Wrestling with the truth

		Straight Answers  on Marital Love  Fr. William P.  Saunders

Reprinted from the Arlington
Catholic Herald with permission.
Fourth in a series of six.

While condemning the use of contraception, the Church also recognizes that some couples face serious situations in their marriage and family which move them to postpone a pregnancy, even indefinitely.

To assist couples, the Church implores couples to turn to a method of regulating births which God Himself has designed as part of the reproductive system. This method is simply called natural family planning (NFP).

In the 1930s, Calendar Rhythm was developed. This method was effective only if the woman had regular cycles and if she was properly instructed. However, Calendar Rhythm was unreliable for many couples. Perhaps this unreliability is why many joked, "What do you call a couple who uses rhythm? Answer: Parents."

Modern methods of NFP

One of the modern methods of NFP is technically called the Sympto-Thermal Method. This method relies on three signs of fertility in the woman: basal temperature pattern, cervical mucus pattern, and physical changes in the position of the cervix. These three signs inform a couple when the wife is in ovulation and possibly could conceive a child if the couple engages in marital love.

Ironically, while many doctors prescribe contraception to prevent a pregnancy, they prescribe the techniques of NFP to help a couple who is having trouble conceiving a child identify the period of ovulation and thereby know when the possibility of conception is the greatest.

What's the difference?

Immediately, some people may honestly ask, "What is the difference between natural family planning and contraception? Both seem to do the same thing." While both means may have the same intent - postponing pregnancy - the difference lies in the means themselves.

With NFP, couples keep their covenant of life and love intact. In expressing their marital love, they are mindful that this action not only unites them as husband and wife, but also may participate in God's creative love. Rather than suppress and ignore one dimension, they respect both dimensions.

Therefore, if they decide for a serious reason to postpone a pregnancy, then both husband and wife make the decision and both share in the sacrifice of not expressing their marital love during the period of ovulation. NFP is also safe, and the burden is shared by both husband and wife.

Open to God's will

Moreover, the couple is open to the providence of God's will: if a child should come who "was not planned," so be it - that is God's will and God's gift; whereas with contraceptives, where the couple has everything nicely planned and is in control, the surprise pregnancy oftentimes spells disaster. Remember that one of the arguments for legalized abortion is to correct "unplanned pregnancies."

Pope John Paul II addressed the anthropological and moral differences between contraception and natural family planning in Familiaris Consortio: "The choice of the natural rhythms involves accepting the cycle of the person, that is the woman, and thereby accepting dialogue, reciprocal respect, shared responsibility, and self-control. To accept the cycle and to enter into dialogue means to recognize both the spiritual and corporal character of conjugal communion, and to live personal love with its requirement of fidelity.

"In this context the couple comes to experience how conjugal communion is enriched with those values of tenderness and affection which constitute the inner soul of human sexuality, in its physical dimension also.

"In this way sexuality is respected and promoted in its truly and fully human dimension, and is never 'used' as an 'object' that, by breaking the personal unity of soul and body, strikes at God's creation itself at the level of the deepest interaction of nature and person" (#32).

While this column cannot give a full explanation of NFP, any couple who is interested or has questions on the Church's teaching ought to take a course in NFP. Couples preparing for marriage are especially encouraged to do so.

Rather than just brush aside the Church's teaching, investigate the teaching and inquire about NFP. Ask the teaching couples what the difference between contraception and natural family planning actually is.

Effectiveness and benefits

Oftentimes, people think that NFP is ineffective. If used properly, NFP is almost 100 percent effective with a .004 pregnancy rate (U.S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare (1978)) versus "the pill," which is 97 percent effective, or the condom, which is 79 to 88 percent effective (Contraceptive Technology).

Nevertheless, this whole issue concerns that covenant love between husband and wife, and God. It deals with the creation of life in union with God. While some individuals like to cite statistics for effectiveness, no method is 100 percent effective; however, with NFP the couple has a trust in God's will and providence that is absent from other means.

Couples who use NFP do not speak of "unplanned pregnancies," because they know that the act of conjugal love may bring about life.

Moral considerations

Concerning the regulation of births, Vatican II stated, "It is the married couple themselves who must in the last analysis arrive at these judgments before God" (Gaudium et Spes, #50). However, any faithful Catholic must first take into account the teaching of the Magisterium. As has been emphasized, marriage is serious, marital love is serious, the creation of life is serious. The means of contraception are intrinsically evil (Catechism, #2370).

Thereby the violation of marital love through the use of contraceptive practices is objectively a serious, mortal sin. Granted, grave circumstances may exist which in turn may reduce the culpability of a couple in this matter. If a couple is struggling with this issue, I advise them to see a priest or talk with one of the couples who teach NFP. Oftentimes, the teaching couple has used contraception in the past and can best explain to another couple the differences between the methods and guide them through this issue.

No one can cavalierly dismiss the consistent teaching of the Church on this issue. We cannot simply consider good intentions or motives. Moreover, we cannot just go to the "Yellow Pages" to find the priest or theologian who will give us the answer we want to hear. We have to be honest and wrestle with the truth and by the grace of God conform to it.

As Pope John Paul II asserted, "As Teacher, [the Church] never tires of proclaiming the moral norm that must guide the responsible transmission of life. The Church is in no way the author or the arbiter of this norm. In obedience to the truth which is Christ, whose image is reflected in the nature and dignity of the human person, the Church interprets the moral norm and proposes it to all people of good will, without concealing its demands of radicalness and perfection" (Familiaris Consortio, #33).

Fr. William P. Saunders is pastor of Our Lady of Hope Parish in Potomac Falls, Va. His columns from the Arlington Catholic Herald have been compiled in two books called Straight Answers. Call 703-256-5994 for more information.

Volunteers discover
'treasure hidden in the common tasks'

		Living  and Learning  Msgr. Daniel T.  Ganshert

Summer's end is looming as extracurricular programs begin foreshadowing the start of school itself. For some students and teachers, late August suspends the seamless sojourn of sunny days. Classes are once again in session; that is, if people show up.

In our parishes, this is essential. Not only must the students and teachers show up, but school and religious education cannot function well without the help of generous numbers of parish volunteers. Parishes are all about their many and wonderful volunteers who do so much and never cease to be in demand. Time, energy, and commitment are part of it, but I submit that meeting needs is what moves us to give freely from our limited resources. How to increase parish volunteerism is a perennial question.

Long ago in Europe there was one surefire way to get volunteers. Coins were mixed in with the earth piled high for artists who painted church ceilings; a primitive scaffolding of sorts. When the painting was done, there was never a shortage of people who would voluntarily carry away the earth in hopes of discovering a coin or two for their effort. Mutual needs were satisfied in the process.

It is, I believe, a rare parish volunteer who has not discovered a treasure hidden in the common tasks of teaching, cleaning, cooking, serving, counting, greeting, singing, reading, and more that meets a need as we carry on the mission of the Church together.

What is this need? It is our need for Jesus Christ whom we encounter in our parishes; he alone can satisfy because he is the treasure hidden in each and every one of us. So, our lives are all about him who came to serve, to bring us joy. Stepping forward as volunteers in our parishes allows this encounter to happen and mutual needs are satisfied in the process. Thank you to our countless parish volunteers. Please consider, if you have not already, volunteering this year at your parish.

Msgr. Daniel Ganshert is the vicar general for the Diocese of Madison.

Catholics have responsibility
to be stem cell savvy

This fall, September 22 to 23, the World's Stem Cell Summit will be held right here in Madison. While it is exciting to have our city a part of history, we as local Catholics have a great responsibility.

We must educate ourselves as Catholics on what Church teaching says about this issue. We have a great opportunity to inform our co-workers, friends, and families about the truth about stem cells.

Myths of stem cell research

Four great myths of stem cell research include:

1. Stem cells can only come from embryos. In fact stem cells can be taken from umbilical cords, the placenta, amniotic fluid, adult tissues and organs such as bone marrow, fat from liposuction, regions of the nose, and even from cadavers up to 20 hours after death.

2. The Catholic Church is against stem cell research. There are four categories of stem cells: embryonic stem cells, embryonic germ cells, umbilical cord stem cells, and adult stem cells. Given that germ cells can come from miscarriages that involve no deliberate interruption of pregnancy, the Church really opposes the use of only one of these four categories, i.e., embryonic stem cells. In other words, the Catholic Church approves three of the four possible types of stem cell research.

3. Embryonic stem cell research has the greatest promise. Up to now, NO human being has ever been cured of a disease using embryonic stem cells. Adult stem cells, on the other hand, have already cured thousands. There is the example of the use of bone marrow cells from the hipbone to repair scar tissue on the heart after heart attacks. Research using adult cells is 20 to 30 years ahead of embryonic stem cells and holds greater promise. This is in part because stem cells are part of the natural repair mechanisms of an adult body, while embryonic stem cells do not belong in an adult body (where they are likely to form tumors and to be rejected as foreign tissue by the recipient). Rather, embryonic stem cells really belong only within the specialized microenvironment of a rapidly growing embryo, which is a radically different setting from an adult body.

4. Because frozen embryos may one day end up being discarded by somebody, that makes it morally allowable, even laudable, to violate and destroy those embryos. The moral analysis of what we may permissibly do with an embryo doesn't depend on its otherwise "going to waste," nor on the incidental fact that those embryos are "trapped" in liquid nitrogen. Consider a radical case in which a group of children are permanently trapped in a schoolhouse through no fault of their own; that would not make it okay to send a remote control robotic device to harvest organs from those children and cause their demise.

Priest expert in bioethics

These myths were taken from a talk given by Fr. Tadeusz Pacholczyk, Ph.D. that I was privileged to attend in celebration of Humane Vitae. "Father Tad" is a nationally known speaker on this issue and sits with our very own Bishop Robert C. Morlino on the National Catholic Bioethics Board.

Father Tad holds his Ph.D. in neuroscience from Yale University and did post-doctoral research at Massachusetts General Hospital/Harvard Medical School, prior to doing advanced studies in Rome in theology and in bioethics. He currently serves as the director of education for the National Catholic Bioethics Center in Philadelphia. He is a priest of the Diocese of Fall River, Mass.

You can see he is clearly knowledgeable about this issue. It was inspiring and informative to hear his perspective on this important issue of our times.

Alissa Hirscher is a member of St. Maria Goretti Parish, Madison.

Labor Day reflections
on the spirituality of work

	Seeing with Jesus' eyes  Fr. Donald Lange

Labor Day offers us graced opportunities to reflect briefly upon the spiritual value of work. This is important because most of us who are active adults spend the majority of our waking hours during the week working, commuting to work, preparing for work, or resting from work.

St. Benedict said, "To work is to pray." And Brother Lawrence made his work in the kitchen a prayer that brought him closer to God.

Since the early Church, many lay people have also offered their work to God as prayer. We Catholics believe that we can offer our work as prayer to God at Mass, in our morning offering, while we work, and in other ways.

Participating in God's creation

In the American Catholic Catechism for Adults, it is stated that work is more than just making a living. It is also a form of continuing participation in God's creation.

In an article entitled "Towards a Catholic Work Ethic," Ed Marciniak also writes, "Honest work and excellent craftsmanship extend God's creative work in the world. Every activity of harvesting, repairing, healing, discovery, building, and caring is a remembrance of the Incarnation. The activities of truck drivers, politicians, electricians, nurses, soldiers, custodians, teachers, and others are holy works, each sharing in the divine work of creation and redemption."

According to "Stewardship: A Disciple's Response," a woman who works at a supermarket check out counter stated, "I feel that my job consists of a lot more than just ringing up orders, taking people's money, and bagging their groceries. By doing my job well, I know that I have the chance to do God's work too. Because of this, I try to make each of my customers feel special. While I am serving them, they become the most important people in my life."

According to the United States Catholic Catechism for Adults, "If the dignity of work is to be protected, then the basic rights of workers must be protected - the right to productive work, to decent and fair wages, to organize and join unions, to private property, and to economic initiative."

Stewardship of time

Finally, a spirituality of work should reflect a stewardship of time. It should help workers to balance work with family, church, and community obligations.

Married persons especially should guard against the trap of gradually becoming married to their work rather than to their spouse. If this happens to spouses, often when they are needed, husband and wife are not there for their loved ones.

On the other hand, some married persons somehow seem to be able to adapt fairly well to jobs that call for much travel. But this is not easy. Married couples should beware of gaining the whole world and suffering the loss of what is most precious - their spouse and children.

These are a few of a number of ways that Labor Day can invite us to praise, thank, and come closer to God through our work. May you enjoy Labor Day. And may God bless your work and help you to make it a prayer as did Joseph and Jesus.

Fr. Don Lange is pastor emeritus in the Diocese of Madison.