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We need more than letters and phone calls. We need our bishops to be holy, orthodox and zealous and to apologize for dropping the ball on Humanae Vitae.

In the early 1990's the Philippine bishops put out a statement apologizing for not having taught against contraception. They said (bold emphasis added),

It is said that when seeking ways of regulating births, only five percent of you consult God. In the face of this unfortunate fact we, your pastors, have been remiss. How few there are among you whom we have reached. There have been some couples eager to share their expertise and values on birth regulation with others. They are saying that they did not receive adequate support from their priests. We did not give them due attention believing then that this ministry consisted merely of imparting a technique best left to married couples. Only recently have we discovered how deep your yearning is for God to be present in your married life. But we did not know then how to help you discover God's presence and activity in your mission of Christian parenting. Conflicted with doubt about alternatives to contraceptive technology, we abandoned you to your confused and lonely consciences with only an excuse, follow what your conscience tells you. How little we realized that it was our consciences that needed to be formed first. A greater concern would have led us to discover that religious hunger in you.

Wow. I am floored by the Philippine bishops’ statement. They have a firm grasp of the situation and their statement needs to be circulated far and wide.

May they be successful in renewing their own consciences and that of their flock.