Church teaching is unequivocal, but the "faithful" don't listen. The result: Silence. I've been Catholic for 17 years, and I honestly don't think I've ever heard a priest comment on the contraception issue from the pulpit. This article discusses it. The comments following the article are excellent. Sample:
The silence on the issue of contraception is merciless. The assumption that married couples alone have any reason to speak on the issue is mean-spirited. We are broken people. We are not ordained. We lack graces that only the ordained may receive. Moreover, we lack a certain objectivity that only celibates and virgins can provide. How on earth can any of us discern whether (for example) God is calling us to have a fifth or eighth or tenth child if no one will provide us with any formation on how to conduct such a discernment? On the other hand, what if we are called not just to periodic abstinence but to a very long period of abstinence for one reason or another? How will we know that the reason is good enough?
