A theological look at Humanae Vitae

Every July 25, the Church celebrates the feast of St. James, which is immediately followed by the feast of Ann and Joachim, the parents of the Blessed Virgin Mary. These days are linked by the non-Biblical but important work the Protoevangelium of James, which details Mary’s young life with her parents (and is how we know their names) and her dedication to virginity, before and after her marriage to Joseph and the birth of Jesus. This year, July 25 also marks the 50th anniversary of the Church’s proclamation through the successor of another apostle, on the entire vocation of married life – Humanae Vitae.

In this letter to the Church, Pope Paul VI reaffirmed the intrinsic ends of the human sexual act as necessarily both unitive and procreative. Pope Paul VI, echoing St. Paul, argues that this is not his own teaching about sex and marriage, but the nature of who we are as beings created male and female.

Alongside his affirmation of the Church’s ancient tradition that all sexual acts ought to take place in marriage and be directed toward life, Paul VI adapts the Church’s teaching considering new technological advances in terms of artificial contraception. This adaptation does not come in the form of watering down the teaching, but as an exhortation to recommit to understanding the dignity of the human person. The pope, who will be canonized this year, argues not only by way of theological proposition but by a series of important prophetic claims.

If we fail as individuals and a society to follow this teaching, he said that the following would occur:

• A marked increase in marital infidelity and a general lowering of moral standards
• Men will forget the dignity of and reverence due women and disregard her physical and emotional well-being
• Men will no longer see a woman as a partner to care for, but reduce women to being a mere instrument for the satisfaction of their own desires
• If the definition of marriage and sex can be changed then governments will define sex and limit procreation as they see fit
• People will think they have unlimited dominion over their own bodies to do whatever they want with them

It doesn’t take too much investigation to see how far our culture’s understanding of sex, marriage, and the human body have changed over the last 50 years. The prevalent national conversations about transgenderism, same-sex marriage, and the ubiquity of pornography would have been unthinkable even 25 years ago. Fifty years ago, it would have likewise been unthinkable for countries to control family size and family planning education/distribution. And, while it may be impossible to establish a causal link between our current culture’s approach to sex and the use of artificial birth control, Blessed Paul VI’s prophetic claims are meant to be a diagnosis of a spreading problem and, importantly, as an invitation.

If we look back at the predictions Paul VI makes, we can see his diagnosis throughout, that of loneliness. Consistently, the temptation presented to us in the misunderstanding of our sexuality is to not trust: don’t trust God, your spouse, or your parents. Because we can’t trust these things, but want to be mature and “responsible,” the only solution is to isolate and control. This is what our culture has been exposed to for 50 years—trying to control, not trust—that has left many people broken and hurt and has not looked very much like real freedom.

Toward the end of his encyclical, Paul VI emphasizes that the couple who strives for self-discipline and chastity finds that it does not hinder their marriage, but it makes it more truly human and freer, which in turn more fully develops their personalities as well as their family life. This exhortation should not minimize the challenge of marital chastity; it is not easy to swim against the cultural tide, and it is not easy to climb this mountain of chastity. But in the wrestling and striving, we find ourselves freer, more authentically human, and fulfilling the positive prophesy of Blessed Paul VI. July 25 is the feast of St. James, who is often known for two things: his link to Mary, and the famous pilgrimage of St. James—the arduous Camino de Santiago on which many have discovered themselves more fully. In this 50th year of Humanae Vitae, may we be inspired to walk anew with Mary our own path of chastity in our pilgrimage toward heaven.