On to the numbers game in the House

RH bill OK’d at House committee level

Choosing Life, Rejecting the RH Bill

Bishops call faithful to act together Vs RH Bill

CBCP may pull out of dialogue with Malacañang

San Pablo Bishop calls for province-wide march in defense of life
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The bill has been retitled: "An act providing for a comprehensive policy on responsible parenthood, reproductive health and population development and for other purposes". My what a kilometric title, even as "for other purposes" was added as if the overreaching and pretentious title was not enough. Committee Chairman Espina said the committee tweaked the bill to include in the title “responsible parenthood,” to "give recognition to what is being pushed by the Catholic Church and Malacanang". But of course it takes more than "tweaking of the title" to really incorporate genuine responsible parenthood in a legislation. They can call their pet anything they want, but a dog is still a dog, and will remain a dog. It is a wonder how on earth one can even legislate responsibility in parenting, and more wonders if they even have an idea of what they are talking about. The term responsible parenthood was actually coined by the Church, taking off from the landmark Humanae Vitae encyclical of Pope Paul VI. In that encyclical, the Pope stated the principles.
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Responsible Parenthood

10. Married love, therefore, requires of husband and wife the full awareness of their obligations in the matter of responsible parenthood, which today, rightly enough, is much insisted upon, but which at the same time should be rightly understood. Thus, we do well to consider responsible parenthood in the light of its varied legitimate and interrelated aspects.

With regard to the biological processes, responsible parenthood means an awareness of, and respect for, their proper functions. In the procreative faculty the human mind discerns biological laws that apply to the human person.

With regard to man's innate drives and emotions, responsible parenthood means that man's reason and will must exert control over them.

With regard to physical, economic, psychological and social conditions, responsible parenthood is exercised by those who prudently and generously decide to have more children, and by those who, for serious reasons and with due respect to moral precepts, decide not to have additional children for either a certain or an indefinite period of time.

Responsible parenthood, as we use the term here, has one further essential aspect of paramount importance. It concerns the objective moral order which was established by God, and of which a right conscience is the true interpreter. In a word, the exercise of responsible parenthood requires that husband and wife, keeping a right order of priorities, recognize their own duties toward God, themselves, their families and human society.

From this it follows that they are not free to act as they choose in the service of transmitting life, as if it were wholly up to them to decide what is the right course to follow. On the contrary, they are bound to ensure that what they do corresponds to the will of God the Creator. The very nature of marriage and its use makes His will clear, while the constant teaching of the Church spells it out.
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In short, responsible parenthood concerns the objective moral order which was established by God, in the decision of married couples to have children. It is exercised by those who prudently and generously decide to have more children, and by those who, for serious reasons and with due respect to moral precepts, decide not to have additional children for either a certain or an indefinite period of time. The decision is based on four factors: physical, economic, psychological and social conditions.

If the sponsors were really honest, they should have simply titled the bill as "An act providing for state-funded artificial contraceptives"; or "An act mandating sex education in all schools from Grade 5"; or "An act providing for whatever".

Espina says the bill will go into plenary this month. Going by the proceedings in the committee, there is a real possibility that the process will be reduced to a numbers game, without any real emphasis on an understanding and considerations of the (de)merits of the bill. Perhaps that is why Lagman is "overwhelmingly confident" of the passage of the bill. But is the RH bill really the solution to poverty?

In other news, the Philippine economy was reported to have posted a record growth of 7.3% in 2010 - its fastest in two decades. Strange, but no one seems to have felt the record growth. Meanwhile, investigations are ongoing on the alleged plunder of billions of funds in the military.
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