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HOMER GLEN, Ill. — To celebrate the 50th anniversary of Blessed Pope Paul VI’s encyclical “Humanae Vitae,” Father Thomas J. Loya presented a series of lectures on the document during the first four weeks of the Great Fast.
Coincidentally, during Lent, March 6, Pope Francis signed a decree approving the canonization of Blessed Pope Paul VI. He will be declared a saint in late October at the end of the Synod of Bishops on youth and discernment. Blessed Paul VI was pope from 1963 to 1978.
Each lecture was delivered during a Wednesday evening Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts at Annunciation of the Mother of God Parish in Homer Glen, Illinois. The talks were also broadcasted live on the parish Facebook page.
In the first lecture, Father Loya spoke about the background and development of the encyclical, whose title translates into English as “On Human Life.”
Blessed Pope Paul VI perceived the threat of the secular world against the marital act shared by a husband and wife, in large part due to the introduction of oral contraception in 1960.
Father Loya said that in order to understand the teachings of “Humanae Vitae,” one must begin to see sacramentally, liturgically, eucharistically and mystically.
“‘Humanae Vitae’ can actually be understood easily in light of Byzantine spirituality because of the mystical character of the teaching,” Father Loya said.
During the second lecture, Father Loya spoke about how the marital act, above all,
comprises love, unity and life.
When contraception is introduced into the marital act it creates a lie. This action makes the marital act artificial and dishonest. If the womb of motherhood is no longer safe, then no place will be safe, he said.
A contraceptive worldview causes people to live their lives artificially. It disconnects them from others and allows them to dehumanize another person, he said.
In the third lecture, Father Loya outlined four predictions made by Blessed Pope Paul VI in “Humanae Vitae.”
The first prediction was that contraception would lead to both infidelity and a general decline in morality.
The second prediction was that men would lose respect for women, no longer caring for a woman’s physical and psychological stability, and would begin to consider them as instruments for selfish enjoyment rather than as respected and beloved companions.
His third prediction was that contraception would place a weapon into the hands of civil authorities who would not heed moral constraint.
His fourth prediction was that contraception would lead people to think they had unlimited control over their own bodies, leading to a rise in test tube babies, euthanasia, embryonic stem cell research, same-sex marriage and eugenics.
For all of its dire predictions, Father Loya stressed that “Humanae Vitae” is a positive document.
“It’s about helping couples to share in the love of God to become a union and communion of persons,” said Father Loya. Love between a husband and wife mirrors the love between Christ, the Bridegroom, and his wife, the church.
The church must safeguard the most holy union between a husband and wife and speak against anything that would come in-between that union to corrupt it, he said.
A sacramental act takes place in the bedroom and it is something that affects all of life, he continued.
Attendance at the four-part series averaged about 20 people each week; at press time, the videos had more than 1,000 views collectively on Facebook. The videos are available on the parish’s Facebook page.
Caption: Blessed Paul VI will be canonized a saint in late October, said Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican secretary of state, March 6. Pope Paul VI is seen in this portrait made in early 1969. (CNS photo)
As published in Horizons, March 25, 2018.
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