Should Christians Use Birth Control

albertmohler.com ^ | Jun 2012 | Albert Mohler

[CondoleezzaProtege]

The effective separation of sex from procreation may be one of the most important defining marks of our age–and one of the most ominous. This awareness is spreading among American evangelicals, and it threatens to set loose a firestorm.

Most evangelical Protestants greeted the advent of modern birth control technologies with applause and relief. Lacking any substantial theology of marriage, sex, or the family, evangelicals welcomed the development of “The Pill” much as the world celebrated the discovery of penicillin — as one more milestone in the inevitable march of human progress, and the conquest of nature.

At the same time, evangelicals overcame their traditional reticence in matters of sexuality, and produced a growth industry in books, seminars, and even sermon series celebrating sexual ecstasy as one of God’s blessings to married Christians. Once reluctant to admit the very existence of sexuality, evangelicals emerged from the 1960s ready to dish out the latest sexual advice without blushing. As one of the best-selling evangelical sex manuals proclaims, marital sex is Intended for Pleasure. Many evangelicals seem to have forgotten that it was intended for something else as well. For many evangelical Christians, birth control has been an issue of concern only for Catholics. When Pope Paul VI released his famous encyclical outlawing artificial birth control, Humanae Vitae, most evangelicals responded with disregard — perhaps thankful that evangelicals had no pope who could hand down a similar edict. Evangelical couples became devoted users of birth control technologies ranging from the Pill to barrier methods and Intrauterine Devices(IUDs). That is all changing, and a new generation of evangelical couples is asking new questions.

A growing number of evangelicals are rethinking the issue of birth control-and facing the hard questions posed by reproductive technologies...First, we must start with a rejection of the contraceptive mentality...

[Mrs. Don-o]

It fits into that standard because at no point is an act of sexual union altered, turned away from its natural potential for life (whatever that potential may be), or disabled in any way.

In other words, there's only natural marital intercourse, ~OR~ periodic, very temporary and mutually-agreed abstinence --- which can, by the way, be used either to achieve or to space pregnancies. My husband and I used it to maximize our chance to conceived... and it worked :o)

God made female fertility cyclic. So understanding, respecting and harmonizing with that cyclic pattern means cooperating with --- not overriding or destroying --- the characteristics God has provided.

I treats fertility as a precious potential, not as a disease. As a feature, not a glitch.

I personally think God is so brilliant.

[daniel1212]

Banned Parenthood

That is too fitting.

[Antoninus]

i guess it’s like the whole divorce annulment thing. Catholics don’t see the hypocrisy in that one either.

The "whole annulment thing" is a completely different subject, and I agree with you for the most part on that. Annulment has become "Catholic divorce" and that is because the Church has grown lukewarm over the past 60 years.

As for contraception versus natural family planning, the difference is crystal clear to me. But as with most things Catholic, protestants are either incapable of understanding that which they don't experience for themselves, or they are looking for lame rationalizations to continue engaging in the same vices they're comfortable with, or else they secretly understand but are being purposely obtuse for whatever reason.