CAITLIN MARCHAND
Catholic Exchange
In a contraceptive culture it is little wonder that natural family planning is often in the Catholic spotlight. Perhaps it is also little wonder that we accidentally slip into using the secular world’s terms or attitudes when discussing it. It is well established to anybody willing to hear that NFP is a licit practice. In fact, it is not merely an acceptable but second rate choice made by second rate Catholics but can and should be undertaken in such a spirit as to be equally receptive to God’s will and lovingly exercise our role in His creation of new life with responsibility and generosity. However, the question of when and why to avoid pregnancy in particular circumstances can easily become confusing and some of the language surrounding the discussion adds to this.
First, there is a tendency to speak of family planning decisions in the long term. We consider the overall number of children in a family, or how many years there are between children. Yet, part of the beauty and challenge of natural fertility awareness is that it deals only in the now. Every cycle, in some sense every day, one must reexamine the family situation and the possibility of adding another child. While depending on the reasons for using NFP to avoid pregnancy one may have some idea of how long this will be necessary the question is only ever “what about this child, today?” not “how many children to we want total?” or “what is our five year plan?”.
Caitlin Marchand is a mother of four currently residing in Louisiana where her husband is an Air Force pilot. She is a graduate of Christendom College and enjoys blogging in her spare time
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