Pope Gives Thumbs Up to Condoms. Can That Be Right?

by Mindy Townsend · 2010-11-24 10:15:00 UTC
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I may have underestimated the Catholic Church. Pope Benedict XVI made news this week by saying that the Church may not be as anti-condom as we thought.

Is this a trick? It sounds like a trick.

At first, the Pope said that it would be acceptable for male (natch) sex workers to use condoms to prevent the spread of HIV. This was sort of bewildering to the feminist in me. Since women are at least as vulnerable to contracting HIV, the comments seemed like a pretty tepid step into the pool of HIV/AIDS prevention.

So when I heard that the Vatican decided to clarify the remarks, I expected the worst. I expected some back-tracking of…um…biblical…proportions. But that’s not what I received. The Holy See actually said that it would be O.K. for men, women, transsexuals, and everyone to use condoms, providing they are using condoms to prevent the spread of HIV. As far as the Vatican is concerned, stopping the spread of HIV is a lesser evil than stopping a pregnancy. (At least the misogyny is still intact.)

Holy Eucharist, Batman! The Vatican said transsexual. It’s a brave new world.

I know, I know…the Catholic Church has not been suddenly transformed into a bastion of progressive thought. After all, it's still totally not O.K. to use condoms for birth control, and the Vatican also said that condoms were not the ultimate solution to the HIV pandemic. But wowza. This comes from the same guy who only a few years ago said the existence of condoms actually make the AIDS crisis worse. Who is this guy, and what has he done with the real pope?

What I love most about this announcement is that, evidently, there is a willingness within the highest ranks of the Church to reevaluate past policies. Could it be that, despite its best efforts, the Church has exposed a pragmatic streak that until now has been hidden from the light of day? I almost hate to draw attention to it, for fear that, like Punxsutawney Phil, it will retreat into its lair when it sees its shadow.

However, I can’t help but notice the timing of this announcement. It came mere weeks after I wrote the Pope a letter on this very website, asking him to reconsider his anti-gay policies. Clearly, the Pontiff has taken some nuggets of my wisdom to heart. (I should be a hostage negotiator!) Or it could just be the widespread support for artificial contraception throughout his flock.

Either way, well done.

Photo credit: Wikimedia Commons

Mindy Townsend is a recent law graduate.
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