Expert: Dr. Ronald E. Shultz - 4/29/2004

Question
Dear DR. Shultz.

I want to know your opinion of the Catholic dogma about the contraception and assisted fertilization? I am Catholic who does not approve or accept these dogmas. What do you as Baptist - Bible Christian - think of interrupted sex in marriage? Catholics told this act is sinful as in Genesis, where Onan was killed by Lord because of putting down his spermas on the ground. Thank you very much.

                Buzrla from Czech Republic

Answer
Onan's was not killed because it was a form of birth control, but rather because it was an act of selfishness, lust and greed. According to the right of levirate marriage if a man died without an heir his brother would marry the wife and the first son would be raised up in his brother's name so that his name would not die out of the tribes of Israel.  

In this case, it was the first born brother that died and that meant the child would receive the inheritance of the first born which is twice what the others would get.

Onan found the wife pretty enough to have sex with and didn't mind that but practiced the birth control to protect his inheritance.  If you read Ruth you can see that Onan could have refused to take the wife and could have passed it down to the younger brother but the inheritance problem would have been the same since it was the first born that died. God killed him for that wickedness.

They would not have practiced birth control during that age because children were highly desirable, the more the merrier.  Children are the reward of God. There are no direct instructions on the issue because it is a moot one.  Does a farmer lay down a rubber sheet on his field and then spread his seed?  No, he lays seed expecting a harvest.  The only birth control is abstinence.  Nothing else is 100%.  Now, there are rules about having sex with a woman that is having her period.  Women nursed children longer and some think that helped in controlling birth.  I am not a MD so I can't speak to that.  I do know that many birth control pills are abortive not contraceptive so many good people have had dozens of abortions thinking they have prevented conception but did not.

Baptists vary on this issue and some approve of any kind of birth control and others do not condone any type at all.

God says that He opens and shuts the womb.  That being the truth then we may well be playing God in our lives when we use birth control methods.  We tell God we do not want Him telling us how many children to have and do not trust Him to provide for what he gives us.    

As to assisted ferilization, if you mean using the man and woman's sperm and egg and bringing about conception in vitro then it might be alright as only God allows conception.  Using someone else's sperm or egg could be construed as adultery.  However, we still have a problem.

Many say that God gave us the brains and technology so use them.  In many cases that is true, but if you assist and have 25 embryos and only implant 3 what happens to the others?  Frozen indefinitely?  Destroyed/murdered?  I think we should leave it up to God.  Some may not have children of their own because He wants the couple to adopt and He allows others to conceive to provide children for adoption.  Some things are best left to Him.  Just because you can do something doesn't mean that you should.  

By the way, this passage is also used to argue against masturbation, but as we see the spilling of the seed itself is not the main issue. Would God have killed him if he had had a son for his brother and then one for himself and just did not want anymore.  We don't know and we should not speculate.

Since God created the seed to be planted in a vagina then we could see an application here for birth control, masturbation and for certain homosexuality.  The answer may be very clear.  If you can't put your seed where it belongs expecting it to do what it is supposed to do then keep it in your seed bag.

May God bless you as you study His Word!