Catholic contraception (found 130 titles)

Ethics of Procreation and the Defense of Human Life: Contraception, Artifical Fertilization, and Abortion

Author: Martin Rhonheimer
Publisher: Catholic University of America Press
Publication date: 2010-03-03
ISBN: 0813217229
Pages: 309
Price: $39.95

Building on the renewal of Thomistic ethics encouraged by key moral encyclicals including Humanae Vitae, Veritatis Splendor, and Evangelium Vitae, Swiss philosopher Martin Rhonheimer revisits some of the most difficult questions regarding the ethics of procreation and human life. The book offers a rigorous argument on the contested question of contraception and related matters, and similarly engages disputed questions surrounding abortion.

With Rhonheimer's characteristic circumspection and rigor, his discussion of sexual ethics provides compelling argumentation in support of Catholic teaching against contraception. He applies this analysis to the related case of using contraceptives under the threat of rape. Rhonheimer agrees with trusted Catholic moralists, who from the early 1960s to the present have concluded that such use would be licit. He shows, moreover, both the flaws in alternative analyses and how the same conclusions can be reached in a defensible manner while upholding the teachings of Humanae Vitae and Veritatis Splendor.

Rhonheimer applies his philosophical acumen to another set of difficult moral questions about contemporary threats to the sanctity of human life, including artificial reproduction and abortion. Regarding artificial reproduction, his treatment further illustrates both the fecundity of his application of Thomistic virtue and action analysis and his insistence on the moral link between sex and procreation. Finally, he not only provides a rigorous rebuttal of some of the leading arguments justifying abortion, but offers readers an example of his writings in political philosophy through a profound reflection on the defense of human life in a constitutional democracy.

The Ovulation Method: Natural Family Planning

Author: John J. Billings
Publisher: Liturgical Press
Publication date: 1984-12
ISBN: 0814610110
Pages: 40
Rating:
Price: $9.95

Customes reviews 8

Natural (2010-03-03)

I enjoyed the Ovulation Method Book. It really help me out to understand what I need to do in order to get pregnant.

Very Effective!!!! (2007-07-15)

I have been on the Billings Ovulation Method for a few years now and beleive me, if you don't cheat it is 99.99% effective. The downfall to this method is that you are not suppose to know exactly how to use it without instruction. There are ways to contact these instructers that can guide you through the process for a fee. Check with your local womens center or life center, they can help. I was able to go through my training course right here in my home for thirty dollars, and you don't have to be Catholic to use it. Good luck to you.

PS.. I did get pregnant during the time of practicing this method but it is because we chose to cheat on my most fertile day. An Anniversary and a few drinks will impair judgement like that so be careful...lol

Promotes the method but doesn't teach it (2007-07-12)

This slim book promotes the Ovulation Method, profiling its advantages and utility. But it is not an instruction book. I'm only giving it three starts because although it's well-written I'm not sure who the intended audience is, or what group might find it useful.

For someone looking to learn a mucus-only method, I would look to "The Billings Method:Controlling Fertility Without Drugs or Devices" by Evelyn Billings. For someone just interested in any kind of fertility charting, not specifically a mucus-only method, I highly recommend Taking Charge of Your Fertility by Toni Weschler as the definitive book in this category.

Well worth it! (2007-01-13)

The ovulation book was great. The book was a good price, it was packed full of information and came with a chart and pleanty of stickers to get you and your spouse started on the wonderful journey of natural family planning.

Could be Better (2005-07-07)

I was hoping that the book went into better detail. It did not help me. However, it was informative and an easy read.

Love, Reason, and God's Story: An Introduction to Catholic Sexual Ethics

Author: PhD, David Cloutier
Publisher: Anselm Academic
Publication date: 2008-02-15
ISBN: 0884899454
Pages: 292
Price: $26.25

In Love, Reason, and God's Story: An Introduction to Catholic Sexual Ethics, Dr. David Cloutier provides readers with a basic understanding of the history of Catholic teaching on sexual ethics, particularly as it has evolved in the last half century. By engaging students in serious intellectual discussion, this author allows them to integrate that discussion with the practical questions that affect their lives.

This text explores the historical, spiritual, practical, and normative elements of Catholic sexual ethics in a way no other book does. Love, Reason, and God's Story is faithful to the Catholic tradition, engaging, accessible to students, and pedagogically structured to encourage critical thinking about dating, marriage, and sexuality.

Beginning Apologetics 5: How to Answer Tough Moral Questions--Abortion, Contraception, Euthanasia, Test-Tube Babies, Cloning, & Sexual Ethics

Authors: Frank Chacon, Jim Burnham
Publisher: San Juan Catholic Seminars
Publication date: 2000-06-01
ISBN: 1930084064
Pages: 39
Rating:
Price: $5.95

Answers questions about abortion, contraception, euthanasia, cloning, and sexual ethics using clear moral principles and the authoritative teachings of the Catholic Church.

Customes reviews 2

Short and effective (2008-03-07)

I highly recommend this book and the entire series.
There are two great things about this series:
1) They are loaded with information and don't pull any punches. everything in them is in strict conformity to the Catholic teachings.
2) They give very clear explanations with out being dumbed down.

I also feel that you could give this book to the average teenager with out worrying that they will see something inappropriate.

Excellent defense of morality (2004-01-10)

As with Beginning Apologetics, this book #5 at less than 40 pages is chock full of concise information about moral reasoning. There is a mini-course on Moral Theology and very well thought out explanations for moral opposition to abortion, contraception, euthanasia, test tube babies etc. I highly recommend this and the whole set.

Catholics and Contraception: An American History (Cushwa Center Studies of Catholicism in Twentieth-Century America)

Authors: Leslie Woodcock Tentler
Publisher: Cornell University Press
Publication date: 2009-01
ISBN: 0801474949
Pages: 335
Rating:
Price: $19.95

As Americans rethought sex in the twentieth century, the Catholic Church's teachings on the divisive issue of contraception in marriage were in many ways central. In a fascinating history, Leslie Woodcock Tentler traces changing attitudes: from the late nineteenth century, when religious leaders of every variety were largely united in their opposition to contraception; to the 1920s, when distillations of Freud and the works of family planning reformers like Margaret Sanger began to reach a popular audience; to the Depression years, during which even conservative Protestant denominations quietly dropped prohibitions against marital birth control.

Catholics and Contraception carefully examines the intimate dilemmas of pastoral counseling in matters of sexual conduct. Tentler makes it clear that uneasy negotiations were always necessary between clerical and lay authority. As the Catholic Church found itself isolated in its strictures against contraception--and the object of damaging rhetoric in the public debate over legal birth control--support of the Church's teachings on contraception became a mark of Catholic identity, for better and for worse. Tentler draws on evidence from pastoral literature, sermons, lay writings, private correspondence, and interviews with fifty-six priests ordained between 1938 and 1968, concluding, "the recent history of American Catholicism . . . can only be understood by taking birth control into account."

Customes reviews 1

"Catholics and Contraception" (Some Clues as to Why Catholic Teaching Gets Misconstrued) (2005-09-13)

While browsing through a college bookstore, I recently came across Catholic University of America (CUA) Professor Leslie Woodcock Tentler's "Catholics and Contraception: An American History" (Cornell University Press, 2004) - one of fourteen books from Notre Dame's Cushwa Center for the Study of American Catholicism. In 335 pages covering 125 years, Tentler offers little evidence of appreciating modern methods of Natural Family Planning or Pope John Paul II's Theology of the Body. She envisions NFP as repackaged "rhythm" and those who embrace it as likely to be unable to explain its theological rationale, as well as likely to abandon it with experience. Be that said, she does offer some thought-provoking history.

A "cafeteria" mindset is often noted to exist among misguided Catholics. Some have gotten the notion that the Church offers teaching on the sanctity of human life and marriage for "conservatives," while she alternately offers teaching on social concerns for "liberals." Authentic, seamless connections between teachings on the sanctity of human life, marriage and family, and social issues get lost. While no history of "Catholic Social Teaching" would be complete without an extensive discussion of Msgr. John A. Ryan, Ph.D, Msgr. Ryan kept Church teachings on human life, marriage and family, and social issues very much intact.

As director of the social justice department of the National Catholic Welfare Conference (now the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops) and as a CUA professor, Ryan was the face of Catholic Social Teaching in the first part of the 20th century in the United States. Long before Humanae Vitae discussed the anti-family agendas of those promoting contraceptives, Ryan took on Planned Parenthood founder and eugenics pioneer Margaret Sanger. He recognized that promotion of contraceptives served as an accomplice to selfishness among some wealthy and powerful of this country, who would accept workers' sweat but not their families. To borrow a phrase from Father Cox of 1930s radio fame, Msgr. Ryan fought for wealth control AGAINST birth control. Ryan argued for just family wages, which would allow a worker to properly support his family. While Tentler makes Ryan's passionate fight against contraceptives crystal clear, others seem to whitewash that part of his legacy.

For various reasons, Ryan's forthrightness about contraceptives was often the exception. Tentler tells us that the earliest part of the 20th century was not characterized by regular preaching about contraception from any pulpits. Among non-Catholic clergy, adherents were even quietly gathering to contraceptive promoters. Yet, no Protestant denomination formally supported contraception until the Anglicans in 1930. Tentler sees Pope Pius XI's encyclical of that year as a counterattack to the Anglican position and a call to arms for more proactive promotion of Church teaching. While Tentler might have us believe "Casti Connubii" to be a simplistic prohibition against contraception, it is a profound and beautiful treatise on marriage. Proclaiming marriage's dignity and sanctity, Pius XI shows deep affection and paternal concern that people not be led astray. Preventing such, he calls the "sacred trust" of priests and bishops.

While the 1930s, 1940s and early 1950s saw a growing promotion and acceptance of authentic teaching on marriage and marital relations, hints of dissent became ever more present - starting in the late 1950s. Instead of embracing their "sacred trust," more and more priests and bishops seemed to be signaling - often through thundering silence - that a change in teaching was on the horizon. For a number of years, CUA even kept Father Charles Curran - who openly advocated such change - aboard its faculty. It was into a festering chasm of chaos and confusion that Pope Paul VI presented "Humane Vitae." Rather than a Holy spirit inspired and prophetic document, Tentler intimates this encyclical to be the product of minority voices who successfully coerced Paul VI. Yet, she provides an insightful quote about its reception: "'A peculiar, implicit gentleman's agreement has developed between clergy and hierarchy in which the hierarchy commits itself not to try to seriously enforce compliance with Humanae Vitae so long as the clergy is not too open and public in its opposition to the encyclical,' Andrew Greeley asserted in 1972" (p. 263). While no promoter of Humanae Vitae, Tentler acknowledges that this silent treatment has had a devastating impact: "The result was a church where sexual ethics were seldom discussed, despite rapid change in the cultural values.... Divorce rates rose, even among regular churchgoers, as did the practice of premarital cohabitation. Birth and marriage rates declined....Many Catholics...were newly tolerant of abortion" (pp. 276, 277).

The post Humane Vitae silence has continued for a generation and a half. Some Catholics nearing menopause may have never even encountered the clergy's "sacred trust." If we truly love our clergy, don't those of us who embrace the Theology of the Body and NFP bear responsibility to remind them that Pius XI's words were never abrogated? "If any confessor or pastor of souls, which may God forbid, lead the faithful entrusted to him into these errors or should at least confirm them by approval or by guilty silence, let him be mindful of the fact that he must render a strict account to God, the Supreme Judge, for the betrayal of his sacred trust"

Sacred Choices (Sacred Energies Series)

Authors: Daniel C. Maguire
Publisher: Fortress Press
Publication date: 2001-01-03
ISBN: 0800634330
Pages: 172
Rating:
Price: $16.00

Breaking the silence about choice

As the world teeters on the edge of overpopulation, this new addition to the Sacred Energies series aims to show how ten major religious traditions in fact contain strong affirmations of the right to family planning, including contraception and even, when necessary, abortion.

Maguire first shows how interrelated overpopulation is with poverty, ethnic injustice, gender injustice, and the maldistribution of economic resources. Often the world’s religions (most notoriously perhaps, Roman Catholicism) are thought to contribute only to the problem, rather than solutions, through their hostility to sex, education and equal rights for women, and birth control. In fact, argues Maguire, the ten scholars who consulted for several years about how these traditions treat issues of contraception and abortion find in them a true religious awe at the sacredness of life, a genuine openness to sexuality as a dimension of the sacred, and “alongside the ‘no choice’ position . . . a ‘pro-choice’ position that is too little known, even by adherents to the religion. That is the key message of this book.”

Customes reviews 11

An embarrassment to the Pro-choice side (2009-09-10)

Words like awful, bad, terrible, abysmal, atrocious, etc. are so often used that they have lost much of their meaning, so I had to consult a thesaurus to find a word that even conveyed the smallest fraction of my feelings as to how bad this book is. Yet the thesaurus did not have a word that seemed adequate, so I do not know how to use the English language to adequately communicate to you how bad this book really is.

After an introduction that boasts of the scholarship and credentials of the group of scholars that has been assembled to undertake the writing of this book, we go on to find approximately 0 footnotes and a dozen or so "suggested reading" lists amidst a plethora of statistics, quotes, claims, etc. In fact, the book is full of statistics that are almost impossible to verify, as no references are given. Sometimes there is a hint of where a quote can be found, but it is never referenced, so I can not find where Aquinas claimed that Catholics are justified in killing heretics, for example.

Unfortunately, the book begins with the faulty premise of utilitarianism. That is simply an underlying assumption which is never addressed. With the utilitarian framework in place, the first couple chapters attempt to argue that the world is overpopulated (yawn), and once this has been established, it naturally follows that we are justified in using contraception and abortion.

When the book is not making utilitarian arguments and throwing out unverifiable statistics, it is parroting every cliche phrase in the book. You name it, this book has it covered, including "trust women to make their own decisions", "choice is a personal, private decision which should be between the woman and her doctor", "religion teaches that sex is dirty" , "those who do not support abortion should not have abortions themselves" etc etc etc.

I do not even know where to begin critiquing the "Catholic" position on abortion in this book. The overall argument is basically as follows: there seem to be a few instances in history of Catholic theologians saying things that don't directly condemn abortion and there are also times when certain the Church didn't say anything about abortion when we think they should have: therefore, abortion is permissible. This isn't even worthy of being labeled a non sequitur. "Quotes" of these fathers are sparse, sometimes giving partial sentences or sentence fragments, other times simply asserting that a certain Church father said something. Of course, not a hint of a reference is given. The anti-science, 18th century, stone age notion of "quickening" is, of course, appealed to. No poorly argued pro-choice book of religion would be complete without it. Some of the most asinine straw men are used. What is the reason that the Catholic church is against abortion? The author speculates that it is because women are becoming too independent and gaining too much power and its a way to "hold them down." No mention of science, never interacting with any other viewpoints. No arguments of John Paul II, Christopher West, Patrick Lee, Robert George, Frank Beckwith. No documents or arguments which actually outline a coherent anti-abortion position are considered. Instead, we get the straw man that all of this is based on the Church's want to keep women in their place. Only in the world where it is legitimate to slice up your unborn child is it also acceptable to build these ridiculous straw men, never once interacting with any sort of argument that the pro-life side puts forth. This is why the "scholarship" of this book is a joke. Not only is NOTHING referenced, but there is no interaction with scholars from the "other side", or even documents that outline the other sides position, such as Evangelium Vitae. So much more can be said about the inaccuracies and half truths of this chapter, including the absurd notion on the "sense of the faithful" to justify abortion i.e. if enough of the faithful really want it to be a certain way, then it is! How pathetic. But they used the Latin phrase for "the sense of the faithful", so it must be a true Catholic teaching! Wait a minute... what if a majority of Catholics believed that there was no "sense of the faithful" in Catholic theology. Then it would follow by the sense of the faithful that there is no sense of the faithful. Is this self-refuting? Oh well, who cares as long as we get to kill the unborn!

The upshot of this book is that it is a very good indicator of how deep and far away from reason someone will go because of sin. I'd like to say that this book is dangerous, but it is so badly reasoned and argued, that I can't imagine this would pose a threat to any thinking person. Most pro-choicers are honest enough to at least realize that the Catholic Church unequivocally condemns abortion. I never accuse people of being outright liars, but the authors of this book are the closest I've seen to legitimately thinking that they are straight-up liars. Demon possession is out of the question because demon possessed people are extremely bright and put forth good sounding arguments. This book is a disgrace.

a serious work of religious scholarship (2003-04-13)

While Daniel Maguire is one of the few mirthful scholars of religious thought, his writings have serious import in a world too often darkened by religious crime. Maguire and his sources demonstrate quite vividly that while most of the world's religions have often been involved in horrific and destructive actions, that there was and is a serious and awe inspiring underpining to their formation and purpose. My personal opinion is that there was probably much more fear and trembling than awe and reverence at their core beginnings, but Maquire is more generous in his accessment. Maguire takes us through more than ten of the world's great religious traditions with the help of scholars well versed in their own religious traditions, to demonstrate conclusively that although there is much in religious tradtions to comfort Pro-Life adherents, that there is a line of equally orthodox thought in every religious tradition to support the Pro-Choice view, and that government support of one of these religious views over the other is in conflict with the American ideal of resisting governmental intervention into religious matters. Maguire has an obvious bias toward the Pro-Choice religious position, but he is generous in granting legitimacy to the Pro-Life position as well. However, he unabashedly points out the inconsistancies in the lobbying and advocacy efforts by current avowedly Pro-Life activist's positions on multiple fronts in public policy debates. This is an important book for anyone who takes religious matters seriously. And whether or not one is religious or irreligious, I think that none can deny that religion plays a very big part in both national and international policy debates, and therefor, it behooves us all to take seriously matters of religious thought. Maguire shows us in his first few pages exactly why it is so necessary that we do so. An excellent and thoughtful read and a book which belongs on any thinking person's book shelves. wfh

Lies, Distortions and Pernicious Intent (2002-06-17)

The author, Maguire, is a lapsed Catholic priest who seeks the distruction of the Gospel in Sacred Choices. His thesis is that Catholicism along with other religious traditions acually endorse the right to contraception and abortion! By twisting historical events and moral theology, he presents his heretical views to advance the culture of death. For those who need convincing just look at the word contraception and its associative meaning. Contra = against or Anti; and Ception = Life or Christ. Put it together contra-ception = Anti-Christ. (This semantic play reveals the meaning behind the practice of contraception). This book's thesis is that the Catholic Church, along with other religious traditions, support contraception, or alternativly the Anti-Christ, or that which is agaist Life.

If religion is about the celebration of Life, how could this ex-priest have the (...) to suggest that religions support anti-life devices and proceedures that end life pre-maturely? The mind boggles . . . there is something darker in this author than what can be gleened from the cover of his book!

Great Contribution (2002-05-31)

This book provides much needed information and is a great contribution in refuting the falsehoods spread by the so-called "Christian" Right. It is a good companion to a wonderful new book titled Real Prophecy Unveiled, by Joseph J. Adamson. Thank God for books like these, because they shed light in a world made dark by "religious" bigotry, hypocrisy, and aggression. They give me faith that the humble and meek shall inherit the earth after all.

Punctured Preconceptions (2002-05-16)

... Dan McGuire, drawing on a lifetime of study and research, in conjunction with scholars from other religions, finds that Christianity and other faith traditions have many strands of thought expressed over the centuries. The common thread is a passion for the givenness of our human life, and the sacred dimension of making critical decisions affecting reproduction. McGuire and the other writers survey the less well-known attitudes in the historic faiths and suggest that that univocal opposition to planned pregnancy is in sore need of review. He offers cogent, yet powerful reasons for doing more research. The book will be welcomed by all who want more open discussion, including Catholics for Free Choice who want freer dialogue in their religious communities about options for men and women regarding their fertility. ...

Catholic Replies 2: The over 800 Questions Answered about Adam and Eve, Annulments, Clergy Sex Abuse, Contraception, Cremation, Evolution, Gerneral Absolution, ... Secret of Fatima, Stem Cell Research, Viagra

Authors: James J. Drummey
Publisher: C. R. Publications
Publication date: 1995-06
ISBN: 0964908794
Price: $17.95

Bioethics, Law, and Human Life Issues: A Catholic Perspective on Marriage, Family, Contraception, Abortion, Reproductive Technology, and Death and Dying (Catholic Social Thought)

Authors: D. Brian Scarnecchia
Publisher: The Scarecrow Press, Inc.
Publication date: 2010-06-16
ISBN: 0810874229
Pages: 460
Price: $60.00

Bioethics, Law, and Human Life Issues: A Catholic Perspective on Marriage, Family, Contraception, Abortion, Reproductive Technology, and Death and Dying draws on the Magisterial teaching of the Catholic Church to outline a Catholic response to a host of controversial issues related to human life. Scarnecchia lays out a Catholic moral theology based on the writings of Pope John Paul II and Thomas Aquinas, and he then applies those Christian moral principles to today's most contentious ethical issues, including reproductive technology, embryo adoption, contraception, abortion, family and same-sex marriage, and euthanasia and assisted suicide. This review of Catholic moral principles brings together an in-depth consideration of the central human life issues of our day with abundant reference to the Church's social teaching and to contrasting positions of today's leading ethicists.

Colonialism, Catholicism and Contraception: A History of Birth Control in Puerto Rico

Authors: Annette B. Ramirez de Arellano, Conrad Seipp
Publisher: Univ of North Carolina Pr
Publication date: 1983-06
ISBN: 0807815446
Pages: 290
Price: $26.00

Natural birth control without contraceptives according to nature's law, in harmony with Christian morality

Authors: John A O'Brien
Publisher: Newman Co
Publication date: 1938
ISBN:
Pages: 160
Price:

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