birth control. Imagine what it would have been like for a 15 year old to have a baby, let alone a rapist’s baby?
Maybe you have never heard the rationale behind the Church’s teaching against contraception. Did you listen to or read Janet Smith’s presentation, “Contraception, Why Not?” It’s probably one of the best explanations of the Church’s teachings on this subject.

janetsmith.excerptsofinri.com/

This is one of the documents Dr Smith is discussing:
Humanae Vitae, the papal encyclical issued in 1968 by Pope Paul VI:

vatican.va/holy_father/paul_vi/encyclicals/documents/hf_p-vi_enc_25071968_humanae-vitae_en.html

There is a difference between contraceptive methods that prevent conception and interceptive and **contragestative **methods that interfere with a pregnancy after conception. Interceptive and contragestative methods fall within the sin of abortion whereas contraceptive methods do not. The Church recently addressed this issue in paragraph 23 of the document Dignitas Personae:

usccb.org/comm/Dignitaspersonae/Dignitas_Personae.pdf
New forms of interception and contragestation
23. Alongside methods of preventing pregnancy which are, properly speaking, contraceptive, that is, which prevent conception following from a sexual act, there are other
technical means which act after fertilization, when the embryo is already constituted, either before or after implantation in the uterine wall. Such methods are interceptive if they interfere
with the embryo before implantation and contragestative if they cause the elimination of the embryo once implanted.
In order to promote wider use of interceptive methods, it is sometimes stated that the way in which they function is not sufficiently understood. It is true that there is not always
complete knowledge of the way that different pharmaceuticals operate, but scientific studies indicate that the effect of inhibiting implantation is certainly present, even if this does not mean
that such interceptives cause an abortion every time they are used, also because conception does not occur after every act of sexual intercourse. It must be noted, however, that anyone
who seeks to prevent the implantation of an embryo which may possibly have been conceived and who therefore either requests or prescribes such a pharmaceutical, generally intends
abortion.
When there is a delay in menstruation, a contragestative is used, usually one or two weeks after the non-occurrence of the monthly period. The stated aim is to re-establish menstruation, but what takes place in reality is the abortion of an embryo which has just
implanted.
As is known, abortion is “the deliberate and direct killing, by whatever means it is carried out, of a human being in the initial phase of his or her existence, extending from conception to birth”. Therefore, the use of means of interception and contragestation fall within the sin of abortion and are gravely immoral. Furthermore, when there is certainty that an abortion has resulted, there are serious penalties in canon law..
But to make it clear, the Church teaches that true contraceptives (agents that prevent conception), even though they do not fall under the sin of abortion, are wrong to use within marriage. If a couple wants to space children, the only morally acceptable way to do this is through NFP (or periodic abstinence).

This is a hard teaching (and counter-cultural to be sure), but at least listen to what the Church has to say. It takes about 1.5 hours to listen to Janet Smith’s talk. Please do that.
 
Helen Marie: Is is understandable what you did when you were 15and this terrible thing happened to you. I have compassion for you in your poignant situation. It doesn’t make it right. I think you are acknolwedging that. It seems on one level, you are sorry. You don’t need to try to justify it now because you were in terrible state at the time. You can and may already be totally forgiven. Being forgiven doesn’t mean the church tells you it wasn’t wrong in the first place. Because you were a victim, doensn’t make it right. It sounds like you are trying to justify it. It can’t really be justified but you seem to be sorry and if you are Catholic you can confess it and Christ through the priest will wipe out the stain of the sin. Actually wipe it out.
.
I am kind of sorry for it, but I still see myself as just a victim of a bad situation. I don’t think I could confess that in Church anyways. Plus the chances that I was pregnant are slim to none, as there was a condom used. I just freaked out and wanted extra protection. It sucks because my parents don’t know what happened. They had to take me to get the pill so I told them I just willingly had sex and didn’t use a condom. They’re Catholic so they think I’m pretty much Satan’s child. But I couldn’t tell them for certain reasons so I guess that’s how it has to be.

As for the “gays can’t be truly happy” quote, that is totally untrue. I AM truly happy, the happiest I’ve ever been to be with Breanna. It’s just like hetero love with the fireworks and that feeling of “wow” when you first saw them. It’s love, and it’s unquestionable.
 
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