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SuzanneG
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| Posted: July 21 2010 at 5:19pm | IP Logged
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Help! Seven totally LOADED questions about NFP!!!!!!
I received these questions from a friend (male) who is in a bible study (some Catholics, some non-Catholics) and they were discussing NFP and artificial contraception this morning. (I have NO IDEA if the Catholics are in agreement with the Church on this.)
I want to respond because I think they are genuinely searching for answers and the truth......but I have very limited computer time the next few days. Plus, I'm sort of out of the NFP-info loop these days.
Does anyone have anything to add/answer....even if it's just a sentence or two....or quotes.......then I can piece things together.
Written-apologetics is definitely NOT my thing!!!!! I need my 4Real friends!!!!!! 
1) What is the most concise source of information explaining NFP for our reference?
2) Can romance be used for other than procreation? Where does the Church talk about this?
3) Philosophically, isn't NFP still a choice as is birth control?
4) How does the Catholic Church treat any form of protection like prophylactics in situations like in Africa where it might help curb health threats?
5) Are all outcomes of using the pill result in some form of abortion?
7) How bad is using the pill for women's health?
__________________
Suzanne in ID
Wife to Pete
Mom of 7 (Girls - 14, 12, 11, 9, 7 and Boys - 4, 1)
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JodieLyn
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| Posted: July 21 2010 at 5:52pm | IP Logged
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wow.. not exactly run of the mill questions there..
Dr. Janet Smith addresses some of those questions I think and she's usually pretty straightforward.
I can answer some from the top of my head but I don't think that's necessarily what you're looking for?
Like the pill has 3 actions.. changing cervical mucus, changing the uterine lining and preventing ovulation. When the mixture of hormones was strong enough to stop ovulation all the time it killed women so that they lowered the doses.. break through ovulation is documented.. so while two of the changes don't cause abortion.. you never know when/if a child is aborted while using the pill.
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G-18, B-17, G-15, G-14, B-13, B-11, G-9, B-7, B-5, B-4
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JodieLyn
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| Posted: July 21 2010 at 6:18pm | IP Logged
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ok.. got some links that might help.. I also have limited time so I'll just link
http://www.cin.org/nfp.html
Contraception, Why Not - Janet Smith
ah ha!!! this is an incredibly hard to find article online Selling the Pill
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Jodie, wife to Dave
G-18, B-17, G-15, G-14, B-13, B-11, G-9, B-7, B-5, B-4
All men who have turned out worth anything have had the chief hand in their own education.
-Sir Walter Scott
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ekbell
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| Posted: July 21 2010 at 6:58pm | IP Logged
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Question one
This page from the USCCB site http://www.usccb.org/prolife/issues/nfp/intronfp.shtml is a reasonable place to start finding out about the whys and hows.
Question two
I'll assume that question two is referring to non-procreative sexual activity not the whole gambit of romantic behaviours.
Otherwise the answer is pretty simple, of course you can be romantic  A nice dinner for two can be quite romantic and certainly isn't procreative.
As for sexual behaviour, it's still fairly simple. 496. What is the meaning of the conjugal act? 2362-2367 The conjugal act has a twofold meaning: unitive (the mutual self-giving of the spouses) and procreative (an openness to the transmission of life). No one may break the inseparable connection which God has established between these two meanings of the conjugal act by excluding one or the other of them. [Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church]
Or in simpler terms you should never delibrately stop sex from being procreative OR from being an expression of love for your spouse.
Question three
NFP is a choice, a choice not to have sex at certain times. That's a permissible choice, couples are not required to have sex. Choosing to have sex while attempting to prevent conception is a different choice.
The answer to question four is simple.
The Church does not promote unchastity and condoms are not needed for protection if everyone is chaste.
Further notes
Having sex with your spouse is unloving (and thus sinful) if there is a risk of transmitting a serious disease. Condoms reduce but don't remove the risk.
Question five
Answered in previous message
Question six ?
Question seven - it depends on a number of conditions so there isn't a straightforward answer. Combined with certain health conditions it's definitely risky and it can lead to fertility problems.
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Barbara C.
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| Posted: July 21 2010 at 7:36pm | IP Logged
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And I believe that the Church's positions on the Africa issue is that prophylactics would not help the situation because the root of the problem is cultural--polygamy, child-brides, etc. Plus, condoms give a false sense of security that usually leads to more risky behavior.
Gerard Nadal's blog Coming Home has scientific information about how the pill works.
Of course, Couple to Couple League addresses a lot of these issues.
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Barbara
Mom to "spirited" dd(9), "spunky" dd (6), "sincere" dd (3), "sweet" dd (2), and baby girl #5 born 8/1/12!!
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Maggie
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| Posted: July 21 2010 at 9:50pm | IP Logged
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SuzanneG wrote:
Help! Seven totally LOADED questions about NFP!!!!!!
I received these questions from a friend (male) who is in a bible study (some Catholics, some non-Catholics) and they were discussing NFP and artificial contraception this morning. (I have NO IDEA if the Catholics are in agreement with the Church on this.)
I want to respond because I think they are genuinely searching for answers and the truth......but I have very limited computer time the next few days. Plus, I'm sort of out of the NFP-info loop these days.
Does anyone have anything to add/answer....even if it's just a sentence or two....or quotes.......then I can piece things together.
Written-apologetics is definitely NOT my thing!!!!! I need my 4Real friends!!!!!!
1) What is the most concise source of information explaining NFP for our reference?
2) Can romance be used for other than procreation? Where does the Church talk about this?
3) Philosophically, isn't NFP still a choice as is birth control?
4) How does the Catholic Church treat any form of protection like prophylactics in situations like in Africa where it might help curb health threats?
5) Are all outcomes of using the pill result in some form of abortion?
7) How bad is using the pill for women's health? |
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Question 3: I guess you could say the nfp is a choice--but--one needs to look at their heart in making the choice as to whether God is calling them to postpone or achieve pregnancy. It is very possible to use nfp with a contraceptive mentality...that is why it is so necessary to have a well-formed conscience, an awesome spiritual director, and a heart that yearns to do God's will.
Does that mean we have to have babies at every opportunity? No. God did give his children free will and the gifts of the Holy Spirit to make loving decisions and to take all things into consideration, whether it is the mother's psychological health or the physical well-being of one of the living children, etc. I believe this is cited in Gaudium et Spes? Forgive me for being too tired to look...
Question 4:
You can find a great article here regarding how the REDUCTION of co*dom use in Uganda DECREASED AIDS significantly.
And a more secular site regarding that is found here
Her article is neat in that she was AGAINST the Catholic Church's position regarding co*doms before she witnessed the HUGE reduction in AIDS in Uganda.
**No other African country has experienced such a great reduction in AIDS as Uganda has.*** Hmmm...should give one pause, huh?
5). (I worked in the pro-life movement professionally before becoming a sahm mommy). :) It is hard to say whether the pill results in an abortion everytime. However, when I was examining the research 6 years ago, it was estimated that the pill causes abortions between 5%-30% of the time in any given woman. Who wants to take the chance of ever destroying a life deigned by God?
7). Abortion is the MOST PREVENTABLE cause of breast cancer. You can find research here. Anecdotally, one of my dear friends here in town is a professor/nurse practitioner for nursing students at a college here in town. She addressed the risks of the pill in her class. The week after she gave this lecture, one of her students died--and it was determined that she died from using the pill. Here are a few risks associated with the pill: stroke, heart disease, cervical cancer, endometrial cancer, breast cancer, and liver cancer...just to name a few. You can find that here
While some may debate that the chances are pretty "low"...you have to ask yourself this: "Is it loving for me, as a spouse/husband to even let me wife take the smallest chance of getting a cancer that could have been totally preventable?" "Is is loving for me as a wife to take something that I know has risks of causing cancer, albeit small? Is that best for my husband and children?"
I used to give chastity talks. Can you tell I like talking about this stuff?
Great conversation starter at my husband's business gatherings...  JUST KIDDING...though, I have been tempted... 
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Wife to dh (12 years) Mama to dd (10) ds (8), dd (1), ds (nb) and to Philip Mary (5/26/09), Lucy Joy (12/6/09), and Margaret Mary (3/6/10) who entered Heaven before we had a chance to hold them.
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Betsy
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BC is very harmfull to women's health. Below is a recent fact that I learned:
Birth control pills cause "aging" of a woman's uterus. A general rule of thumb is that for every year a woman takes the pill, her uterus ages two years. Women, especially young women under the age of 25, taking the pill have a considerably higher rate of cancer, especially cervical cancer, than women who don't take the pill. Increased rates of vascular diseases, cancers, and diabetes all suggest that our self-radiation with birth control chemicals is causing an overall life shortening.
The entire article can be found here.
Also, there is evidence that the pill is affecting the growth of boys as well. There is so much of these created hormones in the water system that it is tampering with the amount of estrogen in little boys.
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SuzanneG
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| Posted: July 22 2010 at 9:47am | IP Logged
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Wow! Thank you everybody!!!!! So helpful!!!! Hopefully I'll get some time to compile later tonight, so please add anything else if you think of it.
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Suzanne in ID
Wife to Pete
Mom of 7 (Girls - 14, 12, 11, 9, 7 and Boys - 4, 1)
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JaysFamily
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1. If they're looking for resources for actual NFP methods, you could send them links for the Billings Method, Creighton, Couple-to-Couple, Northwest Family Services.
2. Yes. God knew there would be times when we would need to be intimate without conceiving. A woman has infertile parts of her cycle, which allows married couples to be unitive even if they have prayerfully discerned that they have just reasons for avoiding having a baby at that time. Humanae Vitae is a great source for the Church's teachings concerning family planning.
3. No. NFP is a sacrifice. God designed sex to be both procreative and unitive, so when we act we must respect His design. We sacrifice by avoiding during fertile times, instead of forcing our will on how sex should work. We do not separate the two purposes of sex, but respect our spouse's body just as God designed it. When you use NFP, you are aware that sex can result in pregnancy, so you approach intimacy with an openness to life, and with an awareness that ultimately, God is in control, not you.
4. You can't solve a moral problem with immoral solutions. Barrier methods separate the two purposes of sex, just like sterilization and hormonal methods do.
5. No. Some pills do prevent ovulation without the abortifacient aspects, which is why some couples will still become pregnant if the pill fails. Even so, the contraceptive attitude that is accepted by our culture causes more abortions to happen.
7. It's very harmful. It artifically shuts down a healthy functioning system in her body. A percentage of women die from blood clots and strokes due to the pill. It has been associated with increases of some cancers. Another thing to add, is that the IUD has punctured the uterus in some women and is abortifacient. Vasectomies are associated with higher rates of prostate cancer. Tied tubes can result in ectopic pregnancies. When you look at the big picture, you can see that every method of artificial family planning can have devastating affects. You can't force your will on God's design without the risk of negative consequences.
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In Christ,
Jaysfamily
wife to Jay
mother to DS(5)
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4Real Forums : Domestic Church
Topic: Help! Need NFP answers and citations
