Posted on 04/21/2008 11:49:39 AM PDT by Pyro7480
The day after Pope Benedict XVI departed the U.S..., Blaine Harden of the Washington Post lamented the Catholic Church’s influence in the Philippines, specifically, the government of Philippines "acceding to Catholic doctrine" by "supporting only what it calls ‘natural’ family planning," rejecting "modern contraception" as part of family planning." Throughout his article, titled "Birthrates Help Keep Filipinos in Poverty," Harden painted a bleak picture of "the fastest-growing segment of the Philippine population," which is "very poor people with large families," and sought to blame their poverty and backwardness on their following Catholic teaching, brushing aside corruption and other factors that contribute to poverty. A photo accompanying the article in the print-edition of the Post showed a poor Filipino mother in her shack with her four children, two of whom are naked.
Harden described the Church’s influence throughout the article, hinting that it had created a climate of fear in the country "An organization that is helping Espinoza [a poor Filipino woman who plans to get a contraceptive intrauterine device] agreed to introduce this reporter to her on condition that it not be named. The group’s health workers said they fear retaliation and harassment from officials in the national and city government, as well as from the Catholic Church." He immediately mentioned after this that in 2005, the "Catholic bishops in the southern Philippines announced that they would refuse Communion to government health workers who distributed birth control devices."
The article seemed to be prompted, at least partially, by the fact that the "[d]istribution of donated contraceptives... ends this year, as does a contraception-commodities program paid for by the U.S. Agency for International Development." ...This means the U.S. taxpayers, millions of whom who are opposed to contraceptives, are paying for these contraceptive programs in the Philippines...
(Excerpt) Read more at newsbusters.org ...
I’m sending instructions for the handshake to your “Miraculous Metal” chip.
You, My FRiend are now running with the Saints!
Thanks!!!!!!!
No way! Not the same at all.
Having sex with a condom give you all the pleasure of having sex.
Skipping sex does not.
That isn’t hard, now is it?
You said: That isn’t hard, now is it?
That’s what she said.
Oops... Bless me father for I have sinned, it has been ...
*snicker*!!!!
Pffffft!
Women.
Okay, you caught me.
But you have to admit that abstaining doesn’t compare to condom sex.
At least ya get someting, ya know what I’m sayin’?
Somethin’.
Like when a kid wants to play in the rain and mom makes him wear his galoshes.
So, does that mean that other forms of sexual pleasure that aren’t a part of intercourse that’s ‘open to life’, to use the popular term, are not OK then, even between married couples? Because it’s quite possible to skip intercourse and still get a significant amount of sexual pleasure... I’m not trying to pick a fight here, just genuinely curious about the logic here, or the stance of the Catholic Church as they’re the people relevant to this article, and where the moral rightness or wrongness of preventing pregnancy fits in all of this.
I would have to check the catechism but as I remember, all forms of sexual relations between husband and wife should end with intercourse.
And especially if one is using another way of reaching orgasm specifically to avoid pregnancy, yes it is wrong.
Bingo. The crony capitalism of Marcos kept all of the nation's wealth for his friends. Much of the Philippines is still like that today. Like Zimbabwe, and so many other 3rd world countries, the problem is leaders with poor character. BTW, we are moving more toward that type of situation in the US with the woeful character of our own politicians.
But it is much more in vogue to blame it on the Catholic Church.
Thanks for the call out!
So better to wait a couple days and skip the galoshes, right??
OK, that makes more sense now. I also asked a Catholic friend, and she said she’d send me a link to something called ‘Theology of the Body’ that explains it well.
There is a method to the madness!
I just think that instead of constantly looking at what’s wrong, better to look at what’s right.
I love being Catholic, and therefore I’ll follow the rules.
My hubby turned Catholic. God Love him!
Absolutely.
;OD
Since we’re on the subject sort of, say a Hail Mary for my niece Michelle who is in the Philippines in the Peace Corps - if you would all be so kind.
Actually as I understand it from several priests and others who have visited Rome, there are vast numbers of people who’s occupation is picking pockets and begging. The drugs addicts are extra.
Thank you. Someone gets it.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2005031/posts
Pinglists welcomed.
1. Mother Teresa worked with dirt poor Indians and they used NFP with great success, and they were very grateful even though they were not Catholic. No devices are needed.
2. NFP respects the reproductive system as God designed without trying to manipulate procreation artificially. NFP is COOPERATION with God’s miraculous system for creatiing new life. A condom says “God, we don’t like the fertility you gave us and so we will thwart it at will while we steal the pleasure of sex that you chose to couple with our fertility.” That is why a condom is always wrong. GOD decided that sex and procreation go hand in hand. He even designed in such a way that we can observe the way they are linked and respect that sacredness (NFP).
3. NFP is also morally wrong when there is no serious reason to avoid conceiving a child (most people in the USA would not typically have a serious reason). Dirt poor people would often have a serious reason.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.