U.S. bishops’ publication urges priests to preach on contraception, sterilization, IVF

[Abyssinia]

In the latest issue of Life Issues Forum, a weekly publication of the U.S. Bishops Conference Secretariat for Pro-Life Activities, priests are being urged to “foster an understanding of Church teachings on life and chastity” through “homilies, and through bulletin inserts and announcements citing good articles on these teachings.” Although released today, the publication is not yet available on the website of the USCCB.

Susan E. Wills, assistant director for education and outreach of the USCCB Secretariat of Pro-Life Activities, is the author of the publication. In it Wills draws attention to three areas where there is a “profound darkening of conscience” even among Catholics.

lifesitenews.com/news/us-bishops-publication-urges-priests-to-preach-on-contraception-steriliza

 

[mark_a]

In the latest issue of Life Issues Forum, a weekly publication of the U.S. Bishops Conference Secretariat for Pro-Life Activities, priests are being urged to “foster an understanding of Church teachings on life and chastity” through “homilies, and through bulletin inserts and announcements citing good articles on these teachings.” Although released today, the publication is not yet available on the website of the USCCB.

Susan E. Wills, assistant director for education and outreach of the USCCB Secretariat of Pro-Life Activities, is the author of the publication. In it Wills draws attention to three areas where there is a “profound darkening of conscience” even among Catholics.

lifesitenews.com/news/us-bishops-publication-urges-priests-to-preach-on-contraception-steriliza

Three cheers for Susan E. Wills and the U.S. Bishops Conference Secretariat for Pro-Life Activities!!!

 

[mdgspencer]

This is great to hear. I wish it actually was a statement by the U.S. bishops. A directive from the U.S.bishops to preach against contraception on the part of U.S. priests is very unlikely, which could well set off a firestorm of attacks by the U.S. media.
Unfortunately, this is not a statement by the U.S. bishops. It was written by a laywiman who is in a working group under the bishops conference, a group with no official power to speak for the bishops. Likely enough no members of this group are even bishops.

 

[wisdomseeker]

Somebody seems to be wakening up. We still got a long way to go.

 

[kleary]

Yes indeed- a long way to go. Priests will NOT teach the condemnation of artificial contraception from the pulpit. And one pries told me that in order for him to do it he would need an hour for that sort of homily and it would basically put people to sleep. He explained to me that it is true- 99 percent of the congregation use birth control and they ALL know the Church teaches against it.

That is NOT true- everyone I talk to say “that is the old church”, not the Church of today.

I can see it now- the pastor telling his congregation that it is an intrinsically evil action to use artificial contraception- then seeing people approach him after mass saying what he said was innapropriate!

God help us. Catholics would know it by studying their faith- and 99 percent of them will not and do not even care.

Ken

 

[wisdomseeker]

Yes indeed- a long way to go. Priests will NOT teach the condemnation of artificial contraception from the pulpit. And one pries told me that in order for him to do it he would need an hour for that sort of homily and it would basically put people to sleep. He explained to me that it is true- 99 percent of the congregation use birth control and they ALL know the Church teaches against it.

That is NOT true- everyone I talk to say “that is the old church”, not the Church of today.

I can see it now- the pastor telling his congregation that it is an intrinsically evil action to use artificial contraception- then seeing people approach him after mass saying what he said was innapropriate!

God help us. Catholics would know it by studying their faith- and 99 percent of them will not and do not even care.

Ken

Yeah, the reason that is as that they stop preaching about it. this is an excuse, he really doesnt need an hour for this. stop all the other nonsense and they have more than enough time to really do what is needed. Priests should remember what St Peter said: should I obey God or man?

 

[manualman]

It CAN happen and can work. My kids attend the parish school of a parish several miles from our own home parish (no school there). The pastor there did a VERY clever thing. He announced an adult education class on the subject of teaching your kids about human sexuality. Probably a couple hundred showed up. He then did a GREAT job explaining that there was absolutely NO magic bullet or magic words that could be given in a talk to children unless the children FIRST observe their own parents living out their marriage in a sexually healthy manner. It was a great talk and he pulled no punches on the matter of explaining how contraception subtly objectifies sex and that it, contrary to pithy comments, does NOT simply stay in the bedroom. It manifests itself in the relationship and how the couple treat one another in ways that kids DO see and do learn from.

Obviously he did I better job than I am. And I sure was happy to see somebody have the guts to bring it up. I thought it was really smart to do it in a parents only environment too. That’s not really a homily I need to explain to my second grader yet!

 

[Alan55]

The ban on contraception just doesn’t preach well, for a number of reasons. Try to explain how a sexual act between a husband and wife needs to be both procreative and unitive, then explain:

• Why Humanae Vitae indicated that the decision to limit family size is morally acceptable, but that Catholic couples should not be able to use the most effective and least intrusive means of doing so
• How sexual relations between infertile spouses (age, medical condition, etc.) is procreative
• How IVF is not unitive – mind you, Humanae Vitae indicated that “unitive” meant fostering the loving union between husband and wife and did not refer to the manner in which the sexual act was performed from an anatomical point of view
• Why just about every other Christian denomination, including those which are strongly pro-life, permit their people to use artificial contraception
• Why banning the use of condoms to prevent transmission of AIDS reflects proper moral priorities

…and so on. Even if you agree with the teaching, it is very, very difficult to make consistent sense of it to a lay audience. Particularly in the wake of the recent child sexual abuse scandals, which further eroded people’s view of the teaching authority of the Church on sexual subjects, if you want to see yet another exodus from the Church, renewing the call for pastors to preach on birth control is the right place to start.

 

[Suudy]

if you want to see yet another exodus from the Church, renewing the call for pastors to preach on birth control is the right place to start.

Are you saying that it is better to keep the pews full than to teach the truth?

I’m reminded of John 6: “Many therefore of his disciples, when they had heard this, said, This is an hard saying; who can hear it? … From that time many of his disciples went back, and walked no more with him.”

Jesus did not balk at teaching the truth, even hard truths, so why should we? For my part, I’d rather be a part of a small Church committed to the Truths of the Catholic faith (in union with Rome of course) than a large Church with flaccid obedience.

 

[Christopher68]

The ban on contraception just doesn’t preach well, for a number of reasons. Try to explain how a sexual act between a husband and wife needs to be both procreative and unitive, then explain:

• Why Humanae Vitae indicated that the decision to limit family size is morally acceptable, but that Catholic couples should not be able to use the most effective and least intrusive means of doing so
• How sexual relations between infertile spouses (age, medical condition, etc.) is procreative
• How IVF is not unitive – mind you, Humanae Vitae indicated that “unitive” meant fostering the loving union between husband and wife and did not refer to the manner in which the sexual act was performed from an anatomical point of view
• Why just about every other Christian denomination, including those which are strongly pro-life, permit their people to use artificial contraception
• Why banning the use of condoms to prevent transmission of AIDS reflects proper moral priorities

…and so on. Even if you agree with the teaching, it is very, very difficult to make consistent sense of it to a lay audience. Particularly in the wake of the recent child sexual abuse scandals, which further eroded people’s view of the teaching authority of the Church on sexual subjects, if you want to see yet another exodus from the Church, renewing the call for pastors to preach on birth control is the right place to start.

Thank you for an excellent and respectful post. Further to your comments - I think most parishioners want to hear a homily that gives them something positive to contemplate. There are any number of topics that this can be related to, preferably something that ties into the readings of the day. By contrast, homilies on the above topics often have a negative tone rather than a positive one. In addition, I suspect that most couples are averse to anyone who suggestively tries to micro-manage issues of extreme intimacy and privacy. And when these issues are viewed under the lens of logic and reason, they do not translate well, as you have noted above with examples. There are many people who will suggest that it is simply the fault of the parishioners who do not want thear what the Church has to say on these topics, but as you have properly noted, there is much more to it than that.

 

[Alan55]

Thank you for an excellent and respectful post. Further to your comments - I think most parishioners want to hear a homily that gives them something positive to contemplate. There are any number of topics that this can be related to, preferably something that ties into the readings of the day. By contrast, homilies on the above topics often have a negative tone rather than a positive one. In addition, I suspect that most couples are averse to anyone who suggestively tries to micro-manage issues of extreme intimacy and privacy. And when these issues are viewed under the lens of logic and reason, they do not translate well, as you have noted above with examples. There are many people who will suggest that it is simply the fault of the parishioners who do not want thear what the Church has to say on these topics, but as you have properly noted, there is much more to it than that.

Thank you for your kind words. I forgot to mention the most obvious problem: pastors would be preaching about the Church’s teaching on married sexual activity in the hearing of children attending weekend Masses. Not a good plan, IMHO.

 

[Alan55]

Are you saying that it is better to keep the pews full than to teach the truth?

I’m reminded of John 6: “Many therefore of his disciples, when they had heard this, said, This is an hard saying; who can hear it? … From that time many of his disciples went back, and walked no more with him.”

Jesus did not balk at teaching the truth, even hard truths, so why should we? For my part, I’d rather be a part of a small Church committed to the Truths of the Catholic faith (in union with Rome of course) than a large Church with flaccid obedience.

The vast majority of married U.S. Catholics of reproductive age use artificial contraception. You suggest that it would be ok to drive the vast majority of married U.S. Catholics of reproductive age from the Church. Most pastors would disagree. I’m not sure whether you were around in 1968, when Humanae Vitae was promulgated and preached, but most pastors who were in active ministry at that time remember how many Catholic couples headed for the exits over this teaching and how much anguish it caused to many who stayed. They have no desire to do that again, and I don’t blame them.

For those who think that the Church’s teaching on contraception is infallible doctrine, I ask you: why did the Holy Spirit apparently abandon married Catholics, who have overwhelmingly rejected this teaching? Not only is the Spirit supposed to guide Church teaching by the Magisterium but also its reception by the faithful.

 

[mark_a]

I can see it now- the pastor telling his congregation that it is an intrinsically evil action to use artificial contraception- then seeing people approach him after mass saying what he said was innapropriate!

It’s tough for a priest to speak of contraception, but it can be done. We have a local priest who discretely preaches on the subject, knowing that he will be confronted directly after mass by women who are jumping-up-and-down mad.

After one such homily, I went up to him and said “great homily!” He was shocked expecting the opposite.

 

[mark_a]

For those who think that the Church’s teaching on contraception is infallible doctrine, I ask you: why did the Holy Spirit apparently abandon married Catholics, who have overwhelmingly rejected this teaching? Not only is the Spirit supposed to guide Church teaching by the Magisterium but also its reception by the faithful.

Who abandoned Whom?

 

[NewEnglandPriest]

For those who think that the Church’s teaching on contraception is infallible doctrine, I ask you: why did the Holy Spirit apparently abandon married Catholics, who have overwhelmingly rejected this teaching? Not only is the Spirit supposed to guide Church teaching by the Magisterium but also its reception by the faithful.

While your post made several interesting point, the above quote is IMHO not very fair. In the context of Church history, a 50 year mainly Western phenomenon is not exactly a ringing condemnation by the sensus fidelium.

 

[mdgspencer]

Father Marx, who was the founder of Human Life International, once was invited to give the sermon in a parish on mother’s day. For his sermon he spoke on the offense of contraception. Many women were became angry, and one of them said that this was the worst mother’s day she ever had. I noticed the post here where a parish priest once said that if he spoke on contraception, everyone would go to sleep. I expect rather such words about contraception would gain their attention immediately.
When I was about 20 I considered becoming a priest. I still wonder if I had become a priest how I could have gone about telling the parishioners on sunday about such things as contraception, living together without marriage, and their entertainments when it comes to TV and the movies. If you care about people’s souls, you could not ignore the things that separate them from God.

 

[manualman]

For those who think that the Church’s teaching on contraception is infallible doctrine, I ask you: why did the Holy Spirit apparently abandon married Catholics, who have overwhelmingly rejected this teaching? Not only is the Spirit supposed to guide Church teaching by the Magisterium but also its reception by the faithful.

The same reason the Holy Spirit has always “abandoned” God’s perpetually wayward people: he hasn’t. From the apple in the garden to the golden calf during the Exodus, to the consistantly people in the prophet period of Israel to the Arian heresy of the early church to today’s latest false idol, sexual gluttony (aka lust), humans have always had an astounding tendency to sin and then RATIONALIZE their sin. Christendom is no exception (never wonder how slavery and anti-semitism could have been so prevalent and socially acceptable until so recently? Did the Holy Spirit ‘abandon’ them too?).

Every age has its favorite sins. And in every age, there are the false teachers Jesus and St. Paul warned about, the ones who prefer to tickle people’s ears with flattery instead of telling the truth.

Catholic sexual teaching indeed seems odd at first introduction. You seem to believe this is because it is actually flawed somehow. I sure hope you’ve considered the possibility that it is because we’ve been raised in a sexual sewer of a culture and it is our warped culture that has misshapen US until the beauty of truth seems strange. Is it REALLY so likely that the culture of today that gets EVERY sexual issue horribly wrong and distorted (from promiscuity to pornography to objectification of women in media and so on ad nauseum) is right on this and those who have been given the apostolic office by the Holy Spirit are the ones who have been consistently wrong for 2,000 years? Do you HEAR the arrogance in there???

If you haven’t actually read the best of catholic explanations of the subject (by people who actually believe it, not those attempting to undermine it from the inside), then please consider that you just might be rationalizing. For introductory starters without an ivory tower theological background, there’s nothing better than the book Good News About Sex & Marriage for an intro. Humanae Vitae and Castii Connubi are, of course authoritative (but IMO more cerebral and provide too little ground level insight) and at the heavy end, John Paul 2’s Love and Responsibility is for those who like whole grain chewy reading! Think about it, anyways.

I can remember quite clearly being a kid reading the OT stories of Israel and wondering how they could be SO stupid to worship a golden calf mere weeks after crossing the Red Sea on the dry seabed. Then I got older and found myself being stupid far more often than I’d ever expected. Life is funny that way.

 

[manualman]

…
.
For those who think that the Church’s teaching on contraception is infallible doctrine, I ask you: why did the Holy Spirit apparently abandon married Catholics, who have overwhelmingly rejected this teaching? Not only is the Spirit supposed to guide Church teaching by the Magisterium but also its reception by the faithful.

The same reason the Holy Spirit has always “abandoned” God’s perpetually wayward people: he hasn’t. From the apple in the garden to the golden calf during the Exodus, to the consistantly people in the prophet period of Israel to the Arian heresy of the early church to today’s latest false idol, sexual gluttony (aka lust), humans have always had an astounding tendency to sin and then RATIONALIZE their sin. Christendom is no exception (never wonder how slavery and anti-semitism could have been so prevalent and socially acceptable until so recently? Did the Holy Spirit ‘abandon’ them too?).

Every age has its favorite sins. And in every age, there are the false teachers Jesus and St. Paul warned about, the ones who prefer to tickle people’s ears with flattery instead of telling the truth.

Catholic sexual teaching indeed seems odd at first introduction. You seem to believe this is because it is actually flawed somehow. I sure hope you’ve considered the possibility that it is because we’ve been raised in a sexual sewer of a culture and it is our warped culture that has misshapen US until the beauty of truth seems strange. Is it REALLY so likely that the culture of today that gets EVERY sexual issue horribly wrong and distorted (from promiscuity to pornography to objectification of women in media and so on ad nauseum) is right on this and those who have been given the apostolic office by the Holy Spirit are the ones who have been consistently wrong for 2,000 years? Do you HEAR the arrogance in there???

If you haven’t actually read the best of catholic explanations of the subject (by people who actually believe it, not those attempting to undermine it from the inside), then please consider that you just might be rationalizing. For introductory starters without an ivory tower theological background, there’s nothing better than the book Good News About Sex & Marriage for an intro. Humanae Vitae and Castii Connubi are, of course authoritative (but IMO more cerebral and provide too little ground level insight) and at the heavy end, John Paul 2’s Love and Responsibility is for those who like whole grain chewy reading! Think about it, anyways.

I can remember quite clearly being a kid reading the OT stories of Israel and wondering how they could be SO stupid to worship a golden calf mere weeks after crossing the Red Sea on the dry seabed. Then I got older and found myself being stupid far more often than I’d ever expected. Life is funny that way.

 

[wisdomseeker]

The vast majority of married U.S. Catholics of reproductive age use artificial contraception. You suggest that it would be ok to drive the vast majority of married U.S. Catholics of reproductive age from the Church. Most pastors would disagree. I’m not sure whether you were around in 1968, when Humanae Vitae was promulgated and preached, but most pastors who were in active ministry at that time remember how many Catholic couples headed for the exits over this teaching and how much anguish it caused to many who stayed. They have no desire to do that again, and I don’t blame them.

For those who think that the Church’s teaching on contraception is infallible doctrine, I ask you: why did the Holy Spirit apparently abandon married Catholics, who have overwhelmingly rejected this teaching? Not only is the Spirit supposed to guide Church teaching by the Magisterium but also its reception by the faithful.

According to your reasoning then we should also stop preaching about Christ because it drives too many people away. Only the Truth will prevail and not opinions of man. That is what people need they need to hear the Truth because they not hearing they keep seeking in different and wrong places.

 

[mdgspencer]

Pope John Paul II taught that the use of contraception is a barrier to receiving communion.