Denver Catholic

DENVER CATHOLIC REGISTER I JULY 30, 2014 LOVE & LIFE I 9 The perception is, voting for a pro-contraceptive candidate "is vot- ing for the modern woman and voting against (the candidate) is voting for the image of women not having sex or when they do have sex, it's for the purpose of children," Alvaré explained. That's really not the issue, she said. Contraceptives are available to women at drug stores and through their doctors. The focus on contraceptives is not dis- proportionate to the seriousness of the topic; however, the real question at issue is not its legality, but rather the meaning and impact of separating sex from pro- creation, she said. "On paper the word contraception looks trivial," she said. "In reality, look- ing at separating the entire concept of sex from the entire concept of babies— overall, that's pretty monumental as a fact of human nature." An ongoing political debate reveals a society still discovering the meaning and effects of that separation, she said. And when it comes to entering the po- litical office, it's purely a maneuver, she believes. And the greatest loser in the debate is babies. "Children don't vote or write cam- paign checks," Alvaré said. Alvaré said it's time for a real conver- sation about the meaning and purpose of sex. Nissa LaPoint: 303-715-3138; nissa. lapoint@archden.org; www.twitter. com/DCRegisterNissa In the pro-life debate, words matter BY NISSA LAPOINT Sometimes the devil is in the words. Terminology used in the pro-abor- tion battle to protect access to abor- tion and contraceptives is strategical- ly crafted by advocates. Last year, Planned Parenthood an- nounced it wanted to shed the de- cades old term "pro-choice," com- monly used to describe advocates of a woman's decision to access legal abortion, because it was a label that "placed people in a box," according to its website. Debate exploded as media argued to keep pro-choice and others argued for new terms. Katie Roiphe on Slate.com wrote in January 2013 that pro-choice lacks the charisma and capaciousness of "pro-life," commonly used to de- scribe those who advocate for pro- tecting the life of the unborn. "Who does not want to be arguing in favor of life?" she wrote "'Choice' sounds, in comparison, cool, flip- pant, casual, bourgeois." EWTN stated in a publication that "pro-abortion" is the preferred term as "pro-choice" only serves to distract from the real issue—abortion. Still, the terms and their conno- tations may be hard to shed in the debate. Pro-abortion was first used in 1975 when Planned Parenthood representative Jeannie Rosoff de- scribed the agency as pro-abortion in an interview with the Wall Street Journal. In later years this evolved in- to pro-choice. According to leading Catholic thinkers and writers, the terms carry not only connotations but underly- ing ideologies. The term "birth control," which is often linked to discussions on abor- tion and life, is deceptive, stated the late Bishop Fulton Sheen in a radio broadcast. Contraception—referring to arti- ficial birth control methods like the pill, intrauterine devices and the con- dom—should be called "birth preven- tion" as couples using it are not inter- ested in birth or control. It's used to ensure there's not a birth to control. Couples may say they're contra- cepting because they cannot afford children, which Bishop Sheen said is a "terrible principle they are announc- ing, namely, the primacy of the econ- omy over the human." Human life, he said, is put below the priority for a ca- reer, money or pursuit of interests. But the great lie of the term "birth control" is that it makes women be- lieve that it grants freedom by separat- ing reproduction from the act of sex. "Freedom does not mean the right to do whatever you please," Bishop Sheen explained. "Modern Western civilization has identified freedom with freedom from constraints and it denies goals, purposes and ends." True freedom occurs when things are used for their intended design, he said. "The root principle of birth control is unsound," he wrote. "It is a glorifica- tion of the means and a contempt of the end; it says that the pleasure which is a means to the procreation of chil- dren is good, but the children them- selves are no good. In other words, to be logical, the philosophy of birth control would commit us to a world in which trees were always blooming but never giving fruit, a world full of sign- posts that were leading nowhere." G.K. Chesterton argued in an essay published in the book "The Well and the Shallows" that birth control does not make people free but enslaves them. "Now a child is the very sign and sacrament of personal freedom," he wrote. "He is a fresh will added to the wills of the world; he is something that his parents have freely chosen to pro- duce and which they freely agree to protect." "...the philosophy of birth-control would commit us to a world in which trees were always blooming but never giving fruit, a world full of sign-posts that were leading nowhere." Bishop Fulton Sheen cycle to determine the time when she is most fertile, the McAdams quickly real- ized they had fertility issues. Desiring to conceive children, they sought help from the Pope Paul VI Institute in Omaha Neb. Dr. Thomas W. Hilgers, founder and direc- tor of the institute, used their NFP chart- ing to diagnose and treat their infertility. "His treatment brought physical heal- ing to Sarah and opened wide the door for God to bless us with a child," Brian said. "Using NFP to help us understand our infertility and then to dispose us to God's gift of our daughter Elizabeth brought Sarah and me closer together in both our suffering and in our rejoicing. "Through our struggles with infertility and the blessing of our daughter, Sarah and I have come to recognize the deep sense in which children are truly a gift from God." Brian said he believes those who prac- tice contraception more often than not simply aren't aware of the beauty and wisdom of the Church's teaching on procreation. "Like the Church's teaching on the Eucharist, her teaching on contracep- tion is one that forces people to make a decision," he said. "Either the Catho- lic Church is completely crazy—as the world believes—or else the Church is absolutely genius, as would be the case if indeed the Holy Spirit guides her." Sarah said listening to seminary pro- fessor-author Janet Smith's talk "Contra- ception: Why Not?" in college convinced her that the Church's teaching on pro- creation "is right, and for our own good and happiness." "I'm so thankful to be Catholic and to have the Church to guide me in this area," Sarah said, "otherwise, I probably would have never been exposed to such a beautiful aspect of my marriage!" Jaloways: Desiring heaven for themselves and others Married 43 years and the parents of five children and 12 grandchildren, new Lit- tleton transplants from Austin, Texas, Dan Jaloway, 67, a retired electrical engineer, and his wife Barb, 62, a former teacher and homeschooler, practiced the Symp- to-Thermal Method of NFP for more than 25 years, until menopause, and continue to teach it online. They attend Holy Ghost Church in Denver. "I knew NFP worked because my par- ents used it effectively," Barb said, "and I wanted something that was 'green,' did not harm my body, and respected my fer - tility and that of Dan." Most important, Barb said, was to re- main close to Christ by trusting the teach- ings of his Church. She was convinced that NFP and St. John Paul II's theology of the body "were for my good, to help me." "My respect and admiration for Dan went up drastically when we started prac- ticing NFP," Barb said. "Our emotional, spiritual and intellectual intimacy in- creased and our sensitivity to meet each other's needs improved. We were able to be more open and honest with each other." As their relationship deepened, so did their relationship with Christ. They began to pray more together. "We began to value the gift of children more and were more open to life," Barb said. Their openness to life, they discovered, was a manifestation of their openness to God's will for their lives. Their delight in and desire to do God's will ultimately led them into the NFP apostolate. "The Holy Trinity made us to share his joy in his kingdom," Barb declared. "Over time, we started talking about wanting to help God win souls for his kingdom, heaven! So we got certified to teach NFP together." Today, although their two sons are still single, their three married daughters all practice NFP. "We are very blessed," Barb said. "God is good!" Roxanne King: 303-715-3215; editor @archden.org; www.twitter.com/DC RegisterRox PHOTO PROVIDED DAN and Barb Jaloway pose with their son Kris during a trip to Italy. FOR MORE INFORMATION Find out more about NFP methods and classes offered throughout the Denver Archdiocese by visiting www.archden. org/eflm/nfp or by emailing Carrie Keating at Carrie.Keating@archden.org or by calling her at 303-715-3259. politicking

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