For my conversation English class we were talking about moral dilemmas. One of the students, who is deeply religious, said that a moral dilemma for him was for him and his wife to use birth control since it was forbidden by his denomination. He and his wife chose to use birth control; however, they most likely felt guilt because it “interfered” with what their religion told them.

The implications of trying to stop the use of birth control may not only have negative effects on the individual family, but the health of the whole society. Perhaps 500 years ago when we were living in an agricultural society, limiting the number of children was not much of an issue. However, now in an industrialized society the whole reality has changed. Overpopulation is becoming a huge problem, and climate change continues to increase as the population and consumption continue to increase.

The restriction of birth control and poverty also go hand in hand. It is quite counterproductive to try and fight the poverty without dealing with one of the major roots of the problem, overpopulation and parents not being able to provide for their children. I understand there are some ideas that may be extreme in this area, such as the one child policy in China. However, just because there can be error on one side does not mean that religious leaders should fail to see the danger on the other side.

In the name of promoting a religious restriction which is never found in the Bible, the church can be doing a lot of damage to the whole of society. We are entering in serious times both environmentally and financially, and people to have make responsible choices regarding having children. In the Bible, God tells the Israelis living in Babylon to seek the peace or to seek the good of the city. Religious institutions need to take the same stand and reexamine if their ideologies are having a negative effect on the whole of society. Aldous Huxley put it well

“Consider the problem of over-population. Rapidly mounting human numbers are pressing ever more heavily on natural resources. What is to be done?… The annual increase of numbers should be reduced. But how? We are given two choices — famine, pestilence and war on the one hand, birth control on the other. Most of us choose birth control”