Nine out of 10 Church Leaders Approve of Contraception
A recent survey found that 90% of evangelicals in the NAE are okay with contraception. These days it’s probably not the most surprising survey result, but I can’t help but wonder how the results would have been 50 years ago around when the Pill first hit the streets in the US.
Here’s an excerpt from the Christian Post article:
The National Association of Evangelicals, which represents more than 45,000 churches in the United States, released a report Tuesday showing that nearly 90 percent approve of contraception.
Several leaders, however, expressed opposition to drugs or procedures that terminate a pregnancy once conception has taken place.
“Most associate evangelicals with Catholics in their steady leadership in pro-life advocacy, and rightly so,” said Leith Anderson, president of the NAE, in a statement. “But it may come as a surprise that unlike the Catholic church, we are open to contraception.”
Evangelicals in the pews hold similar views. A 2009 poll conducted by the NAE in partnership with Gallup, Inc., found that at least 90 percent of evangelicals say hormonal/barrier methods of contraception are morally acceptable for adults.
Surveyed leaders in the most recent poll said the purpose of sex is not limited to procreation but it extends to the consummation and expression of love within marriage.
Read the rest of the article at christianpost.com.
Whenever the question of contraception is raised in the context of Christian faith, I think of organizations like Quiverfull. One of their basic beliefs is that using contraception is taking control away from God and therefore wrong. It’s interesting to contrast Quiverfull’s theology with results from the NAE surveys. Both sides argue from the Bible. Both come to very different conclusions.
What do you think? Would you side with the majority of the NAE respondents or do you hold to a different view?
Prior to the turn of the century all denominations were opposed to contraception. At this time it wasn’t because of concern for the physical harm to women (which is now scientifically proven clearly) it was based on logical conclusion from scripture “what man has joined together let no man put asunder” ie the procreative and unitive aspects of a physical marital union has implications for the reality of the spiritual/emotional union of the couple.
If we as Christians truly believe the Lord’s words that declare children to be a blessing – then why do Protestants approve so readily to “blocking these blessings from the Lord”. If one believes God
s word “there is NONE created – HE did not create”.
In my opinion error thinking has crept into the Christian community which now believe – they are God and they have to have absolute control over creation of thier families, interesting that the timing of this divide is so strongly correlated with divorce and the breakdown of the family structure in society.
oops I meant “what God has joined together” …