BIRTH CONTROL: A Modern Problem

Bernard Haring is Catholicism's most eminent, and probably most popular, moral theologian. This little book is illustrative of the prudence, discretion, critical sense, and sound judgment responsible for that eminence and popularity. It is a brief study of texts and principles regarding the issue of birth control, and a statement of the conclusions that may reasonably be drawn from the dual source of Scripture and tradition on the subject. Among those conclusions: any method of birth control with an abortive effect is absolutely immoral; all methods of birth control, including rhythm, are evil if the purpose of the users is selfish; if a husband and wife have honorable motives for not wishing to have a child at a particular--time, their confessor must believe in their sincerity and allow them to form their own consciences in the matter. As a model of moderation, the book has something for everyone, citing immutable principles (for the traditionalists), yet allowing sufficient leeway in their application to allow for the primacy of the individual's conscience, for the human dignity of husband and wife, and for the preservation of mutual love and respect in marriage. Easily readable and almost schematic in its conciseness, this slender work may be recommended to Catholics at all levels.