Contraception and Christianity Pope Paul Term Paper

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The morality of their behavior does not depend on mere sincere intention and motives only. They need to consider external criteria, which involve the person and his acts, which must include mutual self-giving. Human procreation must remain within the context of true love. This would be possible only within the confines of married chastity with sincerity of heart. Periodic continence or non-performance of the sexual act can regulate conception the natural way. It is based on self-observation and the use of infertile periods. These conform to the objective criteria of morality and allowed by the Church for married Christian couples. They respect the bodies of the spouses, encourage warmth and tenderness for each other and enhance authentic freedom. In contrast, every act in anticipation of the conjugal act or of its accomplishment, which is the development of its natural consequences, whether as an end or as a means, to making procreation impossible is regarded by the Catholic Church as intrinsically evil and a sin (the Vatican).

The Catholic Church recognizes and teaches that the inherent language of total and reciprocal self-giving between husband and wife is thwarted by contraception (the Vatican 2007).It is a deliberate act of not giving oneself totally to the other and constitutes a positive refusal to be open to the procreation of another life. It also falsifies the inner truth of conjugal love, which calls upon the spouses to give themselves in personal totality. In the meantime, the Gospel does not consider physical sterility an absolute evil. Spouses who remain infertile after exhausting legitimate medical procedures should unite themselves in Christ, their source of fertility. Until they are blessed with fertility, these couples may express their generosity by adopting abandoned children or extend help to others in need (the Vatican).

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Vatican officials revealed that Pope Benedict XVI had ordered an evaluation on its policy, which prohibited the use of condoms, particularly to halt the spread of AIDS (Bruce 2006). According to Cardinal Carlo Maria Martini, the use of prophylactics could, in some situations, constitute a lesser evil. These situations would apply to spouses, one of whom could be affected by the illness. It would then become the obligation of the infected spouse to protect the partner. Mario Conti, the Archbishop of Glasgow, conceded that Catholics opposed to the use of condoms had a strong argument under the Church teaching. The slightest deviation from the rule could result in a huge change in official thinking. Unprecedented realities in modern-day time have led many to argue for the only practicable course of action (Bruce).

AIDS campaigners put the blame on the condoms ban as contributing to the spread of the disease (Bruce 2006). Reports said that the majority of the 40 million infected people came from developing countries in Africa and urged the Church to take appropriate action. The Catholic Church has dogmatically taught that each sexual act within marriage must always be open to procreation. The Vatican, however, stands pat on its teaching on condoms. It continues to teach that the only way to avoid AIDS is through fidelity and chastity. It neither confirmed nor denied the report on the evaluation of a possible relaxation of the condoms ban. Some predicted a change in the Church's teaching while others felt it would be a disastrous gamble to make over the one of the Vatican's major doctrines. It could compound controversies among Catholics and an erosion of faith even among the clergy in the highest levels in the Vatican (Bruce)......

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