Monday, 19 October 2009
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Contraception and the Not So Unexpected Consequences
by Sharon at SheWorships
About a year ago I wrote a post about a prophetic warning written by the Pope 40 years ago about the cultural consequences of using contraception. Since that time, my then-fiancé and I decided to begin the journey of Natural Family Planning, which I’ve written about it some here.
Ike and I have been married now for about 2 and a half months, and so far NFP has already been quite a blessing. It’s compelled us to talk about a lot of things that we might not have otherwise done, and has been an important part of our growing intimacy with one another, as well as building an important theological foundation for our future family.
So today I want to repost a blog that was written around the time that we embarked on this journey. What I didn’t write when I first posted it is that this information was given to us by a priest that Ike and I happened to sit next to on a plane. We were not yet engaged but we were planning on marriage and in the midst of wrestling through this big issue. As God would have it, we crossed paths with this godly man who happened to be involved in a tremendous amount of pro-life work such as teaching, and fundraising for young mothers. He was very wise and offered us a lot of insight we hadn’t before considered. We both felt that God spoke through him to confirm a lot of what we’d been considering. We are very grateful to him.
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Forty years ago Pope Paul VI released a statement on contraception that, looking back, was stunningly prophetic.
The essay, entitled Humanae Vitae (”Of Human Life”), was written at a time in American history when contraceptive pills were becoming very popular. Women across the country were celebrating their newfound freedom as the history of American sexuality turned a new page.
The Catholic Church, however, was singing a different tune. Unlike the many women who rejoiced over the changing cultural tides, the Pope raised a voice of concern, a concern that we can now see was completely warranted.
Although the Catholic Church’s position on contraception has been debated among Christians (Catholics put a heavy priority on the procreative purpose of sex, whereas many other Christians do not), there is one point on which the Pope was completely right.
If only we’d listened.
What follows is an excerpt from Humanae Vitae in which Pope Paul VI projects the cultural implications of contraception. His predictions could not have been more accurate, and I have posted this today because of the profound impact it has had for women since:
Another effect that gives cause for alarm is that a man who grows accustomed to the use of contraceptive methods may forget the reverence due to a woman, and, disregarding her physical and emotional equilibrium, reduce her to being a mere instrument for the satisfaction of his own desires, no longer considering her as his partner whom he should surround with care and affection.
Did you get that?
FORTY YEARS AGO, Pope Paul VI predicted the exact situation that we find ourselves in today. He warned that the practice of hormonal contraception would divorce the responsibility of sex from the act of sex. He also feared that, as a result of this divorce, men would no longer need to guard the sanctity of sex, thereby leading them to treat women and sex in a recklessly casual way.
And his fears came true.
Sex without consequences. That is what the contraceptive revolution bought our country. And what do you think happens when we cheapen the price of a costly good? We no longer value it quite so highly.
Pope Paul VI was exactly right.
So while the contraceptive pill seemed like a gateway to women’s freedom and a means for valuing the female life even more, it instead devalued women, giving men the freedom to use them for sexual gratification without weighing the implications of their actions.
Now I write all of this not as a diatribe against the practice of contraception, but to caution us about considering the ideological impacts of the decisions we make. Just because science develops a solution to making our lives easier or providing us with a convenient short-cut does not mean we should embrace it.
Whenever we seek to relieve ourselves of divinely placed forms of accountability and responsibility, we forget that God created those measures for our own protection. Sex is about more than just procreation, but the fact that sexual intercourse leads to the birth of a new human life should cause us to approach the act of sex soberly and reverently.
While the contraceptive pill can’t take all the blame for the objectification of women and the number of absent fathers in our nation, it certainly played its own part. In a consumer-driven culture that wants what it wants right now, we have taken a thousand tiny steps in the wrong direction, and those tiny steps add up to a society that has wandered horribly off the path of truth.
No, the contraceptive pill is not, in itself, an evil, but blank-check contraceptive practices do not coincide well with a Scriptural view on marriage, family and sex. It is time we start examining why. I hope you will ask yourself that question.
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About the Author
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- From: sheworships
- Name: Sharon
- About Me: Sharon Hodde Miller is a North Carolina girl, born and raised! She is originally from Charlotte, NC, and she received her undergraduate degree and Masters of Divinity from Duke University. Sharon has worked for Proverbs 31 Ministries where she was a contributing writer to the ministry’s daily devotions and radio broadcasts. She has written for Relevant Magazine’s online articles, Lifeway’s Collegiate Magazine, Ungrind Webzine, and she continues to write and minister to women all over the world about being a Christian woman in an ever-changing culture. Sharon currently lives in Durham, North Carolina with her husband, who is currently pursuing a Master of Divinity at Duke Divinity School. If you would like to contact her regarding a speaking or writing opportunity, if you have any questions, or would like to submit a blog topic, please e-mail her at sharon(at)sheworships(dot)com.
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Comments (73)
The pill caused men to devalue women sexually? The pill? You mean women haven't been seen as sexual objects until after the pill was made? Really? Because last time I checked, men have always been able to have sex with whoever they wanted without repercussions. Any women who enjoyed sex would and still is deemed a slut. Men have long since disrespected women sexually and now that women actually want to liberate themselves and get in touch with their bodies, it's seen as a detriment? What?!
That and as a Catholic, I'm not taking sexual advice from a bunch of old, celibate men who refuse to listen to women. No. Just no.
I highly doubt God cares about what we do when it comes to sex. I'm sure He values being a kind, helpful, decent human being over what does or does not go on in the bedroom and I doubt having sex somehow makes people less loving and kind. This conservative approach towards sex is ridiculous and harmful and I will never agree with it.
Exellent post! Though I would like to add that NFP still is not a guarantee ( as my wonderful little 2 yr old bundle of boy joy is proof). It seems to work best with VERY regular cycled woman. But it is a way to allow God to have a hand in your planning. :)
I am a Christian but not Catholic and (to your point) I see nothing wrong with contraceptives. I do see intercourse as God-given and the fact that it is used to bring forth new life makes me respect it and hate how modern society has cheapened sex.
However, I must point out that these consequences that you speak of existed all along.
The quote above from the Pope was true even before the invention of contraceptive drugs and not because of the invention of contraceptives. Look across cultures, through out history, and I am sure we can find many examples that many men have treated women as less than themselves and have treated them sexually as objects, and many still do. For example, societies where women could be returned by their husbands if he thought she wasn't a virgin, African societies that practice FGM (mutilation), societies that have child brides, etc. etc. Women are not equal partners in any of these cases.
@salvatruca_stalking_havok13@xanga - Yeah... I have to say I was thinking the same thing the whole time I was reading this...
I would also like to point out that the pill obviously played no part in the 'absent fathers' of our nation. Because, well, the pill is there to prevent exactly that from happening.
Something I've never understood about NFP: isn't it the same thing? You're actively taking measures to NOT conceive- it's just not as efficient as those using condoms, or that are taking hormonal contraceptives. I don't see how simply abstaining from sex for part of the month is allowing God to have a hand in planning a child. If God wants a baby to be born, it'll be conceived whether pills are taken or not.
you're kidding, right? men have been using women for sex since before civilization. and in my opinion, Christianity has had a serious role to play in that. you can't talk about the sanctity of sex in the same post as a condemnation of practices which seek to make sex safer. contraceptives do a lot more than prevent pregnancy.
women are just as responsible for the consequences of sex (physical AND emotional) as men are. i have far more respect for a woman who decides to not even leave it up to the man and take preventative measures (abstinence, contraceptives, whatever) than a woman who sleeps with a man while using no protection whatsoever because she figures he's a "good guy" and respects her. that's just risky and idiotic.
i really don't believe that as you claim, God invented STDs to make people take sex seriously.
I know people who use NFP for non-religious reasons, and I guess that's fine.
But it is just clear to me that sexual deviance and disrespect of women have been thriving long before the pill or any other modern contraceptives. Things may have gotten worse in some ways, but they were bound to with or without the pill.
I do have a problem with people using/promoting contraceptives as an excuse for promiscuous sex. Also, people all too often think of babies as nothing more than a side effect of sex, rather than the natural result of sex. I believe those mentalities are destructive and unGodly.
At the same time, I believe we have a duty to responsibly manage God's creation, and that includes ourselves. This is no longer the book of Genesis, there is no longer a shortage of humans. We have developed ways that can help us plan families, and planning families helps us raise them more efficiently, and that leads to a healthier society, which leads to more people taking proper care of God's creation and each other.
In my opinion, choosing not to use a dependable form of birth control when you are not planning to have a child depreciates the serious responsibility of parenthood. There's no good reason in this day and age to gamble with bringing a new life into this world. By doing so, I think we are being poor stewards of God's creation.
@Shy___Away@xanga -
Something I've never understood about NFP:
isn't it the same thing? You're actively taking measures to NOT
conceive- it's just not as efficient as those using condoms, or that
are taking hormonal contraceptives. I don't see how simply abstaining
from sex for part of the month is allowing God to have a hand in
planning a child. If God wants a baby to be born, it'll be conceived
whether pills are taken or not.
Right on.
@too_pretty_to_die@xanga - Correctness.
The hell...? So because women now have more sexuality, men see them as objects? Like they didn't before? My boyfriend and I are very responsible about sex and always use condoms (I am eventually getting on the pill). Also, if a woman CHOOSES to have sex (or man for that matter), who are we to say that's wrong? It's their body and life. Better contraception allows couple more intimacy without worrying about pregnancy, but it's also responsible.
Wonderful post! NFP has been a wonderful blessing for my husband and I. We are currently expecting and used NFP to help us conceive. God bless you and your husband as you continue on your new journey of marriage.
@salvatruca_stalking_havok13@xanga - "I highly doubt God cares about what we do when it comes to sex."
Really? Then why are there so many passages in the Bible that speak out against adultery?
NFP is the same as the pill is the same as a condom is the same as simply not having sex. they are all exactly equal when it comes to contraception.
also, come on... men have been objectifying women for millenia. if the pill helped in that at all, it probably made it better. with the pill, married couples can have sex simply for their own enjoyment without the worry of having a child. also, as someone noted, there is (i would guess) a sharp decrease of absent fathers.
@sweetmumbleb@xanga - I have issues with the Bible, but I personally don't believe adultery has much to do with sex as much as it deals with broken trust and betrayal. Keep in mind that adultery could be entirely emotional as well with no sex involved. (That and definitions of what constitutes adultery vary.)
It deviates from my original point because I'm sure adultery isn't a common component in most people's sex lives.
even though this is a really great post and it seems to make perfect sense...I still think that peoples attitude towards sex loosened up because religion was no longer as important or emphasized in our society as it was back then...women and teenagers started having sex regardless. contraception became NEEDED because of the amount of unprotected sex that was already occurring and the amount of abortions that were being performed as well...contraception became legal so that thE RATE OF std's and abortions would decrease.
contraception didnt cause casual sex. casual sex caused the need for contraception.
you cant really be one sided with this topic. There are good things about contraception and there are bad things....
you can either have an incredible amount of abortions which the catholic church does not condone or prevent them all together by using contraception.
excellent. this post will not be recv'd well by people who idolize microwave sexuality and lust, but it is spot on. he who has ears, let him hear.
@salvatruca_stalking_havok13@xanga - word.
I think what you are your husband are doing is a sweet thing and probably the healthiest way for you to avoid an unwanted pregnancy. I'm not sure it is the moral "high road" though, I am not sure that you meant it to sound that you think it is but it did sort of hit me that way. I'm a virgin so everything after this point is basicially what I understand from studying different contraception plans online and also from speaking to many many women from all walks of life about the subject. From what I understand NFP is a form of contraception in that it uses the natural rythm of a womans body to prevent the conception of a child that God says is a blessing. Basically as with any form of contraception we as humans are saying "I know children are a blessing God but I am going to (fill in method of birth prevention here) in order to opt out of being blessed". From what I understand with NFP women avoid having unprotected vaginal intercourse during their "fertile week" which is also the very time of month when it is normally most pleasurable for them to have vaginal intercourse because their body is completely ready for it. I know that depending on your belief system other types of sexual intercourse or even condoms may be used during this time or you may abstain entirely. I really don't see a difference in choice of birth control other than the health benefits to the woman of avoiding hormonal intervention.
Hm, nice post. I'm married, and I use the pill, and have since I was 15. I learned if any guy found out you were on the pill they thought you were a slut (I got mine because I had 10 day long periods). I think your post explained why those guys thought that
It's great that you are thinking about this issue and not just going along through life mindlessly. In our modern quest after all things jazzy and normal the blessings of God are not often on the top of the list. One of the ways God blesses the people who choose to love Him back is through the fruit of their wombs, another is the wombs of their livestock and then there is the fruit of their fields. Many are so removed from those parts of life they can't relate to the idea of being blessed! Sounds like you can and do!
Men have been objectifying women since before forever. The idea that they now do it more because of condoms is silly. If anything it shows that the man actually cares more for the woman because he is willing to keep her and himself safer.
p
http://makinghome.blogspot.com/2008/09/some-subtle-effects-of-birth-control.html -- I recommend this blog. She has a similar take on birth control. :)
My husband and I use NFP (FAM) and I love it!!!
@salvatruca_stalking_havok13@xanga - adultery includes sex outside of marriage, which i'm sure is a component of many people's sex lives.
@echois23@xanga - the difference between NFP and other forms of birth control is the couple's intentions. if NFP is used for selfish reasons, such as you stated ("we just don't want to have kids right now"), then you're absolutely right - NFP is no different from birth control pills, etc. however, the idea behind NFP is that it is only to be used to avoid a pregnancy when the couple has significant reason for doing so. for example, if the couple just had a child recently or one of the spouses is extremely ill. also, by teaching couples how to detect the woman's fertile times, NFP can be used to help a couple conceive. my husband and i have used it in that way and are currently expecting.
@sweetmumbleb@xanga - the difference between NFP and other forms of birth control is the couple's intentions.
That's not the difference between NFP and other forms of birth control. Just as NFP is not exempt from bad intentions, other forms of birth control are not exempt from good intentions.
The idea behind NFP is that it is only to be used to avoid a pregnancy when the couple has significant reason for doing so.
It all depends on who you ask. And "significant reason for doing so" is subject to endless interpretation.
@sweetmumbleb@xanga - You're of the mind that sex is wrong before marriage, right? Well, I'm of the mind that there is nothing wrong with sex before marriage and I say that as a person who's asexual and never has nor never will have sex.
We can agree to disagree, but I really do not see anything wrong with people doing as they please with their sex lives. It doesn't interfere with their ability to be a good Christian because I believe Christianity is about love, kindness, and respect.
If having sex before or after marriage determined how good a Christian someone is, wouldn't I be better than everyone because I won't have sex ever? No, because I know there are sexually active Christians (and even non-Christians) out there who make this world a better place versus my uninterested in sex self not doing much besides praying. This is why I don't weigh sexual activity as such an important factor if you're being the best Christian you can be.
There is no such thing as an absolute "sanctity of sex" as applied outside of religion. Sanctity implies deserving of spiritual or religious respect, so religious individuals whose spiritual/religious beliefs can use it between themselves because they agree on the term. But if someone is not spiritual or religious, sex may not be sacred to them and claiming that he or she is defiling the "sanctity of sex" has no real quantitative meaning. It's about value, and value is relative. The "sanctity of sex" is really a spiritual/religious opinion.