Summary: Chapter VIII (II) Protagonists in the shadows (II): Thomas Hayes and Alan S. Parkes I. Hayes and the “reproductive act” Thomas Hayes introduced the novel concept of the “reproductive act,” opposing it to the singular sexual act. The author intended in this way to discredit the moral doctrine about sexuality based on natural law …
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Summary: Chapter VIII (I) Protagonists in the shade (I): Edward C. Hughes y Raymond Holden I. Edward C. Hughes and obstetric-gynecological terminology Edward C. Hughes was one of the creators in 1951 of the American Academy of Obstetrics and Gynecology, which soon after was renamed the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG). He chaired …
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Summary: Chapter VII The Medico-Biological Aspect of the Papal Commission for the Study of the Problems of the Family, Population, and Birth Rate Nobody who has taken an interest in the ethical aspects of contraception can ignore the important role they played in the deliberations of the Papal Commission for the Study of the …
Summary: Chapter 6 Changing words to change minds I. Introduction In the minds of its pioneers and in the opinion of the general public, contraception was, by definition, understood to mean the prevention of conception, understood as the prevention of fertilization. In fact, this understanding endured through the middle of the twentieth century. In the …
Summary: Chapter V Jurists approve abortive contraception I. The Model Penal Code of the American Institute of Law (ALI) The American Law Institute (ALI) is a private entity, founded in 1923 by lawyers, judges, and academics to study, clarify, and modernize American law at all levels. One of ALI’s most important project was the …
Summary: Chapter 4 Catholic Doctors and the Resolutions of the AMA on Contraception In this chapter we will study the relationship that the Catholic doctors of the United States maintained with the Report that the Committee for the Study of Contraceptive Practices issued in 1937, and the causes that originated the institutional Resolution that approved those practices.
Summary: Chapter 3 The Medical Profession Before Contraception: From Rejection To Acceptance I. Introduction: Institutional Contempt For Contraception In general, and until well into the twentieth century, institutional medicine adopted a negative attitude towards contraception. In contrast to their rejection by most doctors, the use of contraceptive methods spread among the general public, especially the well-off. The expansion of contraception use prompted the lucrative production and trade of contraceptive agents (some ineffective and potentially harmful).
Summary: Chapter 2 The first contraception and its incompatibility with abortion In this chapter we will show how, in the mind of the creators of contraception, not only is it something distinct from abortion, but it is, by definition, incompatible with it. The theme is of great interest and relevance. The dominant idea in bioethics and medicine is, and has been for some decades, that there is an uninterrupted continuity between contraception and abortion.
Summary: Chapter 1 The Origins Of Modern Contraception: Three Terms And Three Attitudes This chapter considers the origin of three terms: contraception, prevenception, and birth control, which for decades have referred to the prevention of conception. Given the confusion that has prevailed, it is appropriate to clarify the history of how these words were born. Moreover, it is interesting to delve into a story which reveals how different the mentality and the aims of the pioneers of contraception control were.
It will soon be fifty years since the publication of the Encyclical Humanae vitae of Blessed Pope Paul VI, a moment that invites us to speak and write extensively about his doctrine and also the encyclical’s impact inside and outside of the Catholic Church. It is often said that the encyclical is one of the …
