Humanae Vitae: A Generation Later

The book which was shipped out-of-state as requested arrived in just a few days and in excellent condition. My son, a Theology teacher is very pleased with it.

This work indluces a recap of the issues leading to humanae vitae, a section by section discussion of the document, discussion of natural law applications to the issue of contraception and much more. Excellent resource for understanding the document and the issues.

In this, her first book, university professor Janet Smith presents a philosophical and theological understanding of Pope Paul VI's controversial 1968 encyclical `Humanae Vitae' (`On Human Life'). The 370 densely packed pages of text are divided into eight chapters and four appendices. In the first chapter Dr. Smith gives a very brief historical overview of the Church's consistent condemnation of contraception whenever the issue arose. It was not until 1930 that the Anglican Church's Lambeth Conference "broke ranks with nearly the whole of the traditional Christian opposition to contraception" when it permitted its use by married couples "for grave reasons." Pope Pius XI responded with an encyclical entitled `Casti Cannubi' that reiterated the opposition, encouraged elevated notions of conjugal love and parenthood, and explained that confining conjugal acts to known infertility periods, for right reasons, was morally permissible. Some Catholic theologians began opposing the teaching in 1963 and by 1966 it was the major moral issue troubling the Church. Smith claims this came about because of the development of the Pill and social changes rather than from philosophical deliberations. She spends the bulk of the chapter examining the arguments of a papal commission divided over the issue in the years just prior to `Humanae Vitae.' Smith begins chapter two by stating, "`Humanae Vitae,' depends on a Christian understanding of the nature or meaning of marriage and in particular on a Christian understanding of the importance of the marital gift of having children" (p.36). She then examines Catholic teaching on this matter as found in `Casti Cannubi' and relevant portions of the Vatican II document `Gaudium et Spes.' In these documents she notices the beginnings of a shift in terminology and emphasis, from focusing on the "ends" of marriage to more "personalist values" (i.e. goods that benefit the human person as distinct from values that protect other goods --- such as the good of society or respect for the laws of nature).In chapters three and four she analyzes `Humanae Vitae' itself. Chapter three reviews how the encyclical deals with arguments advanced in favour of contraception, especially those based on the principle of totality (i.e. "that under certain circumstances it is morally permissible to sacrifice the good of a part for the good of the whole"). She claims that most have misunderstood the type of natural law argument used in the teaching and so in chapter four concentrates on four arguments against contraception based on these natural law principles. One argument, in syllogistic form, is: "(1) It is wrong to impede the procreative power of actions that are ordained by their nature to the generation of a new human life (2) Contraception impedes the procreative power of actions that are ordained by their nature to the generation of new human life (3) Therefore, contraception is wrong" (p.99). Smith gives expansive explanation to ea

In my opinion, this book should be considered the classic text on contraception, as believed by the Roman Catholic Church. Janet Smith outlines a series of different arguments against contraception, and shows how they are all rooted in the classic Catholic view of human nature. The strength of this book is its thorough description of human nature and Natural Law, as understood in the Catholic Tradition. I'd thus rank this book highly as a general book on Natural Law, and the some of the theological anthropology implicit in it. Without such an understanding of human nature it is very difficult to understand the problems with contraception. By point of contrast, she critiques the 'contra-life will' arguement proposed by Grisez etc. One feature that I found particularly useful was her analysis of how contraception has affected society, and the link between contraception and divorce. One warning: this book is for the serious student. However, it lays out the principles it builds on, and when I first read it was able to understand it even though the material was all new to me.

Dominant liberal sentiment concerning the unending crisis in the Catholic Church usually involves the imaging of a heroic flock of dissident Catholics bravely questioning their authoritarian church, often defending themselves as acting out the admonishment of Vatican II to recognize the "spirit of the times." The effect amongst many Western Catholic intellectuals has been to exercise a nebulous acquiescence to the prevailing ethos of the well educated, even when the well educated seek active participation in the sex revolution, seemingly oblivious to its self-destructive character. It is no secret that the focal point of Catholic dissidence has been towards Humanae Vitae. Janet E Smith is a Catholic philosopher with an essential premise. Living with a respect for God would seem to imply a willingness to seek an understanding of and conformity to the will of God, particularly, as she explores in this book, on the matter of contraception. If this is not what we seek, then our questioning may be the sort designed to avoid rather than find answers. The very attempt to develop this purified sense of the will of God is viewed as upsetting to a great many contemporary Catholics, embarrassed by their faith and angry at those resistant to popular trends. So intense is this anger, that on occasions of her public lectures on the subject of contraception, even on Catholic university campuses, Ms. Smith has been greeted with rude, at times vitriolic, interruptions to her speeches, situations she has always met with unflappable grace and dignity. Because she is always seeking a faithful receptivity towards the mind of God as a first principle, she refuses to be unkind in return. Honest philosophers have always sought to know what is natural and implicit in God's design. Ms. Smith is committed to making a case for what ought to be obvious to people of authentic faith: that the human design, particularly that of women, is not arbitrary or accidental, and not in need of repair or reinvention. It is complete in every detail the image and likeness of God. Contraception is not consistent with our inherent design as women and men living with a respect for God, and Ms. Smith bravely invites us to consider this. Perhaps then we can be freed from being angry towards our own best interests