Religious Beliefs about Contraception & Family Planning (AQA GCSE Religious Studies A (8062))

Contraception & Family Planning

Contraception and Family Planning

• Family planning is planning when to have a family and the size of that family by use of birth control practices and/or contraception

• Contraception or family planning refers to the methods used to prevent a pregnancy taking place

  • There are three types of contraception: natural, artificial, and permanent

  • Natural contraception methods include the rhythm method which involves tracking the menstrual cycle to work out the times when a woman would be most fertile and the couple should avoid sex

  • Artificial contraception means using something artificial to prevent a pregnancy from starting, such as a condom, the pill or a device like the coil. Some methods prevent the fertilised egg from developing, such as the ‘morning after’ pill

  • Permanent contraceptive methods involve making a person incapable of reproduction, for example, sterilisation

Contemporary British Attitudes Towards Contraception and Family Planning

• Most non-religious people in British society accept the use of contraception to help with family planning

• Many people think using contraception is a responsible action

  • It can prevent unwanted pregnancies

  • It helps people to plan their family

  • It can help stop the spread of sexually transmitted infections (STIs)

Christianity, Contraception & Family Planning

Christian Attitudes to Contraception and Family Planning

•  All Christians see children as a gift from God and a blessing on a marriage

• The Bible teaches that God commanded

• However, Christians realise that there may be times when it would not be responsible to bring children into the world

  • People might delay having a child for economic, environmental, or physical reasons

• Although all Christians view family planning as responsible behaviour, they disagree on which methods of contraception are acceptable

• Some Christians, such as the Catholic and Orthodox Church, teach that only natural contraception should be used for family planning

  • The Catholic Church teaches that every sexual act must be open to the possibility of creating new life

  • The purpose of having sex is not only to express love but also to have children

  • Using artificial contraception goes against natural law and the purpose of marriage

  • It encourages selfishness and being unfaithful

• Many Christians believe that artificial contraception is acceptable for couples to plan their families responsibly

  • The Church of England approves of artificial contraception

• Christians who believe that life starts from the moment of conception are against any contraceptive method that prevents the fertilised egg from developing, as this would be seen as causing an abortion and therefore a form of killing

• Many religious people do not agree with sterilisation, which permanently prevents people from having children

Islam, Contraception & Family Planning

• Muslims believe that contraception is not for unmarried people

• Many Muslims believe both natural and artificial contraception methods may be used within a marriage for family planning reasons, but not to avoid having children altogether

  • It is acceptable to use it to protect the mothers health, to help space out pregnancies, or to avoid serious financial difficulties

  • They support their views by saying that God (Allah) would not want to make life difficult for people

• Some Muslims are against the use of artificial contraception because it goes against God’s plan

  • They think that God gives people strength to cope with children

  • They support their views by saying that this teaching (which is about killing infants once they are born) is also in support of not using contraception

•  Permanent forms of contraception like sterilisation are not permitted