The recent death of New York's Cardinal John O'Connor, known for his steadfast adherence to Catholic Church doctrine, and the naming of his replacement, has stimulated discussion of one of the Church's most controversial positions: birth control.

The newly appointed Cardinal, Bishop Edward Egan of Connecticut, will follow in O'Connor's footsteps, staunchly supporting the Church's prohibition of the artificial contraception.

In the early 1960s, Pope John XXIII convened a papal commission on birth control. The resulting report, released in 1967, recommended that the Church reexamine its position on contraception. But in 1968, Pope Paul VI released Humanae Vitae, which reaffirmed the Church's condemnation of artificial contraception and called its use a "mortal sin." Many Catholic leaders, including some U.S. bishops, openly criticized Humanae Vitae and counseled parishioners to follow their own consciences in making decisions about birth control.

In the years since, many progressive Catholics have called on the Vatican to change its position on birth control. With overpopulation and poverty increasing in many developing countries that are largely Catholic, the Church's refusal to allow the use of contraception is seen by many as destructive and unrealistic. Many also hold that the Church goes too far by disapproving the use of condoms to prevent the spread of sexually-transmitted diseases like AIDS.

On One Hand...

The Catholic Church should end its long-standing ban on contraceptives. Individuals should be entitled to choose whether and when they wish to bear children and the Church's unbending position on birth control denies devout Catholics this right.

Furthermore, the Church's policy forbidding contraception is contributing to the population explosion in the developing world, where many are Catholic. Families have more children than they can support and thousands of children are malnourished and living in extreme poverty. Family planning and the use of birth control can dramatically improve the health and chances of survival of both mothers and their children.

On the Other Hand...

According to the Catholic Church, sex outside marriage is a sin and using contraception is merely a method of skirting the issue. Artificial birth control assumes that children are an unwanted result of sexual union and something to be avoided. It is not for humans to circumvent this natural process and to artificially halt procreation.

In Humanae Vitae, Pope Paul VI says: "There is an unbreakable connection between the unitive meaning and the procreative meaning, and both are inherent in the conjugal act. The connection was established by God, and Man is not permitted to break it through his own volition."

Married couples should control pregnancy by practicing the rhythm method, a natural and acceptable form of contraception.

• All the oral contraceptives work by suppressing the pituitary hormones that prompt the ovaries to release eggs ripe for fertilization. Most products contain synthetic versions of both estrogen and progesterone.

• Since its introduction, an estimated 468 million American women have taken the pill. Today more than 16 million American women are on the pill, making it the most popular contraceptive technique outside of sterilization. (NYT)

• In 1968, a group of Catholic theologians met in Washington, DC, to discuss the newly released encyclical, Humanae Vitae. A statement was signed by eighty-seven theologians stating disagreement "with its [Humanae Vitae] specific ethical conclusion about birth control" and re-asserted the "common (but not well-known) teaching that Catholics may dissent from authoritative, noninfallible church teachings." They also conclude "that Catholic spouses could responsibly decide in some circumstances to use artificial contraception."

• In 1987, another New York Times poll shows that nine out of 10 Catholics think someone who practices a form of birth control banned by the church can still be a good Catholic.

• In the 1990s, over 4 million young women have already died from pregnancy-related causes and they continue to die at the rate of one woman every minute of every day.

• 100,000 maternal deaths could be avoided each year if all women who said they want no more children were able to stop childbearing.

• It has been estimated that expanding contraceptive services to meet the needs of couples who wish to avoid pregnancy but currently are not using contraception could prevent as many as 850,000 deaths per year among children under age five.

World Health Organization, Catholics for Free Choice, Catholic Forum, World Bank