Changing the Teaching Proclaimed in Humane Vitae Will Have Grave Repercussions

This may be a bit late, but I really wanted to address something that is very disturbing and should certainly cause faithful Catholics to pray even harder for the clergy. A story broke just a couple days ago, found over at the National Catholic Register, that a priest who was recently appointed to the Pontifical Academy of Life, Fr. Maurizio Chiodi, gave a lecture last month at the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome on Re-reading Humanae Vitae [HV] (1968) in light of Amoris Laetitia [AL] (2016). What's scary here is that Fr. Chiodi tries to prove that AL has opened the door for contraception to be permissible and morally licit in certain cases. In his lecture, he opines: 

"[I]n situations when natural methods are impossible or unfeasible, other forms of responsibility need to be found. There are circumstances — I refer to Amoris Laetitia, Chapter 8 — that precisely for the sake of responsibility, require contraception."

He is not referring to natural means of regulating births, but to artificial contraception as being "responsible" in a greater degree.. I find this to be really troubling, that this priest would so twist the words of Pope Francis.

Jacques Laumosnier- Wedding of Louis XIV of France

The Causes of Unconditional Love

In getting ready to write a new essay tangentially related to contraception, I recalled a dialogue I had with someone regarding an essay I had posted on social media. I thought about just posting my own words since I pretty much dominated the conversation. I regret doing this sometimes, typing so much, but there's always so much on my mind that I want to be able to express it all. I am trying to become more concise in my writing, but as I care for this person, I felt it my Christian duty to get this person introduced to some ideas that they may not have been aware of.  I apologize if anyone tires of the length of my blog posts. Please know that I don't do it because I'm full of myself or like to hear myself "talk". In putting my thoughts here, and in dialoguing with other people, I hope to find answers. I just go about it in a way many millennials would rather not.

In any case, here's the selection of the essay, entitled "The Death of Unconditional Love", I posted on social media: 

"The widespread availability of contraception ushered in an age of sexual intercourse without consequence. Unconditional love was taken out of the equation and replaced with immediate, self-serving gratification. Love became inconsequential to sexual relations. With the possibility of procreation and the need for commitment gone, sex went from being a wonderful gift from God and an active participation in his work of creation to a sterile act, devoid of meaning and transcendence. 

"Likewise, easy, no-fault divorce has played an enormous role in the death of unconditional love. Marriage went from being a permanent, lifelong relationship to a temporary one. Our very high divorce rate signals the fact that as adults, few are capable of unconditional love. By rejecting our wives or husbands, whether we intend to or not, we tear apart our families. What is left is a broken reflection of what once was.

"In essence, without using words and often without even intending to do so, we tell our children 'My personal needs are far more important than your need for a loving home, nurtured by both Mom and Dad.'"

Below is our conversation. Some things have been edited out, but the bulk of it is still here:

The Triumph of Divine Love- Peter Paul Rubens

Government Requests Comments on Contraception Services Mandated by HHS

The United States government has asked the public to weigh in on the five-year war it has waged against religious non-profit groups over the HHS mandate. As many of you may know, the regulations in the mandate decreed that all employers, including religious organizations such as the Little Sisters of the Poor, had to provide contraception coverage including abortifacients such as Plan B and RU 486. The Supreme Court has overturned the rulings made by the lower courts that were in favor of the government. The Supreme Court has now sent all cases (such as those of the Little Sisters) back to the federal appeals courts for rehearing.

The HHS is now inviting public comments on how an accommodation may be reached between the government and religious non-profit organizations. This is a little late, but please follow the link to leave your comment to the government that religious non-profit groups cannot be part of the chain of distribution of contraceptive materials that also act as abortifacients. Comments must be received by Tuesday night. Fr. Frank Pavone gives more insight here on his website. My comment, which had to be edited a bit for length before I submitted it, is below.

Holiness and Professional Sports... Not Impossible After All

My wife and I are currently promoters for the Couple to Couple League, which is a form of Natural Family Planning (NFP) using the Sympto-Thermal Method. NFP is a form of family planning that does not utilize chemicals or other artificial contraceptives, and is totally in line with Catholic Church teaching. All though it can be a bit of a struggle at times, I think my wife and I have both seen the fruits that NFP has brought to our lives as we try to grow in holiness according to God's will. Now this being the case (that is, being in line with Church teaching), not too many people follow NFP, and certainly doesn't have a high status among people in my generation... or my parents' for that matter. I will admit that with the whole "green" movement making waves here in the Western world, there are some secular people jumping on board. Still, it would appear we are a minority, This is why I was really surprised when I saw an interview with major league pitcher David Phelps of the Miami Marlins in Couple to Couple League's Family Foundations magazine.

Now I'm a baseball fan, so I'm thinking, "Really... a professional athlete giving an AWESOME witness for his faith... publicly, and on top of that, for a family planning tool that is completely counter-cultural? Why isn't this guy playing on my team?!"

The Happy Family- engraving, 1828

In the interview, Phelps states that NFP "[is] another opportunity for us to invite God into our personal lives. as a couple, our faith is one of the things that keeps us strong. The more opportunities we have to invite God into our lives- in the most intimate way possible, inviting God in on a regular basis- has definitely kept us strong." I've heard of other big-name, Catholic baseball players before like Mike Piazza and Mike Sweeny. But Phelps is different, as he's a fellow millennial (28 years old) like my wife and I; he makes such a strong profession of his Catholic faith in a way that I've never seen before. Here are a few more excerpts, emphases mine: