Like many pro-life writers, I spend my fair share of time interacting with the evangelical Protestant community. I find them zealous when it comes to combating abortion. In fact, their zeal is what usually tips me off about Christmas's approach. The first candle is barely lit on the Advent wreath when our evangelical brethren begin publishing a barrage of articles, reflections and sermons on the theme, "What if Mary had aborted Jesus?"
The question, of course, is rhetorical. One could not imagine Mother Mary aborting Baby Jesus. Such an action would have changed the course of salvation history for the worse, in that salvation would have become impossible without Christ to bridge the gap between God and man.
Thus our evangelical brethren mean no disrespect toward the Blessed Mother. They are simply pointing out the obvious: Mary was in a position not unlike that of many young single mothers, yet in choosing life, her actions greatly benefited mankind. Hence one should acknowledge that there is always the opportunity for an opening to God's grace whenever a woman finds herself with child.
Although the above argument originates from evangelical Protestants, I can accept it as a Catholic. Yet the majority of Evangelicals who I know – including those within the pro-life movement – promote contraception as permissible to Christians. Dr. Tim LaHaye, for example, is a founder of the US Moral Majority and the co-author of the popular evangelical apocalyptic Left Behind series. He is also a well-known example of an Evangelical who promotes contraception among married couples while claiming to be a pro-life Christian.
Nevertheless, whenever I encounter Evangelicals within the pro-life movement, I try to correct their erroneous view of contraception. These are often the same Evangelicals whom I watch debate abortion with mainline Protestants. I have seen them pop the "Would Mary have aborted Jesus?" argument during these intra-Protestant debates. With Christmas approaching, I knew they would be sharing reflections on our pro-life internet forum that ask the same question.
This got me thinking as we debated the morality of contraception: "What would have happened if Mary had contracepted Jesus?" The answer was obvious: the same as what evangelical Protestants propose would have happened if Mary had aborted Jesus. There would have been no Christmas morning. And without Christmas there would have been no Easter, no crucifixion and resurrection, and no salvation history. [Editor's note: The point here is not to contend that a "barrier method" would have prevented Mary conceiving Christ, but that fundamentally, contraception says "no" to God.]
In light of the similar outcome, I thought the Evangelicals with whom I debate would see the folly of their pro-contraception position. With one exception, however, my question was met first with stunned silence and then with outrage from our evangelical brethren. How dare I suggest that contraception was forbidden to Christians. "Where does the Bible condemn contraception?"
I found this last question strange, given that during a simultaneous debate with their mainline Protestant counterparts, the same evangelicals were asking: "Where does the Bible promote abortion?" Of course this was after the mainliners had pointed out that nowhere in the King James translation does one find the word "abortion".
As an aside, this taught me a valuable lesson about Protestants. When they oppose a practice as ungodly, they ask "Where does the Bible teach this practice?" When they favor a similar practice, the question changes to, "Where does the Bible condemn this practice?" Thus the Evangelical can say, "the Bible does not condemn contraception" while the Anglican states, "the Bible makes no mention of abortion."
Some Things Really Are Abominable
To be fair to Evangelicals and to mainline Protestants, they are both wrong. Holy Scripture clearly and explicitly condemns these abominable practices against the culture of life. While you never read the words "contraception" and "abortion" in the Bible, the early Church fathers understood these practices to be sorcery and witchcraft, which are mentioned.
The noted Jesuit catechist Fr. John A. Hardon, in his essay "Contraception: Fatal to the Faith and to Eternal Life," wrote:
In the Roman Empire of the first century of the Christian era, contraception was universally approved and practiced by the people…. In the language of the day, contraceptive practice was referred to as "using magic" and "using drugs." It was in this sense that the first century Teaching of the Twelve Apostles [Didiche] warns Christians in four successive precepts: "You shall not use magic." "You shall not use drugs." "You shall not procure abortion." "You shall not destroy an unborn child."
"The sequence of those prohibitions is significant," Father Hardon continues. "We know from the record of those times that women would first try some magical rites or use sorcery to avoid conception. If this failed, they would take one or another of then known seventeen medically approved contraceptives. If a woman still became pregnant, she would try to abort. And if even this failed, she and her male partner could always resort to infanticide, which was approved by Roman law."
"Christians were warned not to follow the example of their pagan contemporaries, who walked in darkness and the shadow of death," Father Hardon concludes. "Christians were absolutely forbidden to practice contraception, which leads to abortion, which leads to infanticide."
Not surprising, as Catholics prepare to celebrate the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Church of England, to quote one Anglican news source, "has joined one of Britain's royal medical colleges in calling for legal euthanasia of seriously disabled newborn babies…." This is the same Anglican Church that first accepted contraception as permissible to Christians. The rest of Protestantism soon followed. The Anglican Church then accepted abortion under certain extreme circumstances, and for the most part Protestantism has followed.
So where would we be if Mary had practiced contraception? As we prepare for Advent and the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ – as we prepare to celebrate the Gift that came through Mary's openness to life – I ask my evangelical Protestant brethren to ponder this question.
