Contraception

Pope's Ban on Contraception Caused Rift

Before the invention and popularization of birth control/contraception, couples could have kids well into the double digits. In countries like Latin America, Asia, and Africa, many Catholics are abandoning their faith because they feel uncomfortable using contraception or any type of "safe sex" method. Brazil is said to be the world's largest Catholic country and during the 26 years of John Paul's papacy saw a decline of 15 percent in the number of people following the faith. Interestingly enough, the Brazilian bishops feel that though abstinence is the way to go, using a condom is better than contracting/spreading AIDS. According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church, the use of any method by which to prevent childbirth and thusly prevent life is intrinsically evil. The only time any form of contraception is permissable is when the man or woman can receive physical harm or illness without some form of surgery or other protocol. For instance, if a woman has cervical cancer she needs medical attention to preserve her life. Any resulting sterilization or prevention from having children is deemed indirect and is not immoral. Nigeria's Cardinal Francis Arinze says the promotion of condoms has done nothing to halt the spread of AIDS and has instead encouraged promiscuity. More and more Catholics continue to disobey the Vatican. In 2004, a woman in Brazil had 2.3 children on average compared with 6 children in 1960. According to a 2003 poll commissioned by Catholics for a Free Choice, 91 percent of Catholics in Mexico and Colombia, and 79 percent in Bolivia, thought adults should have access to condoms and contraception pills. While statistics here show a decrease in childbirth which helps the problem of overpopulated countries, some say that since birth control is accessible to the youth there has been a rise in teen pregnancy.