Yet Another Comment on Humanae Vitae

This morning's high mass included Fr. D. devoting a small part of his sermon to the recent 40th anniversary of Pope Paul VI's encyclical Humanae Vitae.

Much written about and commented on this past Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, I had been lax in paying much attention to the expected bombardment of anniversary commentary whether it has been pro or con. Indeed, I have never put much study or personal importance on Humanae Vitae. My thought process was:

1. As both a cradle and "practicing" Catholic, I accept and believe (and not blindly) the True teaching of the Church about contraception; for me, personally, there was no need for the reaffirmation of these beliefs that were in Humanae Vitae (so I thought).
2. Even though Humanae Vitae is a papal encyclical of my lifetime by a pontiff I remember, it was simply a response to the faithful of the time that may have been wavering in traditional teaching, practice, and belief.

I suspect now that I was mistaken in both! What sparked my current extra-interest all of a sudden? Fr. D. happened to mention the insightful predictions made by Pope Paul VI in the encyclical. Reviewing it this afternoon and looking up some of the last few days' many news items and posts about it, I believe now that my careless inattention had much more to teach me than merely affirmations of Christian teaching about contraception. There was so much more to learn in its prognostic admonitions!

Many have evaluated this in a much more comprehensive way than I am capable of. I feel one of the best I found this afternoon is a great article, The Vindication of Humanae Vitae on First Things website. I highly recommend it. On the same site is a quick and good commentary I also recommend, The Anniversary of Humanae Vitae.