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Mike's Message
Editor's Note - I received the following messages as e-mails, first from Mike Wolven and then
from his wife Michelle. I've since received a copy of Mike's Message from a Christian friend outside of the Catholic Church. I suspect that hundred's of people have read Mike's Message.
Our friends Pete and Kelly (Cyndi's sponsor coming into the church) Warner gave us a tape set
"Pandora's Pillbox" before the Easter vigil service (May 2000) when we came into the Church. Michelle happened to hear one of the tapes while riding in the car with my wife and the Wolven's ordered their own copy (and several copies for others since then). This was the same tape set that challenged Cyndi and I to become apostles of chastity.
We have known the Wolven's since 1996 and consider them our best friends. Their faithful
witness played a big part in Cyndi and I becoming Christians. "Pandora's Pillbox" can be ordered from http://giftfoundation.org/. ---- Bob Babecka
Michelle's Note
Dear Friends,
Mike has sent this out to approx. 30 Christians at his office. He has not received any negative
comments as of today. He did however, receive comments of regret and sadness, because they NEVER heard this message in Church. He had to say that even Roman Catholic Churches rarely discuss this topic and this is Church Teaching. Please understand this email is being sent out of love to our friends, we have nothing to gain from this, but feel we must not keep this important information to ourselves. We feel that this topic is the Root sin of the day and from it stems many other sins that ravage our society. We urge you to pray about this
.
We know it is a true challenge, but please ask yourself if this is something God would want
you to look into. We feel that if there is to ever be a reversal of Roe Vs. Wade this issue must first be purged from our churches. Once this has been done, the possibilities may be limitless. This is a challenge because for many churches this has been settled for almost 70 years. The question is, did the Bible change? I know this is an absurd question, because we all know it didn't. So why did church teaching change? Can it be that the acceptance of this issue is apostate? I am sure we all would agree that the acceptance of abortion as a church issue is apostate, and the same for the acceptance of openly homosexual couples. We are saying that the door was opened to these 2 apostate teachings when certain churches changed their teaching on this issue in the 1930's. We urge you to research this. Please do not hesitate to forward this to your friends....
Sincerely In Christ,
Michelle
----- Original Message -----
From: Wolven Michael
Sent: Friday, July 14, 2000 7:15 AM
Subject: FW: Please let me know what you think
I've been planning on writing this Email for some time now and after listening to a tape series
called "Pandora's Pillbox" feel now is the correct time. I am writing this e-mail out of love and concern for you; please know that it is not to boast of my knowledge (what little I have) since most of what I am writing about I have just recently learned. However, I think much of it I have felt deep down in my soul to be true for some time. I think it would be wrong of me to keep the information to myself instead of sharing it even though I'm sure I will open myself up to a lot of criticism. I am very concerned that in our society of "if you want it, you can have it" and "if you want it now you can have it now" and without any consequences. Anyway, if any of you would either like to borrow the tape series I mentioned above called "Pandora's Pillbox," would like for me to buy a set for you (at a cost of around $15.00), or would like to receive one as a gift from me to you, please let me know and I will be sure to get you a copy. The series contains messages from Protestant as well as Catholic leaders and, yes, everything is backed by Bible scripture. The tape series contains a lot of the information I will refer to below.
As many of you know, my wife and I have five children (so far). I am constantly getting
comments on my "quiver" such as "don't you know what causes that," "you might want to consider getting your water from a different source," and "so how many WILL you have?" To which I reply "yes I do know what causes children - it is the blessing of God above to a marriage covenant He has blessed abundantly" and "I will have as many children as God will bless me with". I usually give a number like 8 or 10 since most people will stop asking when I don't just stop at one more but will up the ante by 3 or 5.
Also, many of you know that my wife and I are adamantly pro-life. We go down to the abortion
clinics in Atlanta and are blessed to be able to offer the mothers and fathers anything from food and clothing to financial help, from a doctor at no cost to them to a baby sitter for as long as they may need. Some times we are taken up on our offers; most times the mothers and fathers just need to hear from someone that there is help and that abortion is wrong - not just for some, but for all and in all situations. We have been blessed to have actually seen the faces of many children who would not have been able to play, hug and love on God's earth had it not been for an intervention. We thank God daily for counting us worthy of being His foot soldiers on earth - believe me, we are not worthy.
Why am I am telling you this? Like many other people in the pro-life movement, we now
realize that there is something (something seemingly harmless) at the root of our current abortion Holocaust - Contraception. Please, don't get defensive - just think about what I am going to say. I am not trying to speak as someone who has never made the mistake - some of you may know that in my past, before Michelle, my girlfriend and I had two abortions - yes, both due to failed contraception. I have named these children - they are Mary Malachi and Joseph Elizabeth. I am speaking more as a person who understands the trap and doesn't want others to fall into the trap that I did.
I know, many will say that it makes sense seeing how many children we have. Let me remind
some of you that my wife and I had our fourth child before we were blessed with our current understanding and before we converted to the Catholic Church. As a Catholic I can easily turn to the current Pope's writings in the encyclical, Humanae Vitae, to find the link between abortion and contraception. The encyclical was written before abortion but during the debate on contraception. It basically states that contraception will ultimately lead to an increase in the demand for abortion since you will have more people having sex. There is a risk of pregnancy due to faulty products and faulty usage of the products no matter what the product. As an actuary, I can easily see that when you take a greater number of participants and multiply by the same risk for each product, the result is an increase in the overall number of un- wanted pregnancies. Additionally, when contraception is used, whether in or out of a marriage, the resulting pregnancy is being born to a mother and father who are otherwise not open to the gift of life. Contraception opens the door to promiscuity by labeling sex as a tool for self- gratification.
We're told in Genesis that we are to "go forth and multiply". This statement is never retracted.
We hear that God blesses his people by offering a great and abundant offspring to those who would follow and submit themselves to the Lord. He does not offer free sex without pregnancy and birth as His blessing - but offers children and offspring. We also read throughout the Bible that we will reap what we sow and vice versa. If we continue to sow but do it in a way to prevent any reaping, we are making a mockery of God - we are not allowing Him to use us as His vessels. Remember in Roman:14 we read that whatsoever is not of faith is sin.
My wife and I practice Natural Family Planning. This method can boast a 98% effective rate
and a 95% rate of users remaining married (much increased from the 50% for Christians and non-Christians alike). It is actually a very scientific methodology of "on" and "off" times depending on fertility and can be used both to have children and to space the birth of children. The period of off" times are used as a fasting and time to get closer mentally to one-another and to God. 1Corinthians:7 tells us that there is room in a marriage covenant for a sexual fast in that it tells us that we are allowed to be apart sexually for a season. If any of you would like information on Natural Family Planning (NFP), please let me know and I will order everything that you need. There is a book to describe the Biblical reasons for the method and what the method entails as well as a Basil thermometer and some charts. I know many of you despise charts but one of the interesting side-effects of using NFP is that I know what Michelle's body is doing almost before she does and she has grown to understand that I love her for many reasons other than sexual ones and am willing to fast from intercourse when necessary.
As a Catholic, our church makes it very clear what is expected regarding contraception and
abortion. There are many Catholics who do not follow the Church's teaching and many who are currently trying to change the Church's teaching, mostly to ease their consciences for not following it. There have always been those who have ears, but do not hear and eyes but do not see and I imagine that will always be the case. The Catholic teaching on contraception was once the universal Christian teaching. What have the Protestant fore-fathers said about contraception?
John Calvin - Contraception should be condemned and viewed as monstrous.
John Wesley - Contraception is very displeasing to God and the evidence of vile affections.
Martin Luther - Those who use contraception are logs, stoics and swine.
Not very encouraging words regarding the usage of contraception. Even the Sociologist
Sigmund Freud classified "any sexual act that is not open to procreation as sexually perverse"!
Please, I urge you to take me up on my offer - borrow my tape series, allow me to buy you a
series or buy one for you - there is much at stake here and whether you are using contraception or not, you may be the light that someone else needs to put them on the right path.
Thanks and God Bless you for hearing me out.
By the way although I am not nearly as knowledgeable on the various reasons to avoid
contraception as those in the tape series, I am certainly open for discussions.
Michael Wolven
Phone: (770) 445-5855
Email: mwolven@dellnet.com
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