BIRTH control should be an individual matter, and no longer the authoritarian imposition of an outside agency, be it church or state, Fr. Peter Hobblethwaite, S.J., said last week.
He was answering a question at a "Future of Man" teach-in at Milton Keynes College of Education at Bletchley Park, Buckinghamshire.
He said he detected certain changes in tone from the Vatican, suggested by a recent address by Pope Paul warning against the dangers of compulsory State legislation on birth control.
Fr. Hebblethwaite stressed the impetus towards change, telling the audience of more than 150 that in any process. scientific or political, there was a time when we saw a qualitative change. In our society we appeared to be approaching this.
"In order to equip ours for this we must have faith . . . a condition of intelligent synthesis of the world."
He cited the recent changes within the Christian Churches as indications of a future where increased communication and feed-back could lead to a new and more dynamic Church.