Running priest says church must walk its talk on RH

In the wake of a public opinion survey showing that nearly seven of 10 Filipinos favor the reproductive health (RH) bill, an influential Catholic priest urged the Church to "walk the talk" in fighting the measure, with "armies" of natural family planning educators in every parish. “The sad thing is that we are just talking. How many parishes now have real, intensive natural family planning programs?" Fr. Roberto Reyes said in an article posted on the Union of Catholic Asian News website. Reyes is known as the "running priest" since he draws attention to his causes by jogging. He said these natural family planning educators, who will demonstrate to the faithful how to practice methods the church approves of, will at least complement the mere "talk" that many priests use to counter artificial reproductive methods. A recent Pulse Asia survey showed 69 percent of Filipinos favor the RH bill while only 7 percent disagreed with the proposed measure. Reyes said that if the Church is serious in its campaign against the RH bill pending in Congress, “the noise against the measure should be coupled with action." He said the Church needs a "change in its campaign approach." “If we are serious in promoting natural family planning, let’s not just talk about it. Let’s create armies of educators who will teach people how to use it," he said. UCAN cited a 2008 survey by the National Statistics Office which showed that only 6.4 percent were using the “calendar" or “rhythm method" or were practicing abstinence, while 9.6 percent practiced the “withdrawal method." The same survey showed that 28.6 percent practiced modern family planning methods, such as the use of contraceptives and ligation. The rest of the surveyed females —49.3 percent — did not practice any birth control methods. Natural family planning not easy to teach Reyes acknowledged that teaching natural family planning methods is not easy because it involves not only detecting signs of female fertility, but also discipline among couples. “It cannot be done overnight. So we must commit to it, not only through preaching and definitely not by fighting the government," he said. CBCP exec downplays mayors' reported support for RH bill Meanwhile, a CBCP official sought to downplay new support for the reproductive health bill from members of the League of Municipalities of the Philippines (LMP). CBCP Commission on Family and Life executive director Fr. Melvin Castro said the mayors led by Bacoor (Cavite) Mayor Strike Revilla should have consulted with their constituents. “While we respect their position as duly elected by the people, our point is that if they are elected by the people then they should get their constituents' sentiments on the proposed measure," Castro said in an article posted on the CBCP news site. Earlier reports quoted Mayor Revilla as saying the RH bill will promote responsible parenthood, should Congress pass it into law. The Catholic Church has been vocal in resisting the RH bill, even calling for a stop to surveys after one recent survey showed nearly seven of 10 Filipinos favored the bill. Castro urged town mayors to read and understand the contents of the bill which he insisted seeks to promote contraception to control the country’s population. He said it would be better if the mayors hold fora to elicit the opinion of their constituents on the RH bill. He voiced doubts that the support for the RH bill was really shared by all members of the LMP and that the local chief executives actually studied its provisions. Castro added they have been initiating talks with mayors because RH lobbyists are trying to influence local governments to implement the measure through local ordinances. He said the church is being vigilant about these lobbying efforts at the local level. — HS, GMANews.TV