MARRIAGE IN OUR WORLD OF FAMILIES. WEEK 1 DAY 4. August 25. Responsible parenting.  “I have often wondered what the Church means by responsible parenthood” David confided to his wife Joyce.  “Can it really be responsible for us to have more than two children? I know that I am quite a good dad with our two brats but don’t know if you or I have the patience or the resources to provide well for more kids.” “They used to say that every baby comes with a loaf of bread, but then again do we want to live on bread.  I think we have to keep on praying and discussing the topic and the family planning method that is best for us at any time. God may have different plans for us some time in the future. We certainly learned a lot from the Theology of the Body course. We are blessed that we humans have the competence to choose and do not act primarily from instinct.”

Pope Francis Let husband and wife thoughtfully take into account both their own welfare and that of their children, those already born and those which the future may bring. They need to reckon with both the material and the spiritual conditions of the times as well as of their state in life. Finally, they should consult the interests of the family group, of temporal society, and of the Church herself.   The parents themselves and no one else should ultimately make this judgment in the sight of God. AL 222. The Church’s teaching is meant to help couples to experience in a complete, harmonious and conscious way their communion as husband and wife together with their responsibility for procreating life.   AL 82