As scientific discoveries go, the male contraceptive pill has long been considered the unicorn of reproductive healthcare – much touted, but frustratingly elusive (in part, hindered by big pharma’s lack of desire to fund research). But on Sunday, Washington University scientists at the annual Endocrine conference hailed early trials which showed that a once-daily tablet that Read more
Jon O’Brien, President of a US lobbyist organisation Catholic for Choice (CFC), was a keynote speaker at the Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights Conference Aotearoa New Zealand which took place at Te Papa Tongarewa, Te Whanganui-a-Tara on the weekend. The title of his presentation was “Manufacturing Stigma: How Religious Healthcare Could Damage Your Health”. Read more
Religious parents are unthinking, irresponsible, reckless, diseased and feeble-minded. People of faith “should not be allowed to bring offspring into the world.” These opinions came from Margaret Sanger (1879-1966), who founded the Planned Parenthood birth control movement. Planned Parenthood celebrated its 100th birthday on October 16. The celebrations drew applause from pro-abortion feminists, praise from President Barack Read more
Emeritus Pope Benedict XVI has revealed that while he agreed with the conclusion Pope Paul VI drew in his encyclical letter (Humanae Vitae) on artificial contraception, he struggled with the reasoning Pope Paul used to arrive at his conclusion. “In the situation I was then in, and in the context of theological thinking in which Read more
A Wairoa pharmacist refuses to sell the emergency contraceptive pill over her counter because of personal beliefs. To be eligible to sell the emergency contraceptive pill, commonly referred to as the morning-after pill, pharmacists have to complete a course. Owner Elsa Norvil says she will not do this, for personal reasons. “I am not prepared Read more
The Vatican has dampened claims Pope Francis has signalled a significant relaxation of the Church’s ban on contraception as a response to the Zika virus outbreak. In a press conference aboard the papal flight to Rome from Mexico, Francis was asked if the grave nature of the virus – which is linked to serious birth Read more
The outbreak of the Ziak virus has created a dilemma for the church says Quentin de la Bedoyere. It is strongly suspected, though not fully proven, that, in some pregnant women, it causes microcephaly in the foetus. (Microcephaly is a severe shrinkage of the brain, which damages brain function.) Writing in the Catholic Herald Quentin Read more
Two Jesuit academics expect the Church will stay silent on married couples using contraception in countries where the Zika virus is active. Health officials in some Latin American nations have advised women not to get pregnant. This is because the virus, which is typically transmitted by the Aedes aegypti mosquito, has been linked to cases Read more
Both Family First and Family Planning agree that careful consideration should be given before someone under that age of 16 is put on some form of contraception. While family Planning say, “the general idea is to have it before it’s needed,” they say caution must be exercised. “There’s no minimal age, but there are cautions Read more
An Irish theologian has slated US bishops for making “Humanae Vitae” into a “fetish” by which the Catholic Church is publicly known. Augustinian Fr Gabriel Daly said the 1968 encyclical by Pope Paul VI which banned contraception had never been accepted by the Church at large. The priest, 88, said this is in a lecture Read more