A Pet Peeve of Mine: The Vatican and Condom Use (Page 2)

Tim, I don't think you're overestimating your welcome, especially since the owner of the thread probably agrees with you.

I also have to say in all sincerity, the sentence of yours that I quoted is a really beautiful one. It brings up some very powerful images, and speaks so purely of the power of God.

And I agree that this God would not be thwarted by a couple of microns of latex.

The question, I think, is this. If the purpose of human life in this world is to know God, to love God, and to serve God, then how do we best do this in the context of marriage.

We are creatures possessing free will. We are free to align our will with God's will, and free to oppose His will. The task then becomes to try and understand what His will is. Is it possible that Natural Family Planning, sometimes called the rhythm method, is in accordance with the divine will and that contraception is not? I've come to understand and believe that it is.

So what's the argument in support of Natural Family Planning and in opposition to contraception? The best argument comes from a series of more than one hundred talks that John Paul II gave during his general audiences at the beginning of his pontificate. They are now collected together under the title The Theology of the Body. In it, he makes a very compelling case that we can come to know God through our bodies and our sexuality.

The writer Christopher West, a layman, has done a masterful job of spreading the word and teaching about The Theology of the Body.

Here's a brief quote from West's web site :

By focusing on the beauty of God’s plan for the union of the sexes, John Paul shifts the discussion from legalism [“How far can I go before I break the law?”] to liberty [“What’s the truth that sets me free to love?”]. The truth that sets us free is salvation in Jesus Christ. It doesn’t matter what mistakes we’ve made or what sins we’ve committed. The Pope’s theology of the body wags a finger at no one. It’s a message of sexual salvation offered to one and all.

It is a very interesting argument, even if you come away unconvinced.

No I don't think that.  I always appreciate your opinions and insight.  And I think criticism is always fair when there's opportunity to respond to it.

And...

oops, you're right about Tim's fear of overestimating his welcome... I read that post again...