Men, women, and babies attended a lecture by Concordia Theological Seminary’s Professor Gifford Grobien on Monday, Oct. 26. The topic of the lecture was “Culture of Contraception: Scriptural and Natural Law considerations.”
The Catholic Society, the Lutheran Society, and Students for Life sponsored the talk.
Grobien spoke on how the Bible and natural law reject the modern idea and use of contraceptives, quoting the books of Genesis and Song of Songs. He also explained the changes in contraception over time and the progressing views of marriage. He promoted the unitive and procreative ends of marriage.
“Marriage becomes oriented around simply the delight aspect,” he said. “It degenerates to a relationship of pleasure.”
Associate Professor of German Fred Yaniga, who serves as the stand-in adviser for Students for Life, said through the work of the societies, as well as the help of Kelly Cole, wife of Assistant Professor of Philosophy Lee Cole, Hillsdale College could extend an invitation to Grobien to speak. Last semester, Students for Life hosted Dr. Christopher Stroud, who spoke on the medical perspective of using contraception.
Yaniga said he was glad the groups united to address a taboo topic.
“It’s an issue which is both controversial and magnetic in many ways,” he said. “It draws our attention to what is truly human, and it is essential to our identification as human beings.”
Professor of English Michael Jordan, faculty adviser of the Students for Life on sabbatical this semester, attended the lecture and Stroud’s in the spring.
“I was very pleased that it was talked about openly. It needs to be,” Jordan said. “One thing I would have liked to have heard was that natural family planning differs from hormonal and barrier forms of contraception in that it does not use artificial means to prevent pregnancy. It follows nature.”
“You learn the answers by being married, you learn to love in marriage by being married,” Grobien added. “We all learn as churches by helping parents and children.”
Some students, already familiar with scriptural and natural law arguments, found other points more compelling.
“I wish he would have talked more about the culture of contraception,” senior Josiah Lippincott said. “What are the effects of contraception on the family? Can a society of contraception restore a proper understanding of marriage? What can be done about it? He didn’t provide answers to that.”
Though Grobien only touched briefly on types of contraception because of time restrictions, the round of questions could have gone on all night.
Yaniga said though Hillsdale students disagree on the issue, they are open to learning, approaching, and engaging the topic from an intellectual standpoint.
“I wouldn’t expect anything else,” Yaniga said.
