By Stuart Hamilton
In 1968, St. Pope Paul VI issued the landmark encyclical Humanae Vitae re-affirming the Church’s teaching that contraception technology was morally illicit for Christian use. At that time, the document drew heavy controversy. In the throws of the sexual revolution, secular culture had embraced contraception (and later abortion) as a means of expressing unlimited sexual freedom, and Humanae Vitae seemed out of touch. But time has vindicated the Church’s profound teaching.
In paragraph 17, Paul VI warned that cultural acceptance of contraception would allow for increased marital infidelity (and by extension, increased divorce), promiscuity (and by extension, increased single parenthood when contraception fails), increased governmental interference in reproductive rights, and the general sexualization and degradation of women by the culture. By every available matrix these predictions can now be seen as prophetic.
In spite of this, the aftermath of the sexual revolution has unfortunately impacted the thinking and habits of average church goers. Pew research in the intervening decades since Humanae Vitae consistently demonstrate the personal opinions of many Catholics diverge from Catholic teaching on human sexuality. This confusion has also led to wide-spread misconception about Natural Family Planning (NFP).
The Church teaches that couples in great need can morally space out childbirth by taking advantage of natural periods of infertility within a woman’s cycle. Several effective methods of NFP (also also known as fertility awareness-based methods) have been developed which retain the sanctity of the marital union while allowing for a natural means to postpone pregnancy through abstinence during fertile windows. Increasingly, new cultural trends have led to a re-evaluation of NFP.
Worldwide, many countries are failing to meet replacement birth rates. Much has been discussed in media about the impact of declining marriage rates and abortion on birth demographics. However, studies are now also recognizing rising infertility rates among couples who want to have children.
Although current research is inconclusive as to the ultimate causes of the upward trends of infertility, this has led to a wider conversation about fertility awareness. In fact, many couples having difficulty conceiving have now turned towards Natural Procreative technology (NaPro) as a morally acceptable alternative to in vitro fertilization (IVF).
Meanwhile, there has been an ongoing culture-wide trend towards more holistic, natural alternatives in food and medicine in general. Since the so-called “green revolution”, people are becoming much more discerning about what chemicals they put into their bodies. This has led even non-Christians to question the potentially harmful long term effects of hormonal birth control, which studies have linked to increased risk of depression, blood clots, breast cancer, and even permanent infertility.
These trends have even prompted the US federal government to take notice. Quoting a recent article from The National Catholic Register:
New 2027 guidelines by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) will ban key federal abortion funding while favoring fertility education and natural family planning. The April 3 “2027 Notice of Funding Opportunity” for Title X, the federal family planning grant program, bans funds from being used “in programs where abortion is a method of family planning.”…What makes this year’s criteria unique is that it encourages fertility education in place of contraception…The notice highlighted “fertility-awareness-based methods” or “natural family planning”, a method encouraged by the Catholic Church…The notice also promoted “body literacy” on fertility-related conditions, such as “education on menstrual cycle physiology, hormonal health, male and female fertility awareness, and early indicators of reproductive disorders such as endometriosis, polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), thyroid dysfunction, metabolic disorders, and other conditions that often first emerge in adolescence.”
So, the culture is beginning to recognize the negative impact of contraception and more couples are turning towards natural procreative technology when they want to increase their chances of conception. These are promising developments, to be sure, but can miss the more essential aspects of the Church’s teaching.
NFP was never meant to be understood as a more natural form of contraception. Rather, it is one small piece of God’s design for human sexuality which sees the ultimate purpose of sacramental marriage as a profound expression of a couple’s love bringing forth new human life, created in His image. Sex is a divine gift, allowing human love to participate in God’s providential, creative work.
Nevertheless, these new trends are encouraging first steps towards striking back against the core moral assumptions of the sexual revolution which view sex as a purely a materialistic means of pleasure or self-expression. Perhaps more people will also begin to recognize the spiritual dimensions of the sexual act that John Paul II explored in his Theology of the Body. This signals a renewed hope that the hard work of undoing the damage inflicted upon society in the decades since Humanae Vitae is finally taking root in the culture.
Archdiocese Of Louisville Family Ministries 