SA bishops and condoms

by Michael Shackleton · October 12, 2009

The leading article of The Southern Cross of April 22 strongly implied that our bishops condone the use of condoms by married couples, if done to prevent the transference of HIV/Aids. If so, does this viewpoint not conflict with the encyclical Humanae vitae, which forbids the use within marriage of all forms of artificial birth control?

Paul VI’s 1968 encyclical taught that God willed there to be an inseparable connection between the unitive aspect (mutual love) and the procreative aspect (to bring new life into the world) of marital sex. He excluded from the conjugal act any kind of direct artificial contraception that would render procreation impossible and taught that each and every marriage act must remain open to the transmission of life (Humanae vitae, 11,14).

In their Message of Hope pastoral letter of August 2001, the Southern African bishops fully supported this, also urging abstention from sexual activity before marriage and faithfulness of spouses afterwards, as a means towards overcoming Aids and building up a healthy population.

The bishops’ document does not approve of the popular drive to use condoms in order to prevent Aids. It stresses that condoms may even be one of the main reasons for the spread of the disease, because apart from the possibility of condoms being faulty or wrongly used, they contribute to the breaking down of self-control and mutual respect.

Considering that the Church holds that sex is moral and honourable only within marriage, the question had to arise whether condoms might be permitted when one of the spouses is living with Aids. After all, sex is a marital right, but what if there is a real danger that the healthy partner will contract this killer disease? Here there is a direct link between lawful sex and sexually transmitted death, or the strong likelihood of death.

The bishops argued that the Church accepts that everyone has a right to defend their life against mortal danger, using the appropriate means and course of action and according to their conscience. This implies that when one spouse is infected with HIV/Aids, the use of a condom, even with its uncertain effectiveness, is done not directly to prevent the transmission of life but to prevent the transmission of death.

This distinction, which follows established moral principles, has not been formally approved by the Church as a whole. Until an authoritative statement contradicts it, our bishops are within their rights to uphold it.