S
sugarmouse
Guest
While watching YouTube videos about NFP, I noticed some commenters arguing that using NFP was in fact a sin.
Their argument was that although the married couple were not acting in a way to prevent conception, their intention to have sex whilst avoiding pregnancy was in and of itself sinful. The teaching that NFP can only be used for unselfish reasons was taken as a sign that the Church’s teaching was inconsistent, as it would suggest that the act of avoiding pregnancy was in fact a sin at least in some cases.
My understanding is that it is not a sin for a married couple to have sex whilst trying to avoid pregnancy, as long as they do not sterilise the sexual act themselves (i.e. with contraception), since although they may not “want” a child to be conceived, they are still willing to accept a child lovingly should God give them one. Therefore, using NFP for selfish reasons is not a sin because it is sometimes wrong to avoid pregnancy, but because the couple’s selfishness is sinful.
Could someone please clarify this?
Their argument was that although the married couple were not acting in a way to prevent conception, their intention to have sex whilst avoiding pregnancy was in and of itself sinful. The teaching that NFP can only be used for unselfish reasons was taken as a sign that the Church’s teaching was inconsistent, as it would suggest that the act of avoiding pregnancy was in fact a sin at least in some cases.
My understanding is that it is not a sin for a married couple to have sex whilst trying to avoid pregnancy, as long as they do not sterilise the sexual act themselves (i.e. with contraception), since although they may not “want” a child to be conceived, they are still willing to accept a child lovingly should God give them one. Therefore, using NFP for selfish reasons is not a sin because it is sometimes wrong to avoid pregnancy, but because the couple’s selfishness is sinful.
Could someone please clarify this?