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Contraception: The Practical Pro-Life Approach

By: Paul Raushenbush

Saturday February 21, 2009

Categories: Abortion

William Saletan writes a great article in the New York Times which will either inspire or provoke everyone involved in the current culture wars.  His argument is for basic practicality to prevail in approaches to both gay marriage and abortion.  Saletan is anti-abortion, and he uses the power of that conviction as his springboard for a stronger advocacy of contraceptives as a means of stopping them.  He writes:

For liberals, that means taking abortion seriously as an argument for contraception. We should make the abortion rate an index of national health, like poverty or infant mortality. The president should report progress, or lack thereof, in the State of the Union. Reproductive-health counselors must speak bluntly to women who are having unprotected sex. And as Mr. Obama observed last year, men must learn that "responsibility does not end at conception."

Conservatives, in turn, need to face the corollary truth: A culture of life requires an ethic of contraception. Birth control isn't a sin or an offense against life, as so many girls and Catholic couples have been taught. It's a loving, conscientious way to prevent the conception of a child you can't bear to raise and don't want to abort. It's an act of responsibility and respect for life.

It is refreshing to hear from a pro-lifer who is so committed to stopping abortions that they are willing to be pro-contraception. Contraception as "an act of respect for life" makes perfect sense to me if we are serious about reducing the number of abortions.   I have heard Saletan's approach argued against by moralistic and religiously dogmatic pro-lifers who dismiss this approach as consequentialist (the principle that argues whether an act is morally right depends only on the consequences of that act). 

But if the effort is to reduce abortions then consequence is the name of the game.  I hope more pro-life advocates will take this position and join in the effort to prevent unwanted pregnancies before they happen by making contraceptives available and promoting their use among people who are having sex but are not hoping for a child.   

Comments (11)
Filed Under: abortion, conservatives, contraception, Ethics, liberals, pro-life, religion and politics, William Saletan
posted by Paul Raushenbush @ 9:55pm Permalink email icon Email This arrow Add to »
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Comments
Lauren
February 22, 2009 12:16 PM

I am impressed by Saletan's pragmatic and reasonable assertions around abortions; especially as he is an ardent pro life'er. Being a culture of life is not so much more than making sure each pregnancy is brought to term; we also must consider such issues as quality of life and responsibility.

EvanF
February 23, 2009 10:43 AM

For those who hold the pro-life view, abortion involves the deliberate taking of an innocent human life. This is illegal under the law of the land in circumstances where the individual in question has already been born. The vast majority of human beings, religious and non-religious alike, believe that such an act is wrong. While opposition to abortion is usually described by the pro-choice side as “just a religious issue,” you do not have to be religious at all to formulate a moral argument against abortion. You simply have to believe that it constitutes the taking of a human life

Opposition to contraception in principle is, however, a strictly religious issue. In the Catholic Church it stems from a belief in the sacramental nature of sexual relations. In some other churches contraception is seen as facilitating behavior that is considered sinful. These are religious arguments peculiar to the churches that advance them. In a country with freedom of religion, churches that oppose contraception are free to teach and discipline their members accordingly. But this is a matter where a religious person can legitimately say, “ I am personally opposed to contraception but do not believe that it should be illegal.”

On the other hand, it’s not inappropriate to debate abortion in the realm of public policy and the law because if the pro-life folks are right, people are being killed. The protection of the lives of innocent people is an area where the state may legitimately take action.

Goodguyex
February 23, 2009 11:01 AM

Most people will have to contracept some, as a matter of practicallity and human weakness. But many if not most can limit the practice to little more than an occasional drip if they are not too lazy or too cowardly to learn natural family planning.

Luther and Calvin seemed to consider contraception worse than adultry or incest. The account of Onan in Genesis seems to read like he was hit by lightening after one act of withdrawl from Tamar.

I do not think contraception or kinky substitutes are worse than adultry and I do not see anyone being struck down after a single act of contraception. But I do see contraception as being a slow poison to spirituality, spousal respect, communication, and ultimately fidelity. Medical Treatment for fertility leads to medical "treatment" for the result of fertility, pregnancy. And the general acceptance of contraception has lead to the near acceptance of homosexual marriage.

James Gilmore
February 23, 2009 12:25 PM

And the general acceptance of contraception has lead to the near acceptance of homosexual marriage.

I don't follow your logic here. How does the one lead to the other? Please clarify.

Oh, and some of us are very much in favor of "homosexual marriage" - or, as it should properly be called, the recognition of equal civil marriage rights for all. Please tell me exactly for what reason you oppose civil marriage for LGBT citizens. Make sure you engage the question from the standpoint of public policy, where strictly religious objections have absolutely no sway due to the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment. What critical public policy goal is served by denying rights to millions of Americans?

ABCD
February 28, 2009 7:45 PM

Reproductive-health counselors must speak bluntly to women who are having unprotected sex.

Why only women? Men have just as much responsibility for contraception as their partners.

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Diana Butler Bass and Paul Raushenbush both stand firmly within the Mainline Protestant tradition and, along with guest bloggers of all religious backgrounds are dedicated to the revival of religious progressivism and its influence in American politics.

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Diana Butler Bass
Diana Butler Bass is a commentator and scholar in American religion. She is the author of seven books including A People's History of Christianity: The Other Side of the Story (HarperOne, 2009).
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Moderator of the Progressive Revival blog and the Associate Dean of Religious Life at Princeton University.
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