Would you want emergency contraception if you or yours were raped?

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Cradle: How can ovulation/conception be proven to not have occured?

The only way I know of is to wait a couple of weeks and then test.

I’m lacking in biological understanding, but as far as I know there is no sure-fire way of knowing whether conception occured or not… I thought we were supposed to always err on the side of caution… I don’t like this… Is this official Church teaching or not? I don’t want to be at odds with it if it is, but I just don’t understand how “emergency contraception” could be condoned by the Church… :eek: I don’t want to be a cafeteria Catholic by failing to submit to this teaching! :crying::crying::crying:

It is not Magisterial teaching, but rather “guidance” by a committee? in the USCCB.
 
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WhiteDove:
I was reading the other thread and was interested what you would choose if you were raped. If you’re a guy, what would you want for your wife or daughter???
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If that ever happened, I hope that it would be illegal so that I would have less temptation for such evil! I would answer no.
 
I do not want to have a baby, therefore I would be one of those women who would seek emergency contraception.
 
If my daughter were raped I would not encourage emergency contraception because she would become the victim, twice over. I would raise the baby myself, if need be. He/she would be a part of me too.

This is a true story, only the women’s names are changed.

I knew two ladies. I met them in their 70’s & 80’s respectively. Both were Catholic. Sally was raped at age 17. Nancy had consensual sex, at a younger age. Both had been virgins and both became pregnant, as a result of their encounter.

Sally carried her baby to full term. She gave her up for adoption. Many years later she was able to meet her birth child, who the adoptive parents named, Mary. Upon meeting her there was joy, and she was given thanks for bringing her baby to life. Sally passed away in peace, knowing she had made the right choice. She recovered from the rape, knowing something good had come from her unselfish act. Life of a new being came from the death of her innocence.

In shame, Nancy had an abortion. In her 80’s she found peace and healing, after suffering bitter anguish for the losses in her life. She never had the opportunity to meet her child. I lost touch with Nancy, but hope when she passes, it will be in peace knowing she found God’s healing grace and forgiveness through her repentance.

John Paul II please pray for the healing and conversion of all who suffer from the sin of abortion and ask God to bring a peaceful end to it.
 
Since my husband and I are infertile this would be huge for us. There is no way, if I were to ever get pregnant (or even suspect it) would I kill the child. I would want the rapist’s rights to the child terminated though.
 
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Cradle:
How can ovulation/conception be proven to not have occured? I’m lacking in biological understanding, but as far as I know there is no sure-fire way of knowing whether conception occured or not… I thought we were supposed to always err on the side of caution…
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As I understand it, the protocol calls for a blood test to determine if you have ovulated, or are close. If you have ovulated or it is too late to stop it, then the only acceptable deterrent at pregnancy at that point is a spermicidal douche. Any other course could be abortifacient.
If you have not ovulated or are close, then hormones may be taken (similar to morning after pill) which can delay the release of the egg to prevent pregnancy.
 
I don’t know if anyone has mentioned the book “The Atonement Child” by Francine Rivers. Excellent book on this subject. Very good at probing the emotions women go through after rape, when contemplating abortion, the aftereffects of abortion etc. I would recommend it for anyone who is likely to have this discussion with any other people who are likely to pull the abortion exception card for rape and incest.

As another post pointed out, in the very rare cases of conception after rape, the raped women who conceive and carry the child almost universally find it a healing experience to see something wonderful come out of something so tragic. Women who abort almost universally find it more difficult to recover from the abortion (and their own guilt) than the rape itself (where they were the victim, not the perpetrator).

I find it appalling that politicians and lobbyists prey on the misfortune of raped women to push their agenda for unrestricted abortions.
 
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WhiteDove:
I was reading the other thread and was interested what you would choose if you were raped. If you’re a guy, what would you want for your wife or daughter???
Click to expand...
Contraception is to prevent conception (though some forms are actually abortives yet called contraception.) Are you asking if anyone would use and abortive? After the fact, there is very little that can actually be done to prevent conception from taking place.

Karen Anne
 
It is never the fault of the unborn child, I voted other because I would back my wife wether she would want to raise the child or
give him/her up for adoption.
 
Led Zeppelin75:
I voted “other”. I’m pro-choice (although I really don’t want abortions to be done). I’m assuming it would be tough to be looking at the rapists face everyday. I think in this situation adoption is the best way to go. Abortion should only be considered if there is no way an adoption can be made.
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I can’t imagine any circumstance where an adoption is not an option. But even if it were the case that only orphanages were available for mothers who didn’t want to keep the child, how could you think deliberately killing the child could be morally licit in any way manner or form?

What if the woman had been abused or even raped by her husband. What if he beat her for years and eventually abandoned her and their children. What if she had a son that looked a lot like him and she was reminded of that animal every day? Do you really think it would be “right” for her to kill her child because “it would be tough to be looking at the rapists face everyday”?

If she did kill her children, her guilt might be mitigated because of the tragic circumstances, but doing so would still be gravely wrong objectively. The same would be true no matter their ages or size or where they live, or what their abilities were. That is all that would differentiate a newly conceived child from his or her older peers.
 
I would never use birth control for any reason. Only natural family planning and only for critical reasons. I would probably let the baby go for adoption since I’m unmarried. If I were married, I’d raise the child.
 
We don’t have a sayso as to how we come into the world. To kill the child because he or she was conceived in rape is misguided compassion, the same misguided compassion that champions the “quality of life” argument as the rationale for euthanasia. I cannot kill a person because he does not measure up to my subjective standards regarding the quality of his life Accordingly, I cannot kill a child because he was not conceived under ideal conditions. Granted rape is horrific; no one discounts that But to murder a child to rectify the rape? To use a cliche, albeit a good one, two wrongs do not make a right. And then again, who knows God’s plan? We would have to go very deep internally to “count it all joy.” But we would have to realize that all things work for the good, and by taking this to the cross, by going deep into the resevoir of God’s grace, who knows what graces would pour forth. Yes, it would be tragic if something like this were to happen to any of us women, but when something like this happens, that’s when we have to understand the situation from a supernatural perspective. We have to understand that grace abounds and that we can partake of it. A lot of it in this situation would be needed, but maybe that’s just what God would want us to do. Killing the baby is not an option. He is a baby regardless of the circumstances of his conception. What we can do is disappear into the cross to find and grow in God’s grace – for ourselves and for our baby.
 
I don’t understand how anyone could say they would take the contraception or put the child up for adoption. To me they are both morally bad.

If you use the contraception that is interfering with God’s will. I don’t think it is EVER His will for you to mess with your body like that. Emergency contraception is DANGEROUS. It is a high dose of hormones that can do things to your body and kill a developing embryo. I don’t agree with the church’s stance on this - but then I’m not Catholic.

And how could you carry a baby for 9 months and then just give him or her away? That may be a rapist’s child, but not really since they aren’t going to have anything to do with that child ever again - they aren’t really going to be a “father” just a sperm donor. That is also YOUR child, and you’re the child’s only real mother.

How can you look at the face of a helpless newborn, and resent them??
 
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Christian4life:
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If you use the contraception that is interfering with God’s will. I don’t think it is EVER His will for you to mess with your body like that. Emergency contraception is DANGEROUS. It is a high dose of hormones that can do things to your body and kill a developing embryo. I don’t agree with the church’s stance on this - but then I’m not Catholic.
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C4Life,

I think you must be misinformed. It is absolutely against the teachings of the church to EVER use contraception of any sort, beyond Natural Family Planning, which certainly would NOT be Emergency contraception or anything that would harm a child after conception. Looks like you agree with the Church on this one!
And how could you carry a baby for 9 months and then just give him or her away? That may be a rapist’s child, but not really since they aren’t going to have anything to do with that child ever again - they aren’t really going to be a “father” just a sperm donor. That is also YOUR child, and you’re the child’s only real mother.

How can you look at the face of a helpless newborn, and resent them??
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I can appreciate your feelings that a helpless newborn shouldn’t be resented. At the same time, there are circumstances that would make adoption a better option for the child. In the situation presented, if the rape victim were unable to provide the best home for the child, there are many, many families who would love to raise a child. It’s possible that in an adoption, no-one, including the child, would need to know of the rape, at least until the child was over 18 yrs old. This could help the child in developing a healthy sense of self. It would be tough to grow up with the stigma of such a start in life. But please know that I would not encourage anyone to give the child a bad time. S/He has done nothing, the father did.

CARose
 
I voted “other”. You have to be sure what would truly occur is contraception and not abortion. I found it interesting to learn that the Church has no problem with true emergency contraception. The following piece was written by Archbishop Chaput in the Denver Catholic Register, referenced here (catholicculture.org/docs/doc_view.cfm?recnum=6377):

"Genuine emergency contraception — i.e., steps to prevent ovulation following a rape — poses no problem for Catholics. The Church and her health-care institutions already allow for this as an act of defense against violent sexual assault. "
 
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WhiteDove:
I was reading the other thread and was interested what you would choose if you were raped. If you’re a guy, what would you want for your wife or daughter???
Click to expand...
I wish I could swear that I would be faithful to Church teaching – I think I would. My wife is post-menopausal anyway so it’s academic.

One question: the “morning-after” pill prevents implantation, i.e., it’s an abotofacient, but would it be considered licit to use a spermicide and hope that fertilisation hasn’t already occured in such circumstances?
 
I could never bring myself to kill an innocent child, no matter how horrible the circumstance of their origin, however I couldn’t raise the child because s/he would be too great a reminder of my pain. I would definately have to see that the child would go to a happy family that would never ever let the child know how they came to be.
 
1978 in the Minneapolis, Saint Paul area there were 2,500 reported cases of rape and not one pregnancy. This is a straw dog. The only question is, is the thing inside the woman a human or just a mass of plasma. If it is plasma there is no explanation necessary. If it is a unique human being there is no explanation sufficient.

For my family we would Love the baby.
 
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didymus:
I wish I could swear that I would be faithful to Church teaching – I think I would. My wife is post-menopausal anyway so it’s academic.

One question: the “morning-after” pill prevents implantation, i.e., it’s an abotofacient, but would it be considered licit to use a spermicide and hope that fertilisation hasn’t already occured in such circumstances?
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I’ve read elsewhere, and I think in the “ask the apologist” forum, that the use of spermicides to prevent conception is allowed.
 
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milimac:
I voted “other”. You have to be sure what would truly occur is contraception and not abortion. I found it interesting to learn that the Church has no problem with true emergency contraception. The following piece was written by Archbishop Chaput in the Denver Catholic Register, referenced here (catholicculture.org/docs/doc_view.cfm?recnum=6377):

"Genuine emergency contraception — i.e., steps to prevent ovulation following a rape — poses no problem for Catholics. The Church and her health-care institutions already allow for this as an act of defense against violent sexual assault. "
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Does this not go totally against what the Church teachs…no contraception at all?
 
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