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 TOPIC 32.2
THE SIXTH COMMANDMENT (pt. 2)
Living Chastity in Marriage

References: Compendium of the Catechism of the Cathol ic Church, QQ 495-502;

Catechism oft he Cat holic Church, nos. 2360-2391

Supplementary readi ng: htt ps:/ /opusdei .org/en/arti cle/topic-32-the-sixth-commandment/

 THE SIXTH COMMANDMENT

You shall not commit adultery

What are the goods of conjugal love What is the meaning When is it moral What are the immoral means
to which sexuality is ordered? of the conjugal act? to regulate births? of birth control?

Why are artificial insemination How should children What can spouses do when What are the offenses against the
and artificial fertilization immoral? be considered? they do not have children? dignity of marriage?
 What are the goods
of conjugal love
to which sexuality
is ordered?
The goods of conjugal love, which for those
who are baptized, is sanctified by the sacrament
of Matrimony, are unity, fidelity, indissolubility,
and an openness to the procreation of life.

◦ these 4 properties are what make marriage

and conjugal love good

◦ conjugal love has two purposes:

◦ the good of the spouses
◦ the good of the children

◦ unity, fidelity, indissolubility, and openness to life are not

“static” but “dynamic” realities
 What is the meaning
of the conjugal act?
◦ The conjugal act has a twofold meaning:
◦ unitive (the mutual self-giving of the spouses)
◦ and procreative (an openness to the transmission of life)

No one may break the inseparable connection

which God has established between these two meanings
of the conjugal act by excluding one or the other of them

◦ spouses give themselves totally and unconditionally

to each other in the conjugal act using sexuality as the substratum

◦ contraception, sterilization, vasectomy

(excluding the procreative from the unitive)

◦ in-vitro fertilization and artificial insemination

(excluding the unitive from the procreative)
When is it moral to
regulate births?
The regulation of births, which is an aspect
of responsible fatherhood and motherhood,
is objectively morally acceptable when it is:

1. pursued by the spouses

without external pressure;

2. when it is practiced not out of selfishness

but for serious reasons; and

3. With methods that conform to the objective criteria of morality,

that is, periodic continence and use of the infertile periods.

“responsible parenthood” is rightly understood only within the

context
of the 3 conditions enumerated above
What are the immoral
means of birth control?
Every action
--for example, direct sterilization or contraception—

is intrinsically immoral which

(either in anticipation of the conjugal act, in its accomplishment,
or in the development of its natural consequences)

proposes, as an end or as a means, to hinder procreation


a good intention does not justify
having recourse to immoral means of birth control
 Why are artificial
insemination and artificial
fertilization immoral?
They are immoral because they dissociate procreation
from the act with which the spouses give themselves
to each other and so introduce the domination
of technology over the origin and destiny
of the human person.
Furthermore, heterologous insemination and fertilization with the use
of techniques that involve a person other than the married couple
infringe upon the right of a child to be born of a father and mother
known to him, bound to each other by marriage
and having the exclusive right to become parents only through each other.

◦ a child is made for love and, hence, has the right to be born of love

◦ heterologous artificial insemination and fertilization

adds a special gravity to homologous artificial insemination & fertilization
 How should children
be considered?
A child is a gift of God,
the supreme gift of marriage. There is no such thing
as a right to have a child (e.g., “a child at any cost”).
But a child does have the right to be the fruit
of the conjugal act of its parents as well as the right
to be respected as a person
from the moment of conception.

◦ every child is a blessing from God:

◦ called from all eternity to communion with God
and with all the saints in heaven
◦ endowed with an immortal soul and with a body
called to be a temple of the Holy Spirit
◦ redeemed by Christ and worth all His Blood
◦ a sign of great trust in its parents
on the part of God

◦ marriage and conjugal love is ordained

to the begetting and proper upbringing of children

◦ a child is the living fruit and symbol of the love

between husband and wife

◦ a gift of God to its parents, siblings, to the Church

(for the baptized), to the rest of society
 What can spouses do
when they do not have children?
Should the gift of a child not be given to them,
after exhausting all legitimate medical options,
spouses can show their generosity by way of foster care,
or adoption, or by performing meaningful services for others.

In this way they realize a precious spiritual fruitfulness.

◦ conjugal love, if lived with selflessness and generosity, is always fruitful,

both for the married couple, for the Church, and for society at large

◦ it is a sign of the communion of the three Persons of the Trinity

◦ for Christian marriage, it is a participation in the love-covenant

between Christ the Bridegroom and His Bride the Church,
and hence, a sacrament and an effective channel of grace
 What are the offenses
against the dignity
of marriage?
These are:
adultery, divorce, polygamy, incest,
free unions (cohabitation, concubinage),
and sexual acts before or outside of marriage

◦ sexuality is turned into an occasion

to turn the other into an object for pleasure

◦ it de-personalizes the parties involved

◦ it deeply offends God and undermines

the moral fabric of the family and of society
 TOPIC 32.2
THE SIXTH COMMANDMENT (pt. 2)
Living Chastity in Marriage

References: Compendium of the Catechism of the Cathol ic Church, QQ 495-502;

Catechism oft he Cat holic Church, nos. 2360-2391

Supplementary readi ng: htt ps:/ /opusdei .org/en/arti cle/topic-32-the-sixth-commandment/