You may remember a few posts back that I mentioned two Peers and the debate about the Catholic Church and Condoms in the fight against HIV.
Below is my letter to them,,,
Baroness Flather of Maidenhead
The House of Lords
Westminster
London SW
6 April 2008
My Lady,
I am aware of your many discourses on the subject of HIV/AIDS pandemic on the African continent in the Upper House and elsewhere. I am also aware that for a reason known only to yourself you are inclined to place the blame for this human tragedy on the Catholic Church.
You may wish to know what the Catholic Church teaches and believes on this matter. Firstly , that sexual intercourse may occur only within a marriage, between two spouses. Any sexual encounter outside of the marriage context is illicit and is commonly called fornication. For those who remain unmarried chastity (abstinence) is a valid state and is greatly to be desired. Therefore chastity without marriage, and continence within marriage are the sole guarantors against HIV infection or indeed against any STD infection. Abstinence is the key.
Condoms are absolutely not the answer to this situation. You will be aware one hopes of the failure rate of Condoms, which reaches near to 20 % in some studies (1-in-5). You will also be aware that the latex of the average condom does contain holes of microscopic proportions through which infection can and does travel.
To use a condom is said to be practising ‘safe’ sex. Well, actually no. Over twenty years ago as a counsellor in a street drugs agency the message I was told to give to our service users was not to use the word ‘safe’in this context. The preferred word was ‘safer’ but that the risks of condom sex were to be spelt out to the clients.
So, to return to the Catholic Church. The Church teaches the faithful that sex is something which may occur only within marriage. The spouses are to be loyal and faithful to each other and to practice continence within the marriage.
For those outside marriage sex is not allowed. Yes, I will put it as strongly as that. That means not just hetero, but homo, trans, bi and any other personal preference of sex with or to. This is fornication which is a mortal sin. Those Catholics who are faithful and serious followers of the faith will have no difficulty with this teaching since the church has taught it from the beginning and chastity has Biblical backing.
my Lady, I have some difficulty in following the logic of your argument with regard to the Catholic Church being the principle obstacle to the resolution of the HIV pandemic in Africa. Perhaps you can explain it to me? As I understand you, the Catholic Church refuses to support the use of condoms in Africa. This leads to the continued infection of Africans.
my Lady, I find this argument to be so absurd and illogical. You lack any statistical method by which you might assert this argument. Do you even know how many Catholics there might be on the Continent of Africa? And do you suppose that if Catholics were ignoring the major teaching of abstinence and chastity in this matter, that they would bother to heed the call of the church to use a condom?
I think you would agree with me that South Africa has possibly the highest rate of HIV infection in the Continent? Given that Catholics are fewer than 10% of that countries population I cannot see in what way or manner the Catholic Church can be seen to be blamed for the HIV situation in South Africa. Can you? I would not expect any non-Catholic to heed the voice of the Catholic Church on the issue of fornication or using condoms as protection against STD’s or on anything else for that matter. It is a fact, easily verified that the Catholic religion is actually the minority Christian faith on the African continent and that, overall Islam is better represented on that continent.
I believe, and common sense would appear to support me, that abstinence from any sexual activity is the safest way to avoid contamination from any form of sexually transmitted disease.
I am perfectly capable of controlling my sexual urges, passions and lusts. I am sure that you are too. That is human nature. We all have a conscience and we all understand right from wrong. This is a universal phenomenon. I think that what disturbs me the most about the call to deluge the African continent with Condoms as if this was the sole and only solution to this dreadful disease is, I feel, inherently racist. It seems to me that the message behind the Condoms to Africa movement is one of acute racism and which is beholden of some very archaic colonialist thinking. my Lady, what your message in support of condom distribution in Africa says is this ( I use parody): “Those Africans; children, animals.” What I mean is that the logic which supports your position does not allow for Africans possessing the same nature as you and I. Indeed, the message which your policy seems to put across is that the African is, at best a child who cannot help himself but must be always engaging in promiscuous sex. Or that the African is actually a mere animal who, just like a dog must engage in sexual intercourse when confronted by the bitch on heat.
Thank God that the Catholic Church has a higher view of humanity than do the Secularists and the so called Humanists. That is why the Catholic Church calls for abstinence from sexual activity outside of the Sacrament of Marriage.
The real issue in the debate on HIV infection on the African Continent is surely this; that the only guaranteed way of avoiding infection (from any STD and not just HIV) is not to engage in sex with multiple partners. Africans need to hear the correct message; that only celibacy outside marriage, and continence (loyalty to one’s spouse) within marriage can give any guarantee of avoiding infection. The condom message gives entirely the wrong message, namely one that fully supports promiscuous sexual activity.
My Lady, I am forced to the conclusion that your position on this issue, and your, sometimes intemperate language towards the Catholic Church in the many debates in the House in which you have contributed, is motivated entirely by plain, old-fashioned anti-Catholic bigotry.
Yours sincerely
Clive Baulch
Here is the reply which I received from the good Lady.
Dear Mr. Baulch
You talk about the teachings of the Catholic Church which is to practise abstience and chastity and no relationships outside marriage. Would it surprise you to know that every other religion teaches the same? So then what is the difference? The other religions accept the fallibility of human beings and do not put restrictions of the kind which people are not going to follow. I would have thought that a person as intelligent as you appear to be would understand that not everyone or in fact hardly anyone is like yourself. Should the rules be for the one or two exceptions like yourself, or should the rules be such that they will help those who constantly fall off the pedestal?
I am sorry to say that it is complete nonsense to say that the condoms do not help STDs or protect from HIV infection. If you go on saying these things you just join the Embeke group of heads in the bucket people. The two biggest problems facing the world today are overpopulation and the spread of HIV, both of which require some intervention. The Catholic church does not allow any kind of family planning devices or condoms which would be helpful in both.
I accept the fact that everybody is not a Catholic but the catholic church does have influence and BEPFAR, President Bush's fund for AIDS alleviation in Africa is being largely administered through catholic churches. That surely would have an enormous impact on the efficacy of the money spent. Most of it is being wasted on a "pie in the sky" dream of promoting abstinence. You say that I am motivated by bigotry/ I am not motivated by bigotry, I am motivated by facts. It is the Catholics who never cease to surprise me by their bigotry.
I will not argue with you anymore. We will just have to accept the fact that I view the world reslistically and you view the world from your own moral standpoint, but perhaps you could explain to me how your own prists have been buggering little boys in their care?
Just found your blog. Very interesting.
I am not surprised by the bizarre letter of reply you received. I have long read similar comments from similar 'experts' on HIV, blinded by their arrogance and yes, bigotry. They seem to be blissfully unaware of the actual facts around HIV, it's spread and who does the majority of picking up the pieces-The Catholic Church.
The over population myth she managed to add in there just about proves her deep ignorance.
God help us!
Posted by: Shell | 04/25/2008 at 02:17 PM