Humanae Vitae - 30 years

By Most Rev. Roman Danylak, D.D.
Originally published in CATHOLIC INSIGHT 1998

        Almost thirty years ago, on the Feast of St. James, July 25, 1968, Pope Paul VI signed the encyclical Humanae vitae (Of Human Life). He reaffirmed with Christ's authority what the Church has always taught: that the unitive and procreative ends of marriage may never be lucidly separated. He reaffirmed the intrinsic evil of abortion, of direct sterilization, and contraception. In brief, a "No" to life through any of these means is, above all else, a "No" to God.

Paul VI

    Before Humanae vitae, because of the advent of the Pill and related problems, a Commission on Population and Family Life had been set up by Pope John XXIII in 1963 and later enlarged by Pope Paul VI. A report of majority members of the commission was leaked to the media. It claimed that the constant teaching of the Church against contraception could be changed. This was a rejection of Catholic doctrine, under the influence of rebellious and hedonistic currents. In the intent of reaching out to families faced by apparent and possible moral situations, the report proposed secular pragmatic arguments for the formation of conscience, which undermined the traditional principles, based on the natural law, that is, of the nature of man and the nature of the conjugal act.

    It was the intention of Pope Paul VI to definitively settle the issue and silence dissent (cf. Hv, n.6). In the face of strident opposition he remained firm. Shortly before his death, on the Feast of Sts. Peter and Paul, 1978, the Holy Father repeated in a homily his confirmation of Humanae vitae. He said, "I did not betray the truth."

Purpose of encyclical

    The encyclical Humanae vitae addressed several issues, involving responsible Christian parenthood, the call of God to respond to His divine plan in building up the city of God's children on earth, and the working out of our eternal destiny for heaven. The author of nature established the parameters of His plan, making us male and female, in the image of God.

    Although He leaves us free to respond to His call, we are not free to establish the goal and purpose of our lives. God established the divine rules, the divine blueprints. His commandments, to govern our lives. He built them into our very nature, and gave us the voice of conscience to preserve us in His truth. He called us to life and gave us the tree of life; He forbade us to eat of the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. The Creator is the sole arbiter of that which is good or evil. He gave us life. We have opted for death; and our contemporary materialist and secular society has opted for the culture of death.

    Pope Paul VI expressed his fears about the inevitable consequences of a contraceptive or anti-life mentality: abortion, euthanasia, marital breakdown, the flouting of the 6th and 9th commandments, the breakdown of morality and of the fabric of society. His prophetic insights have become the reality of our libertarian society.

John Paul II

    Twenty some years later, Pope John Paul II revisited these issues. Our society has become a veritable wasteland. The Pope's encyclical Veritatis spendor (1993) reaffirms the objective nature of God's love, and of conscience. Truth is not opinion, subjectivity; it is the very nature of things.

    But the Truth has been betrayed by dissent, compromise, and silence during these past 30 years. The culture of death surrounds us and has penetrated the Church. Never was there a time in Canada when a reaffirmation of the culture of life was more needed. I take this opportunity to reaffirm without qualification the encyclical Humanae vitae and to comment briefly on certain points.

    Paul VI and John Paul II have singled out the two main issues involved: the morality or immorality of the contraceptive mentality and contraception, and the role of human conscience. The traditional doctrine on the nature of morality sustains that human free acts are submitted to a divine law, expressed in the natural law and the divine positive law. More importantly, our understanding and evaluations have to be done in the light of the faith of Christian revelation and the magisterium of the Church.

    The earlier moral systems always affirmed that intrinsically immoral or evil acts were always to be avoided. Some current moral or ethical theories claim that the individual can make his or her own moral decision of conscience, in situations of dilemma, even though the choice be that of an intrinsically evil act. Man thus becomes the arbiter of his good and evil and the exclusive master of his destiny. Morality becomes pure subjectivity.

Natural family planning

    Humanae vitae tells us that when there are serious motives to space out births, it is then licit to take into account the natural rhythms immanent in the generative process (n.l6). An excellent pastoral letter, called 'Responsible Parenthood,' was published by the Catholic Bishops of Manitoba on April 3, 1989. It reaffirms Humanae vitae without compromise and teaches in detail the invaluable advantages of natural family planning over contraception. It also shows how natural family planning can be helpful in assisting some couples to conceive when they appear to be infertile. Every parish should be able to give proper referral for natural family planning. Those who engage in this apostolate should always be dedicated to upholding the whole doctrine of Humanae vitae.

Catholic hospitals

    Catholic hospitals ought to be sanctuaries protecting life from conception to death. They should be exemplary training centres for doctors, nurses, and medical personnel. Not only should abortions be banned, but also all abortifacient devices and contraceptive pills. Direct sterilization through tubal ligation or vasectomy should not be countenanced. Nor should any program or office permit the dispensing of condoms. It has been reported that in Catholic hospitals nurses have been pressured into assisting at immoral procedures. Surely, this should be anathema. The fidelity to life required in our hospitals is well described in Humanae vitae under the title "To Doctors and Medical Personnel" (n. 27).

Reception of the sacraments

    Contraception throws up a barrier against God's creative Will. All the magisterial documents on human life coverage in teaching that this a grave objective evil (cf. "Is contraception gravely sinful matter?", L'Osservatore Romano, Dec. 4, 1996, pp. 10-11). Spouses who are using contraception should not receive Holy Communion until they have been absolved in the Sacrament of Reconciliation.

    Confessors faced with the sin of contraception ought to show mercy and love for souls in every word they speak. But those who have no purpose of amendment must not be absolved, injustice and charity. The confessor will find sure guidelines in the Vade mecum for Confessors Concerning Some Aspects of the Morality of Conjugal Life (Pontifical Council for the Family, Feb. 12, 1997).

Priests

    In speaking of priests and human life, one could hardly better the words of Pope Paul VI in the encyclical. He calls on priests to expound the Church's teaching on marriage without ambiguity (n. 28). He asks them to be the first to give the example of loyal internal and external obedience to the teaching authority of the Church (ibid). He quotes St. Paul: "I appeal to you brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree and that there be no dissension among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same judgement" (ibid).

Canadian bishops and conscience

    Of paramount importance in teaching and living Humanae vitae is the role of conscience. That brings us to the so-called Winnipeg Statement of the Canadian Bishops, published on Sept. 27, 1968, at Winnipeg. It was the response of the Canadian hierarchy to Humanae vitae. Unfortunately, it communicated a false notion of the role of conscience. It said that there were circumstances in which Catholics could be safely assured, in the matter of contraception, that whoever chooses that cause which seems right to him does so in good conscience (n. 26).

    Paragraph 26 conveys the notion that conscience can be a source of truth, an error with profound negative consequences. Father John Courtney Murray, S.J., a major influence in writing the Declaration on Religious Freedom of Vatican II has refuted this error. He calls it a perilous theory to hold that, in the end, it is my conscience, and not objective truth which determines what is right and wrong, true and false (footnote to the Abbott Callagher edition of Vatican II texts).

    Vatican II tells us that spouses have the obligation to inform their consciences and then conform them to the Church's teaching authority, (cf. The Church in the Modem World, n. 51; cf. Also Humanae vitae, n. 10). In no way does the Church undermine freedom of conscience when she proclaims the truth and its obligations. It is the truth that makes us free.

    How many Catholics in Canada and elsewhere have been led into the Valley of Death by loose language on freedom of conscience? The Canadian Bishops issued a good statement on conscience on Dec. 1, 1973, but did not mention Winnipeg or contraception and it has largely been ignored. School texts, marriage preparation courses, and books on family life continue to cite the Winnipeg Statement in teaching a corrupting notion of conscience. So we read in Mosaic, a widely used marriage preparation course published by Novalis: "For couples experiencing difficulty, the bishops of Canada have said that those who have chosen the way which seems the best for them live in the love of God" (Booklet, Creating a Family, pp. 8-9).

    It is not surprising that Canadian Catholics abort their children, are sterilized, and use contraception, at the same rate as those who know not God.

Call to retract

    Before God I believe it is my duty to call for the retraction of the Winnipeg Statement. I know that in my opposition to it I do not stand alone whether among bishops, priests, or people.

    It seems to me that the honorable course would be for the CCCB, responsible for the statement, to withdraw it and replace it with a resounding endorsement of Humanae vitae and the Church's subsequent documents on marriage, family life, and family life education. An alternative would be for the CCCB to submit the Canadian Statement to the Holy See for an assessment of its doctrinal teaching and pastoral directives. I pray that either course may be swiftly followed.

    All Canadian bishops would surely join me in the hope that when we appear before Christ in judgment we may be able to say with Pope Paul VI: "/ did not betray the Truth."

Choose Life

    Moses said to his people: "I have set before you this day life and death, the blessing and the curse. Choose life, then, that you and your descendants may live, by loving the Lord, your God, heeding His voice, and holding fast to Him. For that will mean life for you" (Dt. 30:15-16). Today also Christ through the Church in Humanae vitae sets before us the paths to life and the paths to death. May we all choose life, to honour God for all those called into being by God's providential Will, for the Church, for family life, for our children, for society, and for ourselves.

    To paraphrase an ancient prayer, may purity of conscience remove the veil from the face of our souls so that we may see clearly God's glorious plan for Life and Love. May God bless and protect and give heart to all those who choose life and give witness to others of their adherence to Humanae vitae.

    The following endorsements have been received from among thirteen bishops who were sent an early draft with the invitation to respond before July 3, our layout deadline. At that time the author was simply designated as "a Canadian bishop."

From Bishop Colin Campbell, Diocese of Antigonish

    Thank you for your letter of June 14,1998, and the copy of "Choose Life," a paper of a Canadian bishop on the 30th anniversary of Humanae vitae.

    I have taken the time to read this very carefully. Here are my three positions on it:

1. I do not support the text of the paper as presented. It would not have to have major revisions for me to support it, however.
2. I support the idea of the Canadian Bishops making a Statement on the 30th anniversary of Humanae vitae.
3. I support the idea that this be one of the agenda topics for the plenary meeting of the Bishops to be held in Niagara Falls in October.

    Thank you for this idea and project. Thank you for all that you and your team are doing to keep Catholics aware of our identity, and how we have been seriously abused in Canada today. The erosion of the faith among us must be one of the most serious challenges facing us bishops as we enter the Great Jubilee and the New Millennium. Please be assured of my prayers for your ministry.

The following fax arrived from Bishop Basil Filevish, Eparch Emeritus of Saskatoon:
    I have carefully and prayerfully read the document "Reflections on the 30th Anniversary of Humanae vitae" initiated by a Catholic bishop and am glad to fully endorse it along with anyone else.
    Please include my name along with other bishops who are endorsing the document.
    I pray God to bless you for your faithful support of the magisterium, and extend to you my Episcopal Blessing.

On July 3, 1998, the Society for Catholic Life and Culture (see introduction) sent all Canadian bishops, in either English and French, a copy of Bishop Danylak's statement, and Msgr. Vincent Foy's letter, and a proposed affirmation Humanae vitae for consideration at the plenary session of the bishops in October in Niagara Falls. The latter was included in the view that it is easier to start with something than nothing. Following is the text of this affirmation:

    The year of 1998 marks the 30th anniversary of the encyclical of Pope Paul VI called Humanae vitae. Of Human Life, signed on July 25, 1968. It was addressed "To all men of good will." It was not revolutionary but part of a continuum.

    In the words of Pope John Paul II, "Humanae vitae reaffirms and reproposes with clarity the Church's teaching and norms, always old yet always new, regarding marriage and regarding the transmission of human life." {Familiaris consortio, n. 20).

    We members of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops now unanimously reaffirm with Pope Paul VI, with Pope John Paul II and in harmony with immemorial tradition, the truth of Humanae vitae. We teach and proclaim the intrinsic evil of abortion, direct sterilization, and contraception. These evils are so clearly a denial of God's law of love that no circumstances can render them licit.

    The unitive and procreative ends of marriage can never be lucidly separated. As our present Holy Father has said, "The doctrine expounded in the encyclical Humanae vitae constitutes the necessary defence of the dignity and truth of conjugal love" (March 14, 1988),

    The experience of the past 30 years has shown the disastrous consequence of violating the laws of life and love as set forth for us in Humanae vitae: broken homes and hearts, and shattered lives. All of this was foretold in the encyclical under the heading: "Grave consequences of methods of artificial birth control" (n. 17). Canada, as much perhaps as any other country, has suffered her share of the bitter fruits of the contraceptive mentality, including the grave lowering of public morals.

A re-presentation

    The time has come for us as Canadian Bishops not only to reaffirm Humanae vitae but to re-present its teaching to the faithful. It has become more and more evident that the wording in our Winnipeg Statement of September 27, 1968 has been used to justify contraceptive acts and other sins against God's gospel of life. We regret this profoundly and we now wish to re-present our message to the faithful of Canada.

Pro-life teaching and preaching

    In keeping with God's laws of life and love we require that all teaching in Canada conform in sprit and interpretation with Humanae vitae with the Apostolic Exhortation Familiaris consortio of 1982, the Catechism of the Catholic Church of 1992, the encyclicals Veritatis splendor of 1993 and Evangelium vitae of 1995. This applies to all teaching, preaching, marriage preparation courses, counselling and confessional advice. This is the road to grace, to peace, to happy family life, to vocations to the priesthood and religious life, to a better society in a better world and to salvation. God will pour innumerable blessing upon all who open up their hearts to his charter of love.

About conscience

    A word must be said about freedom of conscience. Freedom of conscience never justifies the violation of divine law. Conscience is not a source of truth. The truth is from God and it is conformity to the truth that makes us free. We now confirm and reiterate our Statement on the Formation of Conscience of Dec. 1, 1973. There we said:

"A believer has the absolute obligation of conforming conduct first and foremost to what the Church teaches, because first and foremost for the believer is the fact that Christ, through His spirit, is ever present in His Church...."

    We thank God for providing to all, the grace and strength to keep his law of life and to reap the immeasurable benefits which come from conforming our lives to his will.

    May God bless Canada and grant to all an acceptance and love of Humanae vitae.

Originally published in CATHOLIC INSIGHT 1998