The Culture of Life if restored in 20 years:
What will you see?
- At least two-thirds of Catholic couples who need baby spacing will be using chaste Natural Family Planning.
- At least two-thirds of Catholic mothers will nurse their babies well into the second year of life.
- At least two-thirds of Catholic newlyweds will wed as virgins
- At least two-thirds of Catholic voters will vote pro-life.
- Abortion will be illegal, and even illegal abortions will be miniscule in number.
- At least 95% of chaste married couples will stay married “till death do they part.”
- These families will yield vocations to the priesthood at the rate of at least one ordination per year per 10,000 families. Over 20 years, this yields one priest for every 500 families.
- At least 95% of priests will be faithful to their vocation for life.
- A vision of Vatican II will be significantly realized—revitalized lay spirituality and cooperation between priests and laity.
- The trickle of converts and reverts will become a river.
This is the vision—difficult but not impossible. Clearly, it will not “just happen.” To advance from vision to reality requires an organization, a plan, and adequate resources, both spiritual and material.
Next week: How do we restore this Culture of Life?
John F. Kippley (September 2014)