Source on DocSharon's information about BC?

[mirele]

For some extreme pro-lifers, it's not whether a pregnancy ends that matters to them. If life starts at conception - rather than at implantation - then something that interferes with implantation is against life. But to follow through with that to the conclusion that the pill is bad, is stupid.

The rhythm method could cause lots of fertilised eggs not to implant (if you have sex outside your most fertile period, but your luteal phase (is that what it's called?) just cuts short before a fertilised egg can implant) without you ever knowing it. The pill stops you from ovulating. A pro-life position would be to use the pill, as it prevents ovulation MOST of the time. With the rhythm method, you are probably killing off fertilised eggs, and with no method at all, you have no way of knowing. One of the gripes about the pill killing babies is that you wouldn't know - yeah, well, without any contraception at all you ALSO don't know.

Do these people talk about recent studies that have found between 33 and 50 percent of all fertilizations end in what are termed as very early abortions? And when these fertilized eggs are examined, they are invariably defective in some way, e.g. have some sort of trisomy (three copies of a chromosome), that renders the resulting fertilized egg unlikely to sustain life in the long term?

There's this belief among pro-lifers that every pregnancy can, should and must go to term. The fact that the female human body disposes of so many fertilized eggs that turn out to be unable to sustain life, that there are pregnancies that progress that threaten the life of the mother (e.g., ectopic pregnancies), it makes you wonder why these people hang on so fervently to the idea that every fertilized egg is sacred (to riff on Monty Python).

[Turtle]

Well, you said that she's a catholic, right? Even the Catholic Church (officially) states that "life" (human life) does not actually begin until 40 days after conception.

The Catechism says human life must be respected and protected from the moment of conception. Early church fathers have many different thoughts on when life begins, but that wouldn't be the Church's official statement.

I don't see how the concerns about the pill "causing abortions" would matter to a Catholic, since their doctrine doesn't allow for artificial contraception at all, for reasons un-related to whether or not something causes abortions. Unless they just like to argue about other people's choices...

[desertvixen]

I think the 40 days is from an older version of the guidelines - at one point, it was when the woman felt the "quickening" (first movement) of the fetus.

The Catholic Church's argument is that artificial contraception interferes with the marital act being open to the creation of new life.

[FakePigtails]

The Catechism says human life must be respected and protected from the moment of conception. Early church fathers have many different thoughts on when life begins, but that wouldn't be the Church's official statement.

I don't see how the concerns about the pill "causing abortions" would matter to a Catholic, since their doctrine doesn't allow for artificial contraception at all, for reasons un-related to whether or not something causes abortions. Unless they just like to argue about other people's choices...

It matters to the ones who think we should protect life by limiting access to hormonal birth control. Bah. As much as it pisses me off, I can't help but see how they think they need to do something to prevent "murder." Still pisses me off. No theocracy for me, thank you very much.

[desertvixen]

Also, keep in mind that many women who identify as Catholic do use artificial methods of contraception - and there was and is quite a bit of debate about whether or not Catholics can choose to not follow Humanae Vitae (the encyclical that makes birth control a BAD BAD THING) in good conscience.

In complete agreement with Fake Pigtails on the no theocracy thing, however.

[Patsy]

At least 90% of Catholics use birth control (I think 90% is a common survey-y answer; personally I think it's more), and I assume most of them wouldn't give too much of a shit about fertilised eggs slipping out, tbh. That's including the pro-life ones.