BIRTH CONTROL CONDEMNED

Evening Star, Issue 18031, 27 July 1922, Page 1

BIRTH CONTROL CONDEMNED

Anciißi-aior mrs opinion. Wo take it as an ominous presage of overwhelming immorality, ruinous to individuals, to families, and to conn-, tries. It is criminal—an anticipated murder.—Archbishop Kelly. Thus (says the Sydney ‘Sun’) the Roman Catholic Church condemns birth control, according to a statement issued by Archbishop Kelly. “ The ca-blo message regarding the fifth International Birth. Control Conference informs us,” tho statement reads, “ that ‘ tlw whole world was ready for the doctrine of birth control; that all organised opposition was dead to-day, except in the case - the. Roman Cathol'ic Church; that the o. . .ry of all denominations vied with docloi a and lawyers in having the smallest families; that the only practicable method of securing social purity was tho promotion of sexual purity through, the advo- _ cany of general early marriage, rendered ’ possible by tho removal of the foa-r .of large families; and that 20.000,000 people had adopted family restriction within the last forty-live years.’ Moreover, tho Catholic attitude is challenged as ‘ a naked display of bigotry and intolerance.’ “May it*here be observed how far astray intellectual and sensual culture will go, apart- from tho guidance of moral, and of religious truth I ‘‘Passing over the consideration of chastity in conjugal relations as an integral part of the cardinal virtue of temperance we teach binh control in any sense but that of voluntary continueuoo to ho immoral, criminal, blighting, and utterly destructive of happiness here and hereal’ler.

“The rule of morality or reason is that mankind be Jed to self-conservation, and to increase as the Creator ana Sovereign Lend ordained. For example, to eat for mere pleasures of appetite Mid then defraud the body of its nourishment by vomiting is an excess of degradation to which gluttony led the pagan Sybarites of ancient Rome, Likewise, and surely no loss reprehensible, airo the twenty million people who, within forty yearn, as the cable states, have adopted family limitation.

“ There is « worse aspect of birth control—it is criminal. It violates the supremo right to life on the pant of'offspring a.s against the should-be parents. It is an anticipated murder. It means the deliberate frustration of the Creator’s power, the suicide 1 of race, the decay of particular nations. “ Finally, it is inexcusable. ’ N T o man has license to sin’ (Eccli. xv., 21). A Inch authority lacs pronounced this sentence : ‘The "sole cause why God established marriage from the beginning wa« that man might obtain the blessing of children; whence married persons, who, by medicine, either prevent conception or procure abortion are guilty of a most heinous crime; for this is to bo considered *n imoious conspiracy of murderers.’ ”