THE TEACHINGS OF THE LOCAL CHURCH ON HUMAN SEXUALITY
Question 5: Do you think that people consider the teachings of the Church on human sexuality in their decisions on sex and sexual matters?
5.3 DISSENTING VOICES
5.3.3 The Sacredness of life: A Catholic opinion on condoms and . AIDS
5.3.3 The Sacredness of life: A Catholic opinion on condoms and
they say, accepts that everyone has the right to defend his or her life against mortal danger.
In all other cases, they disapprove of the use of condoms, which they argue, goes against human dignity and changes the act of love into a selfish search for pleasure. Campaigns for safer sex are morally wrong. The reason for such a radical position is that the bishops wish to uphold the sacredness of marriage. Sex outside marriage is a sin. Condoms encourage promiscuity, and jeopardise the dignity of marriage, which is agiftof God.
As Catholics, we fully support this defence of marriage. The breakdown of family life, which we observeinso many parts of Southern Africa, is a major cause for concern. The first to suffer from this situation are the children. The women, who experience abuse and lack of support, are another category of victims. The men, even those who are involved in acts of violence against women and children, are also in distress. The crisis of marriage is a contributing factor to crime, sexual abuse and gender discrimination.
We also agree with the bishops when they say that abstinence and marital fidelity are the best means, by which HIV infections may be prevented. The multiplicity of sexual partners is one of the main causes for the rapid spread of the disease. Other factors, such as the loneliness brought about by
urbanisation and persisting systems of migrant labour or the emphasis on sexual prowess and performance in popular culture, play a role in people being trapped in maelstrom of sexual relationships. Persons engaged in risk-y sexual behaviour also deserve compassion and the opportunity to be drawn into more supportive personal, economic, social, and spiritual relationships.
They also have a claim to the love of Christ before hearing the words, "go, sin no more".
lllV/AIDS is a social problem, not only a problem of personal morality. Itis not only the individual who is called to conversion. Industry, advertising, corrupt officials who leave people in poverty and despair through their selfish acts, persons who regard HIV as God's curse, all of us, in fact, are called to conversion. We need to speak out against all factors promoting risky and inappropriate sexual behaviour. We need to have a Christ-like compassion for all who are at risk. A compassion that heals and frees persons to embrace the ideals of abstinence and fidelity.
There is a second aspect, which needs to emphasise in the discussion on AIDS and condoms. Life, for any spiritual person but especially for us Catholics, is sacred. Itis agiftof God. In South Africa alone, more than four million people are HIV positive. It is a catastrophe of unprecedented magnitude to think that these four million people, not to mention those who are at risk of contracting the disease, are all equally free to follow the Catholic ideal of marriage as a dream We live in a broken society. Yet all people deserve to live, and not only those who follow the narrow path of Christian sexual ethics.
Condoms are no absolute guarantee against AIDS. There is a certain percentage of failure in their use. All medical practitioners, AIDS activists
and people of good will engaged in the fightagainstAIDS are aware of their limitations. More importantly there are important cultural obstacles to their use. Promoting condoms without consideration for the social, medical, cultural and religious circumstances of their users is problematic. But the fact remains. With all their shortcomings condoms are an important way to stop AIDS. They are some insurance against infection, a first line of defence.
Even one life saved from infection is victory.
Abstinence and faithfulness would be better, of course. But should we let those who are impeded from fully embracing the ideal which all people of good will promote simply die? Should we sentence their unborn or yet to be conceived children to a life of chronic disease and maybe an early death?
Should we remain silent about even the most imperfect means by which to prevent the deaths of millions of human being? The answer clearly is no.
We admit that IllV and the role of condoms in its prevention presents us with a very difficult moral problem Two principles are at stake: the sacred nature of sexuality, which is expressed with the greatest integrity in marriage and the absolute sanctity of all human life. Inthe light of the IllV/AIDS pandemic, saving lives, by even the most imperfect means, would appear to be the first and most important step which we can encourage people to strive toward the dignity of sexual fidelity in marriage.
We cannot blame the government for promoting condoms. They have the duty to protectall lives and not only those of the people who follow certain religious principles. Yet we would object to a government who would indiscriminately promote the use of condoms. Asmuch as the church leaders need to listen to non-religious points of view, the political leaders need to be sensitive to the religious and moral values adhered to by a significant
proportion of the.
Prof Phillipe Denis.
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Inall other cases the bishops disapprove of the use of condoms. The bishops maintain that the use of condoms goes against human dignity and changes the act of love into a selfish search for pleasure. Insaying this they are trying to uphold that marriage is agiftfrom God and is sacred, and that sex outside marriage is a sin. The bishops believe that the use of condoms encourages promiscuity and jeopardises the dignity of marriage. The Pietermaritzburg Dominicans agree with the bishops that abstinence and marital fidelity are the best means by which the infection may be prevented. However, they believe that IllV/AIDS is not only a problem of personal morality. Itis a social problem. Itis not only the individual who is called to
conversion. Industry, advertising and corrupt officials, all of these have to change.
. They also note that it is not all those who are
mv
positive who are equally free to follow the Catholic ideal of marriage. Withalltheir shortcomings they seecondoms, nevertheless, as important in stopping lllV. They see the use of a condom as a first line of defence. Saving lives, by even the most imperfect means, would appear to be the first and most important thing to do.