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50 years of the Killer Pill. 25 July 1968 Humanae Vitae ONE WORD SAVES A MARRIAGE! this is a true story, from a priest. Only the names have been changed to protect the guilty... Once upon a time and …More
50 years of the Killer Pill.
25 July 1968
Humanae Vitae
ONE WORD SAVES A MARRIAGE!
this is a true story, from a priest.
Only the names have been changed to protect the guilty...
Once upon a time and far far away there lived a happily married couple I will call them Bilbo and a Prudentia.
Then one day Prudentia wrote to me with her concerns about Bilbo. First of all he had seemed to be a little excessive in his demands for intimacy, and so she was suspicious that he was interested perhaps in other women.
Every time she would approach him lingering over his computer he would flick a switch and the screen would appear harmless work matters.
One day she took some binoculars and watched from a distance what Bilbo was doing on the computer. To her distress she found that he was googling matters against the 6th and 9th commandments.
Prudentia asked me in a letter whether or not she should divorce him.
Knowing the couple as I did I wrote back to her a decisive no. This is the first word: do not over react to such a situation. Then I followed with a word of advice which is really three clear words which she thankfully she took and used to save her marriage.
1. Confront him with the situation, kindly.
2. Forgive him if he shows some remorse.
3. Assist him that he will not do it again.
Prudentia wrote back to me later on, how she applied my advice and how wonderful the marriage had developed after that incident.
This was a happy ending indeed.
It is a very common situation that a man, when is tempted, will make too light of these matters, nowadays so easy to access and so easy to become an addiction. It is also too common for the woman to over react, never to forgive, never to forget, and to presume that this sin in reality equates to adultery. Her pride can be gravely wounded. She may stay with him, but as cold as ice. This attitude can also lead the man into adultery.
See what the Good Lord has to say about it….Here is a long comment from Our Lord to one of His holy mystics:
… “Turn to your Lord God Who created marriage so that man and woman might not be alone and might love each other, forming one only indissoluble body, since they were joined together, and Who gave you the Sacrament so that His blessing might descend upon your marriage, and through My merits you may have what you need in your new life of consorts and procreators. And in order to be able to turn to Him with confident faces and souls, be honest, good, respectful, faithful, true companions of your husbands, not just guests in their houses, or worse still, strangers which chance has gathered under one roof, like two who meet by chance in a hotel of pilgrims.
“That happens too often nowadays. Does man make a mistake? He is wrong. But that does not justify the behaviour of too many wives. And you are even less justified when you do not render good for good and love for love to a kind companion. I will not even take into consideration the too common case of your carnal unfaithfulness which makes you like prostitutes (ie, Marital contraceptive practices) with the aggravating circumstance that you are hypocritically vicious, and you pollute the family altar around which are the angelical souls of your innocent children. But I refer to your moral unfaithfulness to the pact of love sworn before My altar.
“Well: I said: “He who looks at a woman with lustful desire commits adultery in his heart”.; I said: “He who dismisses his wife with a libel of divorce, exposes her to adultery”. But now that too many wives are strangers to their husbands, I say: “Those who do not love their companions with their souls, minds and bodies, incite them to adultery, and if I ask such husbands why they committed adultery, I will also ask their wives the same question, because although they do not perform it, they cause it”. It is necessary to understand the Law of God in its full extent and depth and it is necessary to live it in full truthfulness. Remain with My peace, the above does not apply to you, and keep your heart fixed in Mine."
philippians123.org/…/471-cure-of-the…
25 July 1968
Humanae Vitae
ONE WORD SAVES A MARRIAGE!
this is a true story, from a priest.
Only the names have been changed to protect the guilty...
Once upon a time and far far away there lived a happily married couple I will call them Bilbo and a Prudentia.
Then one day Prudentia wrote to me with her concerns about Bilbo. First of all he had seemed to be a little excessive in his demands for intimacy, and so she was suspicious that he was interested perhaps in other women.
Every time she would approach him lingering over his computer he would flick a switch and the screen would appear harmless work matters.
One day she took some binoculars and watched from a distance what Bilbo was doing on the computer. To her distress she found that he was googling matters against the 6th and 9th commandments.
Prudentia asked me in a letter whether or not she should divorce him.
Knowing the couple as I did I wrote back to her a decisive no. This is the first word: do not over react to such a situation. Then I followed with a word of advice which is really three clear words which she thankfully she took and used to save her marriage.
1. Confront him with the situation, kindly.
2. Forgive him if he shows some remorse.
3. Assist him that he will not do it again.
Prudentia wrote back to me later on, how she applied my advice and how wonderful the marriage had developed after that incident.
This was a happy ending indeed.
It is a very common situation that a man, when is tempted, will make too light of these matters, nowadays so easy to access and so easy to become an addiction. It is also too common for the woman to over react, never to forgive, never to forget, and to presume that this sin in reality equates to adultery. Her pride can be gravely wounded. She may stay with him, but as cold as ice. This attitude can also lead the man into adultery.
See what the Good Lord has to say about it….Here is a long comment from Our Lord to one of His holy mystics:
… “Turn to your Lord God Who created marriage so that man and woman might not be alone and might love each other, forming one only indissoluble body, since they were joined together, and Who gave you the Sacrament so that His blessing might descend upon your marriage, and through My merits you may have what you need in your new life of consorts and procreators. And in order to be able to turn to Him with confident faces and souls, be honest, good, respectful, faithful, true companions of your husbands, not just guests in their houses, or worse still, strangers which chance has gathered under one roof, like two who meet by chance in a hotel of pilgrims.
“That happens too often nowadays. Does man make a mistake? He is wrong. But that does not justify the behaviour of too many wives. And you are even less justified when you do not render good for good and love for love to a kind companion. I will not even take into consideration the too common case of your carnal unfaithfulness which makes you like prostitutes (ie, Marital contraceptive practices) with the aggravating circumstance that you are hypocritically vicious, and you pollute the family altar around which are the angelical souls of your innocent children. But I refer to your moral unfaithfulness to the pact of love sworn before My altar.
“Well: I said: “He who looks at a woman with lustful desire commits adultery in his heart”.; I said: “He who dismisses his wife with a libel of divorce, exposes her to adultery”. But now that too many wives are strangers to their husbands, I say: “Those who do not love their companions with their souls, minds and bodies, incite them to adultery, and if I ask such husbands why they committed adultery, I will also ask their wives the same question, because although they do not perform it, they cause it”. It is necessary to understand the Law of God in its full extent and depth and it is necessary to live it in full truthfulness. Remain with My peace, the above does not apply to you, and keep your heart fixed in Mine."
philippians123.org/…/471-cure-of-the…
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POPE PAUL VI AS PROPHET:
HAVE HUMANAE VITAE'S BOLD PREDICTIONS COME TRUE?
Janet Smith
University of Dallas
Humanae Vitae 25 years ago "prophesied" that marriages and society would suffer if the use of contraception became widespread. Now the vast majority of spouses, as well as those who are unmarried, use some form of contraception.
To be sure, the encyclical was not written to be a prophetic …More
POPE PAUL VI AS PROPHET:
HAVE HUMANAE VITAE'S BOLD PREDICTIONS COME TRUE?
Janet Smith
University of Dallas
Humanae Vitae 25 years ago "prophesied" that marriages and society would suffer if the use of contraception became widespread. Now the vast majority of spouses, as well as those who are unmarried, use some form of contraception.
To be sure, the encyclical was not written to be a prophetic document. Rather, it was written to be a clarifying document, intending to explain what the Church teaches about contraception. The encyclical does present this teaching clearly, but it has been little heeded during the last 25 years. Statistics show that few Catholics live by these teachings, and it seems safe to suppose that few Catholics have read Humanae Vitae.
Christians understand marriage as an elevated calling, whereby God enlists spouses in the all-important enterprise of bringing forth new human life. The Church teaches that to use contraception is to reject God and his life-giving blessings. The Church teaches not merely that contraception is wrong, but that because contraception is wrong, it will have bad consequences.
Four Prophecies
Pope Paul VI made four rather general "prophecies" about what would happen if the Church's teaching on contraception were ignored.
Infidelity and moral decline
The Pope first noted that the widespread use of contraception would "lead to conjugal infidelity and the general lowering of morality." That there has been a widespread decline in morality, especially sexual morality, in the last 25 years, is very difficult to deny. The increase in the number of divorces, abortion, our-of-wedlock pregnancies, and venereal diseases should convince any skeptic that sexual morality is not the strong suit of our age.
There is no question that contraception is behind much of this trouble. Contraception has made sexual activity a much more popular option that it was when the fear of pregnancy deterred a great number of young men and women from engaging in premarital sexual intercourse. The availability of contraception has led them to believe that they can engage in premarital sexual activity "responsibly." But teenagers are about as responsible in their use of contraception as they are in all other phases of their lives--such as making their beds, cleaning their rooms and getting their homework done on time.
Lost Respect for Women
Paul VI also argued that "the man" will lose respect for "the woman" and "no longer (care) for her physical and psychological equilibrium" and will come to "the point of considering her as a mere instrument of selfish enjoyment and no longer as his respected and beloved companion." This concern reflects what has come to be known as a "personalist" understanding of morality. The personalist understanding of wrongdoing is based upon respect for the dignity of the human person. The Pope realized that the Church's teaching on contraception is designed to protect the good of conjugal love. When spouses violate this good, they do not act in accord with their innate dignity and thus they endanger their own happiness. Treating their bodies as mechanical instruments to be manipulated for their own purposes, they risk treating each other as objects of pleasure.
Abuse of Power
Paul VI also observed that the widespread acceptance of contraception would place a "dangerous weapon... in the hands of those public authorities who take no heed of moral exigencies." The history of the family-planning programs in the Third World is a sobering testimony to this reality. In Third World countries many people undergo sterilization unaware of what they are doing. The forced abortion program in China shows the stark extreme toward which governments will take population programs. Moreover, few people are willing to recognize the growing evidence that many parts of the world face not overpopulation, but underpopulation. It will take years to reverse the "anti-child" mentality now entrenched in many societies.
Unlimited Dominion
Pope Paul's final warning was that contraception would lead man to think that he had unlimited dominion over his own body. Sterilization is now the most widely used form of contraception in the U.S.; individuals are so convinced of their rights to control their own bodies that they do not hesitate to alter even their own physical make-up.
The desire for unlimited dominion over one's own body extends beyond contraception. The production of "test-tube babies" is another indication of the refusal to accept the body's limitations; so too are euthanasia and the use of organs transplanted from those who are "nearly" dead. We seek to adjust the body to our desires and timetables, rather than adjusting ourselves to its needs.
Positive Prophecies
In Humanae Vitae Pope Paul made some positive predictions as well. He acknowledged that spouses might have difficulty in acquiring the self-discipline necessary to practice the methods of family planning that require periodic abstinence. But he taught that self-discipline was possible, especially with the help of sacramental grace. In Section 21, he remarked:
....the discipline which is proper to the purity of married couples, far from harming conjugal love, rather confers on it a higher human value. It demands continual effort yet, thanks to its beneficent influence, husband and wife fully develop their personalities, being enriched with spiritual values. Such discipline bestows upon family life fruits of serenity and peace; and facilitates the solution of other problems; it favors attention for one's partner, helps both parties to drive out selfishness, the enemy of true love, and deepens their sense of responsibility.
While this passage of Humanae Vitae is rarely studied, Pope John Paul II is one commentator who recognizes the depth of its wisdom. It plays the central role in his reflections on Humanae Vitae; he focuses on the importance of "self-mastery" for the proper use of sexuality, and explains the meaning of the human body and the human person as these bear upon sexuality.
John Paul II has spoken of the Church's teaching on contraception as a part of the "permanent patrimony" of the Faith. Twenty-five years of neglecting Humanae Vitae have produced enough unpleasant consequences to help us recognize how foolish and dangerous it is to squander that patrimony.
HAVE HUMANAE VITAE'S BOLD PREDICTIONS COME TRUE?
Janet Smith
University of Dallas
Humanae Vitae 25 years ago "prophesied" that marriages and society would suffer if the use of contraception became widespread. Now the vast majority of spouses, as well as those who are unmarried, use some form of contraception.
To be sure, the encyclical was not written to be a prophetic document. Rather, it was written to be a clarifying document, intending to explain what the Church teaches about contraception. The encyclical does present this teaching clearly, but it has been little heeded during the last 25 years. Statistics show that few Catholics live by these teachings, and it seems safe to suppose that few Catholics have read Humanae Vitae.
Christians understand marriage as an elevated calling, whereby God enlists spouses in the all-important enterprise of bringing forth new human life. The Church teaches that to use contraception is to reject God and his life-giving blessings. The Church teaches not merely that contraception is wrong, but that because contraception is wrong, it will have bad consequences.
Four Prophecies
Pope Paul VI made four rather general "prophecies" about what would happen if the Church's teaching on contraception were ignored.
Infidelity and moral decline
The Pope first noted that the widespread use of contraception would "lead to conjugal infidelity and the general lowering of morality." That there has been a widespread decline in morality, especially sexual morality, in the last 25 years, is very difficult to deny. The increase in the number of divorces, abortion, our-of-wedlock pregnancies, and venereal diseases should convince any skeptic that sexual morality is not the strong suit of our age.
There is no question that contraception is behind much of this trouble. Contraception has made sexual activity a much more popular option that it was when the fear of pregnancy deterred a great number of young men and women from engaging in premarital sexual intercourse. The availability of contraception has led them to believe that they can engage in premarital sexual activity "responsibly." But teenagers are about as responsible in their use of contraception as they are in all other phases of their lives--such as making their beds, cleaning their rooms and getting their homework done on time.
Lost Respect for Women
Paul VI also argued that "the man" will lose respect for "the woman" and "no longer (care) for her physical and psychological equilibrium" and will come to "the point of considering her as a mere instrument of selfish enjoyment and no longer as his respected and beloved companion." This concern reflects what has come to be known as a "personalist" understanding of morality. The personalist understanding of wrongdoing is based upon respect for the dignity of the human person. The Pope realized that the Church's teaching on contraception is designed to protect the good of conjugal love. When spouses violate this good, they do not act in accord with their innate dignity and thus they endanger their own happiness. Treating their bodies as mechanical instruments to be manipulated for their own purposes, they risk treating each other as objects of pleasure.
Abuse of Power
Paul VI also observed that the widespread acceptance of contraception would place a "dangerous weapon... in the hands of those public authorities who take no heed of moral exigencies." The history of the family-planning programs in the Third World is a sobering testimony to this reality. In Third World countries many people undergo sterilization unaware of what they are doing. The forced abortion program in China shows the stark extreme toward which governments will take population programs. Moreover, few people are willing to recognize the growing evidence that many parts of the world face not overpopulation, but underpopulation. It will take years to reverse the "anti-child" mentality now entrenched in many societies.
Unlimited Dominion
Pope Paul's final warning was that contraception would lead man to think that he had unlimited dominion over his own body. Sterilization is now the most widely used form of contraception in the U.S.; individuals are so convinced of their rights to control their own bodies that they do not hesitate to alter even their own physical make-up.
The desire for unlimited dominion over one's own body extends beyond contraception. The production of "test-tube babies" is another indication of the refusal to accept the body's limitations; so too are euthanasia and the use of organs transplanted from those who are "nearly" dead. We seek to adjust the body to our desires and timetables, rather than adjusting ourselves to its needs.
Positive Prophecies
In Humanae Vitae Pope Paul made some positive predictions as well. He acknowledged that spouses might have difficulty in acquiring the self-discipline necessary to practice the methods of family planning that require periodic abstinence. But he taught that self-discipline was possible, especially with the help of sacramental grace. In Section 21, he remarked:
....the discipline which is proper to the purity of married couples, far from harming conjugal love, rather confers on it a higher human value. It demands continual effort yet, thanks to its beneficent influence, husband and wife fully develop their personalities, being enriched with spiritual values. Such discipline bestows upon family life fruits of serenity and peace; and facilitates the solution of other problems; it favors attention for one's partner, helps both parties to drive out selfishness, the enemy of true love, and deepens their sense of responsibility.
While this passage of Humanae Vitae is rarely studied, Pope John Paul II is one commentator who recognizes the depth of its wisdom. It plays the central role in his reflections on Humanae Vitae; he focuses on the importance of "self-mastery" for the proper use of sexuality, and explains the meaning of the human body and the human person as these bear upon sexuality.
John Paul II has spoken of the Church's teaching on contraception as a part of the "permanent patrimony" of the Faith. Twenty-five years of neglecting Humanae Vitae have produced enough unpleasant consequences to help us recognize how foolish and dangerous it is to squander that patrimony.