Steven Bozza, MANowhere in the life of a married couple is the benefits of courting one’s spouse more evident than in the practice of Natural Family Planning. Natural Family Planning is most often associated with avoiding or delaying pregnancy. However, to limit NFP to only this perspective is to limit its potential to lift up the dignity of marriage and human sexuality, its ability to deepen the faith of the couple and to strengthen their commitment to accept God’s vocation for their marriage. Through the practice of NFP, husbands and wives come to a rich understanding of their power to cooperate with God in the begetting of new life. The periodic abstinence which is part of the NFP process builds within the couple a mastery of self. Mutual abstinence becomes an expression of love and respect. It also encourages them to communicate more effectively with each other. They discuss their intimacy on a regular basis while cooperating with each other and God. Husbands become more attentive to their wives disposition on a daily basis. For couples unable to conceive, Natural Family Planning can assist the physician to diagnose the cause of the difficulty. In cases where there is a slight compromise in fertility, NFP can aid conception by allowing the couple to detect when ovulation is likely to occur and therefore time the marital act accordingly. Sometimes, serious reasons exist which require couples to delay or space childbirth. These reasons may be physical, psychological or financial. The Church teaches that it is right for couple to celebrate their marriage only in the woman’s infertile time and to abstain during the fertile time if these reasons are present. Some may say that Natural Family Planning and contraception are the same since in both cases there is a will to avoid pregnancy. However, NFP taps into the natural function of a woman’s body while contraception disrupts it. Add this to the benefits NFP gives to couples by teaching them to master themselves, their emotions and actions, and its ability to allow couples to creatively express affection without intercourse and one finds that marriages are strengthened and human dignity is upheld. |
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