I was wondering what Biblical justifications there were to be against birth control. I constantly hear about the Pope and other Catholic leaders who speak out against all forms of birth control (even condoms). I was just wondering if those anti-birth control beliefs were based on particular Biblical passages or just some Catholic tradition. I rarely hear of any other Christian sect speak out against birth control (aside from abortion).
Honestly, I was just curious. Also, do you, as modern Catholic, abide by the strict anti-birth control rules? Being against birth control seems to me to be a bit dangerous.
Gwennie B2012-02-10T14:52:06Z
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As far as I understand it, it's mostly Catholic tradition.
Some may point to the story of Onan as justification for prohibiting non-procreative sex, but others argue that this passage is about disobeying God's command for Onan to impregnate his sister-in-law, not a condemnation of non-procreative sex in general.
EDIT: @Saddle Shoes: You're right, the Catholic church is not against natural birth control (abstinence, fertility awareness-based methods), but they are against every single form of artificial birth control, from condoms to birth control pills to sterilization procedures like tubal ligation or vasectomy.
EDIT: @Giggly Giraffe: "There is strong suggestion that the pill causes breast cancer."
According to the National Cancer Institute: "Some studies have shown an increased risk of breast cancer in women taking oral contraceptives, while other studies have shown no change in risk." (http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/factsheet/Risk/oral-contraceptives )
"Further, when women digest the pill and urinate, they pollute the water supply causing male prostate cancer & man boobs."
Nope. I suggest reading this article: http://www.arhp.org/publications-and-resources/contraception-journal/august-2011
"As a consumer (yes, I tried the pill for 1.5 years)) the pill decreased my sex drive, made me fat, moody, & gave me zits. How rude!!!"
True . . . the pill comes with side effects that vary from woman to woman. No denying that.
"Last objection, is I personally got a stroke from BC."
Yes, the pill increases the risk of stroke, although " . . since strokes are so rare in women of reproductive age, the risk translates to only one additional stroke yearly per 24,000 women for low-dose pill users and one per 12,000 women for higher dosages" (http://abcnews.go.com/Health/story?id=118178&page=1#.TzWoW8gnSKc ). Obviously, few medicines are without risk- it's up to women to decide whether or not it's worth it (I personally think the odds are very good, but someone who was one of the unlucky ones out of 24,000 might definitely feel differently).
"The Pill is technically an "abortificient""
Nope, not at all. Please see this source: http://pandagon.net/index.php/site/comments/we_can_fight_anti_choicers_and_fight_scientific_misinformation....together
Before 1933 all Christians were against the use of contraceptives (Catholics, Orthodox, and Protestants). In 1933 the Anglicans were the first to allow the use of contraceptives amongst married couples, afterward all other Protestants fell in behind them. The last to accept the use of contraceptives were the Orthodox which happened during the 1960's. The use against contraceptives dates back to the early Church Fathers, such as St. Augustine of Hippo, St. Jerome, St. John Chrysostom. Even Protestants like Martin Luther and John Calvin were against the use of contraceptives. The early Christians believed contraceptives being unnatural was an abomination to God because it was a means that people used to make themselves sterile in order not to have children which removed God from the equation in regards to procreation, it was equivalent to abortion for the early Christians. The purpose of marriage which was established by God was for love and procreation. The only ones who used oral contraceptives during early Christianity were the prostitutes.
God gave us the bible. He also gave us the ability to reason. We should use both in determining morality. From the bible we can extrapolate and deduce certain principles. Other responders have noted that 'till the early1930's all mainstream Christian religions were against artificial contraception. Most of the non Catholic denominations changed. At least the CC has been consistent. This might lead to the question, "Is there objective morality or not"?
1. Catholics believe that God is the author of marriage and it exists only in the way that He designed it. (Gen 2:18-25, Mk 10:9) This means one man and one woman, coming together for the purpose of mutual support, comfort and protection. And from this union comes the continuation of the race - meaning children.(Gen 1:28; 31)
2. If you think about it, procreation is God's way of inviting us into His Act of Creation. It's a sign that we are created in His image (Gen 1:27; 1 Jn 4:8, 16.) He bestows upon us the glorious privilege of being able to generate new human souls at will - souls whom He can spend eternity with when they enter heaven. We should not reject such a gift - it's insulting to God to say, "Oh, I *know* you designed sex to be procreative as well as pleasurable, but we're just going to take the pleasure part and hang that whole procreation bit."
3. The arrival of children is an outward sign of the couple's marital bond - they are literally made "one flesh" in their children, because each child is a combination of the father's and mother's DNA in equal shares. This is a GOOD thing, because God made it to be good. And this means that pregnancy is not a disease to be avoided or corrected.
4. Rejecting the idea of life coming from the marital union is a sin against the institution of marriage. The Church teaches that *every* act of intercourse between a couple must be open to life, meaning that it must end with the possibility that a child is conceived. However, couples are not forced to have more children than they can afford to feed, clothe, shelter, educate and lover. They are free to cooperate with God's design (meaning that women are cyclical and can't get pregnant every day of the month). By abstaining from sex during the woman's few days of ovulation, the couple can prayerfully and sacrificially plan the spacing of their children. This is working WITH God's plan and making a small sacrifice if they can't have a child (maybe delaying sex a few days or giving up one or two sexual encounters a month). Artificial birth control is different because it attempt to take pleasure while rejecting the responsibility of conception.
5. All Christian churches were initially against birth control, but they have caved, one by one.
6. Artificial birth control has brought about a lot of societal ills, as you can read here in a recent issue of business insider. http://www.businessinsider.com/time-to-admit-it-the-church-has-always-been-right-on-birth-control-2012-2#ixzz1lvcFQd8H
7. Furthermore, artificial birth control is unhealthy for women (read the side effects - increased risk of cardiovascular disease is one of them, and cardiovascular disease in women has literally skyrocketed since women started taking the pill in droves). Healthy women become *unhealthy* on the pill.
What the church is against is people abusing one another. Your spouse or significant other is not a piece of exercise equipment.
The church saw what was coming. And so it has come to pass. With the onset of birth control we have become callous about using one another without thought. As a result, disease is rampant, depression is rampant, unwanted children, abortion - which (contrary to what Planned Parenthood tells you) causes severe emotional ramifications in both men and women.
High schoolers are using one another as "friends with benefits" and "booty calls" - which also leaves these emotionally charged young people very damaged.