Want to see abortion naturally decline? End the contraceptive mentality

Tomorrow hundreds of thousands of people will face the cold of a D.C. winter — possibly even a blizzard — to participate in the annual March for Life in Washington. I salute these good people, I truly do. I am happy to pray for them and the end of legalized abortion, indoors. Perhaps that sounds terrible. Perhaps one of these years I should brave the cold and pound the pavement with them. But there are many needed fronts in the war against abortion, and my personal efforts at the moment are on another battlefield.

One of the reasons I’m proud to work for CCL is because our efforts to woo people away from contraception do, in a very real way, protect the lives of unborn children. Dr. Janet Smith has spent years researching the direct link between the use of contraception and the “need” for abortion, and provides a clear explanation in this article written for One More Soul:

The connection between contraception and abortion is primarily this: contraception facilitates the kind of relationships and even the kind of attitudes and moral characters that are likely to lead to abortion. The contraceptive mentality treats sexual intercourse as though it had little natural connection with babies; it thinks of babies as an “accident” of intercourse, as an unwelcome intrusion into a sexual relationship, as a burden. […]

In the past, many men and women refrained from illicit sexual unions simply because they were not prepared for the responsibilities of parenthood. But once a fairly reliable contraceptive appeared on the scene, this barrier to sex outside the confines of marriage fell. The connection between sex and love also fell quickly; ever since contraception became widely used, there has been much talk of, acceptance of, and practice of casual sex and recreational sex. The deep meaning that is inherent in sexual intercourse has been lost sight of; the willingness to engage in sexual intercourse with another is no longer a result of a deep commitment to another. It no longer bespeaks a willingness to have a child with another and to have all the consequent entanglements with another that babies bring. Contraception helps reduce one’s sexual partner to just a sexual object as it renders sexual intercourse to be without any real commitments.

The more people engage in casual sex — with or without the use of contraception — the more unwanted pregnancies and the more abortions there will be. We need abortion because contraception isn’t foolproof and we want to have sex without consequences. The free love touted by the sexual revolution has been anything but free; it has cost the lives of millions of unborn babies.

Certainly what happens on the front lines in Washington tomorrow is hugely important! And while I offer sincere prayers of support and gratitude for each person’s efforts and presence there, CCL will continue its mission to help people see that contraception isn’t the answer. We will continue sharing the good news of God’s design for married love as expressed through the Church, particularly in the beautiful teachings of St. Pope John Paul II’s Theology of the Body.

We teach more than a method. We include formation in what it means to love another person; that sex is not a recreational activity, but rather a sign of your total love for the other person that could very well result in the creation of new life. Openness to life always begins by being open to another person, whether that be your spouse or a new baby.

We must share with the world the life-giving and life-affirming truth that every human being is created in the image of God and is intended for Heaven. We must share with the world the love of Christ, who is himself the model of all human love. And we must encourage them in their own journeys to live that kind of love in their own lives.

If you’re not marching in Washington and want to do something special today to create a pro-life culture, consider a gift to CCL. #LivetheLove

— Sarah Drew
Assistant Editor