| Topic: |
Religions > Atheism |
| User: |
"Therion Ware" |
| Date: |
11 Apr 2005 03:29:16 AM |
| Object: |
OT: Seeking a new Catholic lead on condoms |
It says here
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/4417521.stm
Seeking a new Catholic lead on condoms
By Justin Pearce
BBC News website, Johannesburg
Campaigners against Aids in South Africa are hoping that the election
of a new Pope could lead to a liberalisation of the Vatican's stance
on the use of condoms to prevent HIV transmission.
During his lifetime, Pope John Paul II drew criticism for refusing to
moderate the Catholic Church's anti-condom stance in the face of the
Aids epidemic.
But some Catholics say that the Church does not ban condoms outright,
and is concerned with sexual morality as well as preventing HIV
transmission.
An estimated 5.3 million out of South Africa's 45 million people are
living with HIV - only India has more people infected with the virus.
South Africa's largest non-governmental Aids prevention programme is
run by the Southern African Catholic Bishops' Conference (SACBC).
"One cannot talk about human rights without promoting reproductive
rights - it's a package," Said Luyanda Ngonyama, a Catholic who
previously worked for the SACBC HIV-Aids programme, and who now
co-ordinates the Treatment Action Campaign (TAC) in Gauteng province.
"The Pope's teaching was limited. One understands the constraints on
him, but he was the one person who had the opportunity to make a
change. He lacked the will to make that change."
'Misunderstood'
Mr Ngonyama argues that the church's approach makes it difficult to
take an "integrated approach" to preventing the spread of HIV.
"If one is talking about an integrated approach, one must talk about
condoms: One can say that those who want to abstain can do so, but
that those who wish to use condoms because of their lifestyle must be
allowed to do so."
But one SACBC Aids programme staff member - who preferred to remain
anonymous - said Catholic teaching on condom use was often
misunderstood.
The church does, for example, condone the use of condoms between a
married couple where one partner is HIV-positive.
"The teaching is not against the use of condoms, but against the
casualisation of sex," the SACBC worker said.
Although the arrival of a new pope was unlikely to bring about a major
change, "there may be some slight shift in the recognition that some
people are not able to live in monogamous relationships - some bishops
already recognise that.
"The late Pope has been criticised for not coming out more clearly on
the recognition that conscience plays a role [in deciding whether to
use condoms] - the church's teaching is that informed conscience must
be the basis for a decision."
Although the SACBC HIV programme does not distribute condoms, it does
provide education and counselling on HIV prevention.
"A responsible way of doing counselling is to give people all the
facts they need to know how to protect themselves," the SACBC staff
member said.
TAC's national spokesman Nathan Geffen said he hoped that whoever is
elected to succeed John Paul "would be more liberal on social issues,
and would consider changing the Catholic Church's position on
reproductive choice and on the use of condoms".
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/world/africa/4417521.stm
Published: 2005/04/11 07:08:24 GMT
© BBC MMV
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| User: "Peter James" |
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| Title: Re: OT: Seeking a new Catholic lead on condoms |
12 Apr 2005 01:23:27 PM |
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On Mon, 11 Apr 2005 09:29:16 +0100, Therion Ware
<autodelete@city-of-dis.com> wrote:
It says here
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/4417521.stm
Seeking a new Catholic lead on condoms
By Justin Pearce
BBC News website, Johannesburg
snipped
Then you will wait a long, long time. How long did it ever take the
Catholic Church to admit it was in the wrong? In the case of Galileo,
for instance, 300 + years.
-
Peter James
Remove AT to reply
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| User: "HughBetcha" |
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| Title: Re: OT: Seeking a new Catholic lead on condoms |
12 Apr 2005 10:46:29 AM |
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Therion Ware <autodelete@city-of-dis.com> wrote in message news:<b8dk51db0ttr32d7ca5n3dnhqnlb6gn6k8@4ax.com>...
Thoraya Obaid, the head of the U.N. Population Fund, admonished the
Vatican today to change its teachings on condoms. Speaking of the
need for the Catholic Church to endorse condom use, she said, "We are
hoping the new pope will take this message further, because it makes
no sense sending people to their death." She urged the Church to
adopt a "morally correct decision" on how to stop HIV.
Catholic League president William Donohue spoke to this issue today:
"Is there anyone on the planet who doesn't know about the alleged
wonders of condoms? Yet, it is indisputably true that as condom use
has increased, so have sexually transmitted diseases (STD's). This is
not to say that condom use causes STD's, but it is to say that condom
use has not prevented the explosion in STD's. And this is because the
same culture that prizes sexual license—in all its expressions—is
morally incapable of sending a message of restraint.
"If Thoraya Obaid is truly concerned about HIV in Africa, she should
get the U.N. to endorse the teachings of the Catholic Church on
matters sexual. That is because the only real success story on that
continent is Uganda, a nation that has tailored its anti-HIV strategy
to the wisdom of Catholic sexual ethics. According to Edward C.
Green, a professor at the Harvard School of Public Health, ‘basic
behavioral changes in Uganda of 1987-95 have kept HIV prevalence
declining up until now.' The reason why the progress that has been
made is now in jeopardy has more to do with dropping the emphasis on
abstinence, he says, in exchange for a more condom-centered approach.
"Obaid is not only wrong on the issue, she is wrong on the cause of
deaths due to AIDS. It is near impossible for anyone to die of AIDS
(save for a blood transfusion) who follows the teachings of the
Catholic Church on sexuality. It is not the Catholic Church that is
causing Africans to die—or is responsible for a new strain of HIV
among homosexuals in New York City—it is behavioral recklessness."
www.catholicleague.org
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| User: "Paul Duca" |
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| Title: Re: OT: Seeking a new Catholic lead on condoms |
13 Apr 2005 02:11:24 AM |
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in article 5fbe142b.0504120746.19981f52@posting.google.com, HughBetcha at
gemond@canada.com wrote on 4/12/05 11:46 AM:
Therion Ware <autodelete@city-of-dis.com> wrote in message
news:<b8dk51db0ttr32d7ca5n3dnhqnlb6gn6k8@4ax.com>...
Thoraya Obaid, the head of the U.N. Population Fund, admonished the
Vatican today to change its teachings on condoms. Speaking of the
need for the Catholic Church to endorse condom use, she said, "We are
hoping the new pope will take this message further, because it makes
no sense sending people to their death." She urged the Church to
adopt a "morally correct decision" on how to stop HIV.
Catholic League president William Donohue spoke to this issue today:
\
Mr. Donahue has no authority on this subject, expect perhaps to the
Mrs. Donahue he keeps knocking up at regular intervals.
Paul
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