The following article was written by Carol Hogan, director of Pastoral Projects and Communications for the California Catholic Conference, the public policy arm of the state’s bishops. It is dated June 26 and is currently posted on the website of the conference.
For a society which treasures “organic” foods, pristine air and green energy we are quite cavalier about polluting female bodies in the name of birth control and “worry-free” sex.
How many women who subject themselves to the birth control pill or menopause relief medication realize that the purpose of those prescriptions is to regulate female “nature”? And isn’t the goal of “controlling” the female reproductive cycles, in fact, to make women more like men!
Working its way through the California Legislature is a bill, AB 2348, which will expand the universe of those who can prescribe or administer hormonal contraceptives. The author, Assemblywoman Holly Mitchell, would like to add registered nurses to the list.
The California Catholic Conference will be opposing this bill — not for ideological or theological reasons, as the state of California does not have to adhere to Catholic teaching — but for public policy reasons. We would like to invite a serious conversation about the efficacy and appropriateness of this policy change.
Contraceptives are readily available, inexpensive, covered by most insurance policies and free to those who cannot pay. In other words, there is not an access problem.
Or is there?
I propose that the problem is not the lack of access to contraceptives but their ready access — and this bill will allow even more medical personnel to hand them out. Currently only physicians may prescribe the contraceptives, but their availability is heavily promoted to teens (“You can go to clinics like Planned Parenthood and obtain contraception without giving them identification and without any parent or adult accompanying you. “—from the NARAL Pro-Choice California website). So if access to contraceptives is the rational for AB 2348, the author is ignoring the facts.
That contraceptives are ubiquitous in California is no accident. More than 15 years ago, when the state contraceptive mandate was being debated in the California Legislature, written materials distributed by the sponsors of the legislation likened contraceptives to vaccines, claiming that their ready availability was as important to society as vaccines that prevented disease.
We really have no concrete information on the problems that may result from the long-term use of hormonal contraceptives. Not only are there some studies linking cancer to the ingestion of hormones meant to control ovulation or reduce the effects of menopause, but their easy access may actually encourage sexual activity — possibly producing yet more problems. There are also studies showing emotional damage to women who engage in sexual activity at an early age and/or outside of a marital commitment.
In keeping with society’s move to honor nature, rather than handing out hormonal contraceptives on every street corner, perhaps we ought to educate our young women to honor their natural bodies.
Dr. Janet Smith relates how the many terrible side effects were revealed during development of The Pill for women, and the dosage was just adjusted. But when 3 men suffered testicular shrinkage during the male pill trials, its development was immediately shelved.
We should oppose AB 2348, because contraceptives are not healthful, and do not lead to a healthy lifestyle. Contraceptives do not always prevent pregnancy and do not prevent sexually transmitted diseases, including HIV/AIDS. The graduating class of 2012, “Vista Unified School District high schools, … included 41 teen parents or pregnant students who got there wiith the help of a program that allows them to stay in school while caring for their babies,” (North County Times, 7/9/12. There were 41 teens in the graduating class, but 111 in the program, including those who have not yet graduated. It is appaling that there are so many teens who chose to be sexually active outside of marriage. There appears to be no stigma attached to having children out of wedlock. The article described how happy these teen parents are. We need to teach children early on that chastitiy is to be observed because it is the moral ideal and that it is better for their future. Most of these teens and their babies are probably on some kind of welfare.
I’m embarassed to be a Catholic. Or a “used to be” Catholic. It’s articles like this that made me and every thinking person i grew up with leave the church. Happily.
Grow a conscience. Educate yourself. There are other women besides teens who have sex and need access to contraception. And guess what? Many of them are adults, married, and I’ll bet there’s a large percentage who are practicing Catholics.
Those who state the the Religious Liberty arguement is NOT about contraceptives do not get it. This is where the frustrating of the Marital Act began with the 1930 Lampert Conference declaration, and was argued logically and presciently by Pope Paul VI in the rejected by the Catholic heirarchy in Humanae Vitae, Get a clute, folks, and if one wants to see the consequences articulated again in terms understandable in 2012, read Eberhardt’s Adam and Eve, After the Pill. One does not frustrate the plan of God in any area, much less that of primary, utmost importance without suffering severe consequences. Understand the consequences of just the word CONTRA ception or continue to undergo the escalating consequences.
Tee,
Did you mean the “Lambert “Declaration” not the “Lampert” Declaration? Did you also mean “Clue” not “Clute”?
God bless, yours in Their Hearts,
Kenneth M. Fisher
Backdoor Catholicism at its finest.
Having never experienced “worry-free” sex in my life (and still wondering if such an entity is even possible), I nevertheless applaud Carol Hogan for trying to educate young women about this important issue. Many intelligent women on this very site have discussed the health issues surrounding such contraceptive chemicals — not to mention the moral problems connected with them.
As a chemist and Catholic school science teacher, Carol Hogan’s first paragraph is very welcome. How interesting the way the pill-pushing crowd compartmentalizes its thought! Hormones to fatten cattle: bad! But hormones to facilitate irresponsible sex: liberation! Ever notice how every ad for drugs on TV is loaded with warnings and calls to “see your doctor first”, EXCEPT the ads for contraceptives? These people aren’t hiding behind science, they’re hiding FROM science.
Good point Tom about everyone being concerned about the hormones fed to the animals we eat and or their eggs or milk. Wouldn’t it be fun to stand in the meat department and watch those women who go for the organic meat and casually ask them if they use hormones themselves. The truth is most people act more like sheep than thinking human beings.
What about that horrible secret of the pill that is endangering our water supply and the fact that more and more men are coming down with breast cancer, of which the government is keeping quite about? +JMJ+
“Contraceptives are readily available, inexpensive, covered by most insurance policies and free to those who cannot pay.” A bit hypocritical, no?
“To make women more like men”! This is a very profound statement even in it’s simplicity. It describes what is and has been happening in the raising of our families since Planned Parenthood and the pseudo intellectual self appointed intelligentia has done to our Civilization since the Women’s Movement went awry and has practically been taken over by the Radical Gay Movement grabbing it’s tail. Like any other all encompassing political movement it has done untold harm in it’s radicalization. We have been sitting on our hands and complaining somewhat but have totally failed since we are morally lazy and expect the few to carry the torch and work. The choice to return to sanity is still with us but how long can this last if we’re being so passive. Make a noise or die in the silence!!! God help us!
Doctors have certainly known the dangers of prescribing birth control pills for many years. I remember back in 1967 when my mother’s piano teacher telephoned our house to let my mother know that she could not give my mom her scheduled piano lesson. This teacher was very upset and crying because her young 17 year old daughter had a massive stroke and she was in the hospital in critical condition with brain damage and paralysis. The teacher told my mother that she had placed her daughter on birth control pills so she would not get pregnant. The doctors told this young girl’s mother that the stroke was caused by the birth control pills. This young girl was also a smoker. Now the mother realized how she had been so terribly fooled into thinking that she was protecting her daughter. My mother was very surprised to learn that this mother had been complicit in placing her daughter in not only physical danger but the spiritual danger of condoning certain sin as a remedy cure for other sin. Today, it is commonplace for mothers to rush their daughters into a doctor’s office to be placed on birth control pills. They think that they are being good mothers. They do not seem to realize the extremely unwelcome danger that they are inviting into their lives. My father always used a certain expression and I did not understand what he meant until this example of the piano teacher’s daughter. “God always forgives, man sometimes forgives, but nature never forgives.” Pope Paul VI warned that widespread use of contraception would place a dangerous weapon in the hands of those public authorities who take no heed of moral exigencies.” Carol Hogan is right. Our society does treasure organic food, pristine air and green energy but we are quite cavalier about polluting female bodies.
Carol is so right when she says we all want to eat healthy and that means
usually organic food….I bring that up to people when I am at a pro-life
table here on the peninsula…..really makes the people think! However,
her point about the Conference not against contraceptives being giving
out ‘willy nilly’ because of a religious or theological reasons, that disturbs me! By all means that should BE THE REASON, because we are Catholic and it goes against the teachings of the Church!!!
In the 1960s, Pope Paul VI struggled to make a final decision to uphold the old teaching that birth control was intrinsically evil. His own handpicked group of cardinals that reviewed the Papal Population Councill’s final report recommending a change in Church teaching voted to ask the Holy Father to change the Church policy on birth control. Pope Paul waited two years after receiveing the reports and upheld the old teaching.
The notion that the instutitoinal Church was solidly on board with keeping the policy of banning birth control in place is patently false. Change was in the air and Pope Paul’s upholding of the old teaching sent shock waves through the Church worldwide. It continues to be the teaching that is violated the most becasue there are no good arguments in favor of it. Just look at the Catholic families promoting it (like Rick Santorum)….they all have 6, 8, 12 children, the woman stays at home permenently, and accidental pregnancies are the norm. Even Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, the most powerful Catholic jurist in America, called reliance on the Pope’s birth control policy “Vatican Roulette”.
Pope Paul made a bad call, and the aftereffects of that decision are felt within the Church to this day.
It is a sin. It offends God. It is gravely evil. There are many temptations but just have confidence in God, and do no use artificial methods of contraception. Do not prevent your children from being conceived.
Pope Paul didn’t call it, goodcause…God did. Apparently you’re not Catholic or you would know that this was an infallible teaching and there is no error. You err prodigiously, however, in your own point of view and it may come as a surprise to you that many women LIKE staying home with their children, their communities and countless creative activities. Many women love having children and find them utterly and joyfully fulfilling. You would be wise also to actually read studies and statistics of natural family planning (NFP) where you’ll find that with the new scientific discoveries, it’s like 99% effective with NO side effects and the divorce rate of couples who use it is about 1%. It brings couples closer together, whereas studies have proven that chemical birthcontrol causes all sorts of negative effects, divorces, etc. that you won’t find out about unless you do some research. I hope you will google NFP, and God bless you.
Children are a GIFT FROM GOD!! When our “I-centered” culture embraces that, having large families will be welcome! Some things have to happen: 1) We have to stop having immoral sex! God intended the sexual embrace for marital relationships — one man and one woman for life. 2) Women need to appreciate who they are and the power they have on our society! Men have become lost because women have run amok and children are the ones who suffer as a result and babies have become disposable. Men are just taking advantage of the situation presented to them — free sex, no commitments. Hence, women are left without a committed marital relationship. The result of all this is that no one is really happy — because they are not living as God intended! POPE PAUL VI HAD IT EXACTLY RIGHT! READ HUMANAE VITAE!! What he has prophesied has all come to pass!! We need to become obedient! May God help us!
As I said before and will say again, my life was saved over twenty years ago by a priest who talked me out of taking the birthcontrol pill. Had I taken the Pills the doctor gave me, I would have not been writing this as they would have exacerbated the cancer I unknowlingly had at that time. Others were also told that they would have had their cancers much earlier if they had been on any type of estrogen. There are other types of cancers and medical problems that are caused by the Pill also. Perhaps God saved me to save someone else, not just women but the men who push the Pill too, if they will only listen. Men, if you really love your women, marry them and use a natural family planning method if it is necessary to space children for good reasons.
People have to decide whom to worship, either God or government.
really? i never got that memo. (and all this time i thought we had to choose betrween GOD and mammon…)
Green is good; contraceptives are bad. Btw, God created “green”, but many of the green organizations put the cart before the horse.
A very anti-Catholic acquaintance of mine in the medical field (whom I see rarely, for my own sanity), AGREES fully with the Roman Catholic Church about the dangers of artificial birth control, solely out of concern for the health of women. So, in addition to our MORAL convictions, there are MEDICAL concerns that would, hopefully, keep people from pushing products that are dangerous. (Here we live in a state that forbids smoking, is trying to eliminate plastic shopping bags, has just outlawed foie gras, etc., but hands out birth control pills like candy — free-range candy, of course, and organically produced, thus acceptable in this PC age.)
Read the ‘warning labels” on ingested contraceptives. These are not for women’s health, but harm women’s health. They allow men to use women even in the one week per month when she might concieve.
max, let me clue you in so’s your level of angst don’t hit the ceiling fan. God created everything. Man is made in the image and likeness of God. Although man lives in a fallen state, he is nevertheless redeemed to some extent by God. Are you with me so far on this point? Ok, good. Now, being that we are made in His image and He is creative, then … bingo … we also are creative. That is we, as a people, are creative, with some being more and some being less motivated in this sort of thing, creativity. Now, not to set aside the fact that man’s most creative act is the bearing and raising of children, man also demonstrates creativity in other ways, one of which is in making up stuff out of the blue … but, you know what, max, guess Who lives up there in the blue. Dig? Ok, now that we’ve got that settled, check this out. Sometimes the stuff we make up out of the blue actually is true, at least to some extent, and not at all false at least to a great extent. Some people labor under the ridiculous notion that if it is not a quote from the Baltimore Catechism, then it is a lie. Good thing, then that I never read that collection of books, or else I would not know what to make of my making up stuff out of thin air.