NFP respects human dignity, natural law, says speaker

Published: 2007-07-26

NOTRE DAME, Ind. (CNS) -- In deciding a correct course of action, a person must determine not just whether a means is efficient, but, more importantly, whether it respects the dignity of the person and natural law, a physician told a University of Notre Dame audience July 15. Natural family planning, known as NFP, not only provides efficient family planning without side effects, but also is ethical because it respects both the unitive and procreative purposes of marriage, said Dr. Maria del Pilar Calva Mercado of Mexico. NFP teaches couples to identify the fertile days in a woman's cycle so that the couple can avoid or achieve pregnancy. Calva Mercado teaches genetics and bioethics at the university level. She is also a member of the Pontifical Academy for Life and serves on the Commission for the Family for the Bioethics Council of the Mexican Episcopal Conference. With her at Notre Dame was Judith Leonard, director of the Office of Family Life and Natural Family Planning for the Diocese of Wichita, Kan.

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