Letters

Abortion link

George Simpson

Contents - Sep 2013 - Buy a copy now Editorial: Catholic voters and the 2013 Federal Election Hobart's new Archbishop ready for the challenges of leadership - Michael Gilchrist News: The Church Around the World Cardinal Burke: What is good liturgy? World Youth Day 2013: Pope Francis inspires Rio - Peter Westmore Oasis: Finding rapprochement and peace among the Abrahamic religions - Patrick Byrne The Church's crises old and new - Bishop James D. Conley A covenant: essence of true marriage - Anne Lastman Frassati: The Holy Terror: a model for young Catholic men - Br Barry Coldrey Letters: Natural law - Fr Bernard McGrath Letters: Anniversary of Humanae Vitae - Ken Bayliss Letters: Year of Faith - John Frey Letters: Contraception is harmful - Anne Lastman Letters: Anti-life values - Andrew Foong Letters: Abortion link - George Simpson Letters: Inconsistency - John H. Cooney Letters: Causal connection - Francis Young Books: A PILGRIM'S JOURNEY: Autobiography of Ignatius of Loyola, Joseph N. Tylenda SJ - Michael E Daniel (reviewer) Books: WAYS OF PRAYING, by Father John Edwards SJ - Br Barry Coldrey (reviewer) Books: MYSTICS IN THE MAKING: Laywomen in Today's Church, by Carolyn Humphreys - Br Barry Coldrey (reviewer) Books: Order books from www.freedompublishing.com.au Reflection: Put on Christ: Pope Francis' World Youth Day homily - Pope Francis

Having read many of Dr Frank Mobb's excellent offerings to AD2000, I was surprised by his letter in the August issue in which he criticised Anne Lastman's Humanae Vitae article in the July issue.

The often-used argument that contraceptive use should reduce the number of abortions, although at first sight reasonable, ignores one important fact. Despite popular opinion and wishful thinking, no method of contraception is 100% effective.

It is hard to credit that all women with unwanted pregnancies took no contraceptive measures. The loosening of sexual morals following the introduction of the contraceptive pill has led to many more unplanned pregnancies and therefore to the temptation to abort.

It cannot be ignored that the increased number of abortions and the public acceptance of abortion has come about at the same time as the acceptance of the contraceptive mentality.

Dr Mobbs also states that he sees no evidence that contraceptive use diminishes marital love. Again, acceptance of the contraceptive mentality coincides with the alarming increase in marital breakdown. The statistics would appear to be too compelling for the two to be unrelated.

GEORGE SIMPSON
North Blackburn, Vic.

Reprinted from AD2000 Vol 26 No 8 (September 2013), p. 17