Natural family planning: a blessing and gift to couples

By Archbishop Charles Chaput, O.F.M. Cap.

Next week, July 21 - 27, marks National Natural Family Planning (NFP) Week. The U.S. bishops chose this timeframe because two important dates fall within it. July 25 marks the 34th anniversary of Pope Paul VI's encyclical "Humanae Vitae," and July 26 is the feast of Saints Joachim and Ann, the parents of the Mary. The weeklong celebration seeks to increase awareness of the beauty of natural family planning.

Several years ago I wrote a pastoral letter on the meaning of married love. I reflected on the wisdom of Pope Paul VI in discussing the bitter effects society would suffer when the use of contraception became widespread. We still suffer from these effects. As an alternative, Paul VI held out to married couples a way to experience the true happiness of their sexuality.

Through NFP, couples have the means to exercise responsible parenthood in a manner consistent with Church teaching. Modern NFP relies on natural methods that help couples plan for a large family or, for serious reasons, avoid a pregnancy. Every NFP instructor knows that God has so designed the woman's cycle of fertility that at certain times she is fertile and at other times not. Every woman's body produces natural, observable signs of fertility; therefore, modern means of NFP instruct couples to identify what those signs are and to use them to interpret what part of the cycle the woman is in.

The use of NFP has helped many couples who've had difficulty in conceiving, to conceive. At the same time, couples who do have a serious reason to postpone pregnancy can use NFP to abstain from sexual intimacy during the fertile time of the cycle.

NFP is thoroughly scientific in its biology. Lived consistently and properly, NFP is more than 98 percent effective. But it is not pure scientific knowledge. It's a way of life. Both husband and wife share the duties of responsible parenthood. This leads to greater communication and trust between the couple themselves and in their relationship with God. It's small wonder that couples that practice NFP have less than a 3 percent divorce rate (the current divorce rate for first time marriages in our nation is 50 percent). This is just one reason why a full course-load of NFP instruction is a vital part of archdiocesan marriage preparation.

During this national week of awareness for NFP, I want to thank those married couples who live their parenthood in an authentic and responsible way. In particular, I want to extend my gratitude to the 24 married couples who sacrifice so unselfishly to teach NFP throughout the archdiocese. I sincerely hope that more married couples will hear the call to participate in this important apostolate.

I also want to encourage all married couples to spend time during this week to reflect on their marriage and the way they live their parenthood. If you've never taken a class in NFP, now's a great time to do so.

Please contact the Archdiocesan NFP Phone Hotline at 303-715-3239 for a list of scheduled classes and registration information, or call the Office of Marriage and Family Life at 303-715-3259 for additional resources.

Those who make NFP part of their married life very soon understand that it's a blessing and gift.