Gospel of Life Conference: a modern assessment of Catholic beliefs

Annual conference to explore 40 years of ‘Humanae Vitae’

By Denver Catholic Register

Ten years ago, on the 30th anniversary of “Humanae Vitae,” Pope Paul VI’s encyclical on married love and procreation, Archbishop Charles Chaput, O.F.M. Cap., wrote: “‘Humanae Vitae,’ which reaffirmed the Church’s constant teaching on the regulation of births…is certainly the most misunderstood papal intervention of this century. … With the passage of time, however, it has also proven prophetic.”

“Building on the prelate’s words, the 2008 Gospel of Life Conference will look at ‘Humanae Vitae’ from four decades removed,” said Mimi Eckstein, director of the Respect Life Office and an organizer of the archdiocesan conference.  “The conference will look at how the document has impacted the Church, family and society.”

The conference, “‘Humanae Vitae’: 40 Years Later,” will explore the theme “The message of ‘Humanae Vitae,’ then and now” through talks and a panel discussion.

Denver Auxiliary Bishop James D. Conley and Alice von Hildebrand, noted professor, writer and lecturer, will deliver keynote addresses giving a contemporary reassessment of this controversial but prophetic document of Catholic teaching on human sexuality. 

Archbishop Chaput will be the main celebrant at the opening Mass. Christine and Christian Meert, founders of Marriage Preparation Online, will participate with the keynoters in an afternoon panel discussion. The Meerts will share their personal testimonies as well as offer practical application of the document.
Alice von Hildebrand and her husband Dietrich were fully involved in the Church in 1968, when “Humanae Vitae” was promulgated. Dietrich, considered a foremost intellectual of that time, defended the courage of the pope’s teaching in the essay “‘Humanae Vitae’: A Sign of Contradiction.” Alice earned her doctorate in philosophy from Fordham University.  She has lectured extensively and is professor emeritus at Hunter College of the City University of New York. Her presentation will paint a picture of the world’s reaction to the original release of “Humanae Vitae” and will consider it in light of the social circumstances of 1968. In addition, she will offer her personal experience of a spousal relationship within the context of the encyclical.

“My theme will be that in order to understand the gravity of the sin of artificial contraception, one has to start from the beautiful plan that God had in mind in creating male and female,” Hildebrand told the Denver Catholic Register. “Once the beauty of this ‘divine invention’ is cast aside, the door is open for every abuse of this mysterious sphere in which man and woman become one flesh, and are deigned to collaborate with God in pro-creating.”

Bishop Conley will consider the predictions made in “Humane Vitae.” He will also recount pastoral experiences with couples as they embraced the joys and struggles felt while striving to live a life within the document’s guidelines.
The conference is from 8 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 25 at the John Paul II Center.  After the opening Mass in Christ the King Chapel, continental breakfast will be served in Bonfils Hall at 8:45 a.m. followed by the conference talks. Conference cost is $15, which includes breakfast, lunch and materials.
“I believe the message of ‘Humanae Vitae’ is not a burden but a joy,”

Archbishop Chaput asserted in his 1998 pastoral letter on the truth and meaning of married love. “I believe that this encyclical offers a key to deeper, richer marriages.  And so what I seek from the family of our local Church is not just a respectful nod toward a document which critics dismiss as irrelevant, but an active and sustained effort to study ‘Humanae Vitae’; to teach it faithfully in our parishes; and to encourage our married couples to live it.”

“This conference aims to help the faithful to do that,” Eckstein said.
For further information and registration, call 303-715-3205 or e-mail respectlife.office@archden.org.  Other archdiocesan office co-sponsors include the Archbishop’s Office, Marriage and Family Life, Catechesis and Evangelization; Youth, Young Adult and Campus Ministry; Communications and Natural Family Planning organizations.