Class will be meeting next Sunday, March 06.
Last time, we completed Chapter 8: Marriage and spent some focused time the qualities that one would desire in a marriage or spouse, and then discussing the history contraception and addressing common questions on that topic. Some key points:
- Marriage is the building block of society.
- The qualities that one would desire in a spouse or marriage are great qualities to work on in oneself. I challenge you to choose one item from your list (p 120) and work on it.
- If we become the kind of person we would choose, we actually draw like-minded persons to ourselves.
- Wanting a potential spouse to be attractive is fine (our attraction to beauty is rooted in our attraction to ultimate Beauty in God), though it shouldn't be the be-all and end-all. :-)
- Contraception is not a recent invention
- Ancient peoples used a variety of methods to try to prevent conception or birth.
- Romans at the time of Christ practiced contraception, but Christians rejected it.
- The first Protestants rejected the practice as well, as did all Christians until 1930.
- Many non-Christian leaders, including Mohandas (Mahatma) Gandhi opposed contraception as well.
- Pope Paul VI, in his encyclical Humanae Vitae, predicted several negative outcomes should contraception become widely used in a culture. All his predictions have come true.
- Not only is contraception opposed to the FTFF love that spouses are called to, but "the pill" and similar methods have significant and sometimes serious side-effects. Some women have even died as a result.
- NFP is radically different from contraception, as radically as bulimia is different from dieting. Check the link for more.
Quotes to ponder:
“There is no relationship between human beings so close as that of husband and wife, if they are united as they ought to be.” -- St. John Chrysostom
At home assignment:
Please read “Live it Out: Training for Marriage” on p. 123.
If you missed missed class or want to review:
Read TOB for Teens, Chapter 8, pages 119, and complete the exercise at the top of p. 120. Next, read through the Digging Deeper section for some history on the use of contraceptives. Also see the assignment above.
Future class dates:
March
06 Class
13 Class
20 - No class - Palm Sunday
27 - No class - Easter Sunday
April
03 Class