2370. Periodic continence, that is, the methods of birth regulation based on self-observation and the use of infertile periods, is in conformity with the objective criteria of morality.157 These methods respect the bodies of the spouses, encourage tenderness between them, and favor the education of an authentic freedom. In contrast, “every action which, whether in anticipation of the conjugal act, or in its accomplishment, or in the development of its natural consequences, proposes, whether as an end or as a means, to render procreation impossible” is intrinsically evil:158
Thus the innate language that expresses the total reciprocal self-giving of husband and wife is overlaid, through contraception, by an objectively contradictory language, namely, that of not giving oneself totally to the other. This leads not only to a positive refusal to be open to life but also to a falsification of the inner truth of conjugal love, which is called upon to give itself in personal totality…. the difference, both anthropological and moral, between contraception and recourse to the rhythm of the cycle . . . involves in the final analysis two irreconcilable concepts of the human person and of human sexuality.159
Aprofunde seus conhecimentos
565. Who can educate us in prayer?
436. What does “Decalogue” mean?
295. Why did Christ institute the sacraments of Penance and the Anointing of the Sick?
582. Why can we dare to draw near to God in full confidence?
75. What was the first human sin?
372. What is the moral conscience?
Acesse nossos estudos biblicos:
What is the example of faith that the poor widow gives us in Luke 21:1-4?
What does Daniel’s dream about the four wild beasts in Daniel 7 mean?
What is the meaning of being “blameless” according to the 2 Peter 3:14 passage?
What is Jeremiah’s message about God’s unconditional love?
What is the responsibility of religious leaders according to Malachi 2:7?
What is the cyclicality of Israel’s history and how is it portrayed in Judges 3-16?
