Okaaaaay. The catechism is based upon, among many things, the sections of HV for which the Vatican translations use serious, though, no? Put another way, the catechism is based upon the encyclicals, not the other way around.
OP is, per his statement, asking for a friend, and did not give any reasons for postponing pregnancy, so I am not sure how you can determine that OP’s reasons are just. He was asking about the assertion that “waiting a bit to conceive” is sinful.
Post no. 4 advanced some possible reasons for postponing. That poster then described how a couple should be prepared for children immediately, and how if having a child would be a hardship the couple might think about waiting to get married.
Settling the family dynamic and having some time as a couple before kids is, I think, a fair paraphrase of post no. 4’s example of reasons that are sometimes put forth in support of postponing pregnancy at the outset of marriage. How many couples have a short engagement these days? That being said, it is not the same as living in the same house, I’ll grant. Still, even if a couple got pregnant on the honeymoon, there would still be what, forty weeks or so before baby? How long a time is contemplated by those who want ‘some time as just a couple’? More than nine months?
If that is the reference point, then I think the couple would need a more defined reason to postpone - - but that is just my opinion. I freely acknowledge that the Church trusts the couple to make this determination prayerfully, and I think it is awesome that our Creator trusts us to cooperate with Him in the creation of a new person.
I suppose the counter point is morning sickness and/or other physical effects of pregnancy may change the marital dynamic, but again, this is what the couple signed up for, so to speak.
Just as surely, as a converse, the couple is not required to use NFP to identify fertile times to try to conceive, either.
I mean, it is kind of a moot point, because as I stated, I acknowledge that it is the couple’s call, ultimately, and certainly not anybody’s business to comment upon without a very specific invitation from the couple - - - but since we’re on an internet comment board, what about the reasons used as an example in post 4, in your opinion, qualify them as just reasons?
Why does the fecundity wait, when the totality, faithfulness, and free commitment all are present from the beginning?
My purpose here is to help the OP understand what the Church teaches and how She understands marriage, not to evaluate any particular couple’s situation, so anyone reading, please bear that in mind. I do think boards like this are a good way to suss out the meaning of different teachings.
