Współpracownicy Boga. „Humanae vitae” w świecie rodzicielskiej małoduszności

When Paul VI published the encyclical "Humanae vitae" fi{y years ago, not only did he confirm the unchanging position of the Church on artificial methods of birth control, but also elevated the status of parents. Parents were bestowed upon a title which the Church had previously mostly given only to apostlesand mystics – “free and responsible collaborators of God the Creator”. The present population decline within the Western civilisation appears to be strongly favoured by the mass “silent apostasy”, which manifests itself in practice as a “contraceptive mentality”. Couples' refusal of life goes hand in hand with the refusal to collaborate with the personal and active God. Although contraception involves the sexual sphere, it is a violation not of the Sixth Commandment (contrary to what one might think), but of the First one. The pill undoubtedly contributes radically to the changing of the vision of man, woman, loyalty and parental generosity, but most importantly, it is damaging to one's relation of trust with God. It is no longer God who decides upon the shape of life. Pope Paul VI spoke half a century ago from the position of one who took into serious consideration the prospect of eternal life and God's presence in the human existence. His objection to the voices of the majority only confirmed the fact that truth is not achieved by means of a survey or votingof a survey or voting.