[To the Editor of TILE SPECTATOR.] Sin,—There is a school
of thought in the Church, of which I believe the Archbishop of Canterbury is the chief exemplar, which holds that birth-control may be practised on medical, but not on any other grounds. Exponents of the school, however, never define what are medical grounds, and leave matters so delightfully vague that obviously everybody could use contraceptives without infringing the rule. So far as can be seen, birth-control is always used on " medical " grounds in some form or other, so that the school to which I have referred really advocates birth-control in any cir- cumstances without having the courage to do so openly.
The Roman Church, of course, absolutely fo:bids the use of contraceptives, but as the families of Roman Catholics are no larger than those of members of other denominations, it can only be supposed that this rule is not strictly regarded even if it is regarded at all. However, the Roman clergy— through the confessional—have ample facilities for knowing to what extent birth-control is practised by their flocks Whether or not the Roman laity suffer ecclesiastical punish... ments for breach of the rule, we do not know. Clergy of all denominations are not well acquainted with logic, but they make excellent diplomats.—I am, Sir, &c.,
[This correspondence must cease for the present. Ed. The Spectator.]
Previous page
