The Contraception Guidebook: Options, Risks, and Answers for Christian Couples

This book gives the Christian reader unbiased, detailed information regarding the types of birth control available and how these various methods work. I have never had a doctor or nurse give me this kind of detail regarding forms of birth control and I doubt you have either. But this book, written in a non-judgemental tone, will give you the information you need to make an educated decision regarding birthcontrol, while encouraging you to prayerfully seek the will of the Lord considering you and your spouse in this matter.

This book offers sound medical advice while encouraging you to seek God's Will. If only we could find OB/GYNs out there that offered the same thing. Too many people blindly accept hormonal birth control without realizing the risks and ethical issues surrounding it. This book really explains the risks without making you feel "dirty" for using them. It leaves the choice up to the reader. But given the evidence, I am not sure any Pro-Life Christian could blindly accept "the pill" from their doctor again. I have read many books on family planning in the Christian marriage. Most of them say to keep having as many babies as possible. The authors do an excellent job in explaining that some couples are called to be parents of 8 children, while quite frankly, some are not. After having four children in five years, I am ready for a break. This book helped me to realize that God did intend intimacy in marriage to be "recreational" at times and not always procreative. While we do still intend on having more children, the authors gave us sound scriptural references to back up our decision to wait awhile. We aren't sinning by using contraception. What a relief! Many thanks to the authors for this excellent resource. I am passing it on to my husband's brother and his fiancee. I hope they can get as much out of it as we did!

The Contraception Guidebook, written by William Cutrer and Sandra Glahn is an outstanding resource of information for young married couples as they begin their lives together as a family. In addition, it would be an invaluable tool for others who are in a position to offer counsel on the subject of contraception. I especially appreciated the procedural/medical information as it relates to spiritual, ethical, emotional, and relational issues. Cutrer and Glahn write, "In this work we will reason from Scriptures as often and as carefully as we can, but where the Bible is silent, we'll acknowledge that silence." Each section of the book has questions that can either be answered or worked through while a couple is reading together or tossed independently in their thoughts and then brought to the table for comparison and discussion. I loved the anecdote noted from some of Dr. Cutrer's counseling sessions with engaged couples regarding expectations. The couple sitting back to back is instructed to hold up fingers representing the number of children they hope to have during their marriage. I can imagine some of the surprised (and perhaps horrified) looks when the numbers were revealed! This writing is easy to read and written in a relaxing, yet professional style. Scriptural references, as well as, medical data are used richly for support and for further self-study. There is a complete glossary included to help with the medical terms that are necessary to the reading. As I read the book I thought, I wish I had information like this available to me twenty-five years ago! As a young wife in 1978 I asked my then OB/GYN about birth-control, without discussion he wrote me a Rx for a year's supply of once a day pills. I think the information supplied in this book could not only help a couple make good choices as they consider the many options of contraception but is certain to strengthen their bond to one another.