The Encyclical letter of Pope Paul VI on the transmission of life is a fulfillment of the Church’s responsibility to “proclaim with humble firmness the entire moral law.” Pope Paul himself has referred to the fact that this teaching will not be easily received by all. I welcome it as a clear, unequivocal statement of Catholic teaching on a matter of vital importance.

Four years ago the Holy Father promised a study of this subject. He then declared that the traditional Catholic teaching on birth control remained in force. In spite of this, some Catholics, in good faith, have felt that the Church’s teaching on this matter was in a state of doubt. They believed, therefore, that they could follow an opinion contrary to the traditional teaching. The present encyclical states the Catholic teaching very clearly and certainly puts an end to any doubt.

The Second Vatican Council, in its Constitution on the Church states that “in matters of faith and morals the bishops speak in the name of Christ, and the faithful are to accept their teaching and adhere to it with a religious assent of soul.” The same Constitution goes on to point out that “this religious submission of will and of mind must be shown in a special way to the authentic teaching authority of the Roman Pontiff even when he is not speaking ex cathedra. That is, it must be shown in such a way that his supreme magisterium is acknowledged with reverence, the judgments made by him are sincerely adhered to, according to his manifest mind and will.

I believe it is eminently clear that the encyclical letter of the Holy Father constitutes an exercise of his ordinary magisterium, of his office as chief teacher of the Catholic Church, and therefore that it calls for a sincere adherence to his judgment.

It should be noted from the Encyclical that His Holiness has given most serious consideration to the reasons brought forth to justify a change in the traditional teaching; that he has labored arduously to avail himself of the advice of experts, not only in theology, but in many relevant fields, scripture, science, sociology, demography, economics, education, philosophy and others. He has added married couples to the advisory commission. Having done all these things, in his own words “having attentively sifted the documentation laid before him, after mature reflection and assiduous prayer,” he gave his reply to these grave questions.

It is important to note that the Holy Father, in the Encyclical, appealed to public authority to remedy conditions which militate against the social and economic progress both of individuals and human society. He encouraged men of science to pool their efforts to explore more thoroughly the various conditions favoring a proper regulation of births. He praised doctors and medical personnel who are conscious of their Christian vocation and urged them to promote the discovery of solutions imposed by faith and right reason.

This Encyclical quite obviously has not been written in haste, or isolation, or without a deep concern for human values and human persons. Rather, after exhaustive consultation and study, after agonizing prayer and reflection in a spirit of love and compassion, Pope Paul, Successor of Saint Peter, Chief Teacher of the Catholic Church, has courageously filled his duty. As a bishop of that Church, I pledge myself to accept, profess and teach the doctrine set forth in this Encyclical.

Thomas A. Donnellan

Archbishop of Atlanta