Contraception

Contraception is part of the life of many couples, Christians included. Should it be seen as a refusal of the gift of life? Or as a freedom that God leaves to spouses? This lesson examines the biblical texts often quoted, then opens up the more difficult question of abortion.

The case of Onan

The Bible does not speak of contraception in the modern sense. The passage that comes closest is found in Genesis 38:8-10. Onan, son of Judah, must marry Tamar, the widow of his elder brother, to give offspring to that brother. But when he lies with her, he lets his seed fall to the ground so as not to give a child to his brother. “And what he did was wicked in the sight of the LORD, and he put him to death also” (Genesis 38:10).

Should we conclude from this that God condemns all contraception? The context calls for caution. At that time, when a man died without children, his brother had to marry the widow to give him offspring. This is the law of levirate marriage, later taken up in Deuteronomy 25:5-6. Onan refuses this duty while taking advantage of the situation. Moreover, the line of Judah is the one from which David, and then Jesus, would come. It was in danger of dying out.

We therefore cannot draw from this text alone a condemnation of every sexual relationship without the aim of procreation. It does, however, invite reflection: the decision to have children, like the choice of a spouse or a career, deserves to be brought before God.

“Be fruitful”

In Genesis 1:28, God says to the first couple: “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it.” Is this a command for every couple? Here we meet a classic question about the Old Testament: is this text narrative, meaning that it recounts what was said in a particular situation, or normative, meaning that it lays down a rule for all time? This course regards it as narrative. What was at stake at the beginning of humanity was not the same as today.

Another text, 1 Timothy 2:11-15, is sometimes misinterpreted to the point of claiming that a woman without children could not be saved. That is not the meaning of this difficult passage, which must be read with caution and in its context.

Sexuality, only for having children?

Nowhere does the Bible state that sexual relations serve solely for procreation. Paul writes to married couples: “Do not deprive one another, except perhaps by agreement for a limited time” (1 Corinthians 7:5). Nothing here indicates that sexual relations are reserved for conceiving a child. What has changed since Paul is above all the methods, which have developed a great deal.

Why not want children?

Having children is a long-term commitment and a great responsibility. Some reasons for postponing or forgoing it can be entirely legitimate: lack of employment, frequent work travel, working in a dangerous area, a serious risk to the mother’s health, advanced age or a hereditary genetic disease. In some countries, the economic situation or a climate of discouragement also weigh in.

Selfishness can also motivate this choice. But we must be honest: people can also have children out of selfishness, to fill a void, without then knowing how to care for them. The question is therefore not only “to have children or not”, but “for what reasons”.

The methods

Most contraceptive methods prevent the sperm from meeting the egg. According to this course, the main ethical question arises when a method acts after fertilisation, by preventing an already fertilised egg from developing.

The author also raises an ecological question. The hormones from some contraceptives end up in wastewater, which treatment plants do not always manage to remove. Studies are examining their effects on aquatic wildlife, and perhaps on human health. Care for creation can therefore enter into the reflection of a Christian couple.

And abortion?

The question becomes more serious once a pregnancy has already begun. The Bible shows that God forms the child in its mother’s womb: “For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother’s womb” (Psalm 139:13). He knows the child before birth (Jeremiah 1:5; Galatians 1:15).

The author also draws on Exodus 21:22-25, which deals with the case of a pregnant woman struck during a fight. In his reading, the loss of the child falls under the law of retaliation, which would mean that the unborn child is regarded as a full human being, whatever the stage of pregnancy. It should be noted that the translation and interpretation of this passage are debated among specialists, and that not all read it this way.

The heart of the debate is knowing from what point the embryo is a human being. For some, from fertilisation; for others, later. The question connects with that of human nature: is the human being an indivisible whole, a body and a spirit (Genesis 2:7), or a body, a soul and a spirit (1 Thessalonians 5:23)? Do souls exist before the body, or does God create each soul at conception? These questions remain open.

Finally, the author warns against an overly radical attitude. There are painful situations that cannot be ignored: a woman whose life is in danger if the pregnancy continues, a pregnancy resulting from rape, a child with a serious illness diagnosed before birth. This course does not settle these cases, but invites us to approach them with seriousness and compassion.

In summary

No biblical passage clearly shows that God is opposed to contraception. But each couple is invited to examine their motives, to choose their methods with discernment and to pray. As for abortion, the most explicit text according to this course is Exodus 21:22-25, and the key question remains that of the moment when the embryo becomes a fully human being.