Sex Au Naturel

Witty, provocative and informative, this vademecum for a new generation, proud to affirm allegiance to sound Catholic principles, will delight and challenge its readers. A book that is eminently readable, I am pleased to recommend it with enthusiasm.

—T
ERRENCE
P
RENDERGAST
, S.J.
Archbishop of Ottawa

I firmly believe that Catholic teaching on contraception will one day be vindicated around the world. Patrick Coffin’s own journey from dissent to discovery will resonate with a whole generation who were really never invited to “come and see” this sublime vision of sexuality and Christian marriage.

—C
HRISTOPHER
W
EST
Theology of the Body Institute

Who knew that reading about the Catholic Church’s teachings on birth control could be this much fun? Or that there was more to know—much more—about relevant Scripture, tradition, and the current reception of
Humanae Vitae
? Patrick Coffin mixes a marvelous command of Scripture with a personal story many will relate to and very modern insights into the meaning and consequences of a contraceptive mentality. People who thought they knew why
Humanae Vitae
was right will find new reasons to love it. People who doubt the wisdom of
Humanae Vitae
will find new reasons to reconsider their position.

—H
ELENM
A
LVARÉ
Consultor to the Pontifical Council for the Laity

Patrick Coffin’s
Sex au Naturel
gives invaluable help to everyone commissioned to spread the good word about the Church’s life-giving teaching on sex and marriage. Pastors, pastoral associates, marriage counselors, NFP teachers, marriage preparation volunteers, youth ministers, and parents worried about the next generation: Buy this book!

—J
ENNIFER
R
OBACK
M
ORSE
, P
H
.D.
Founder and President of the Ruth Institute

Patrick Coffin is an excellent educator who has the rare gift of being engaging without lapsing into the loose colloquialisms and self-conscious hipness that often mars well-intended articulations of the Church’s sexual teachings. Faithful and solidly written, with ample historical background,
Sex au Naturel
provides a lucid and engaging defense of the Church’s teachings against contraception that should be helpful to couples as well as those wishing to sharpen their skills in defending the faith.

—D
AWN
E
DEN
Author of
The Thrill of the Chaste:
Finding Fulfillment while Keeping Your Clothes On

A necessary addition to any collection of Catholic or pro-life books,
Sex au Naturel
ultimately provides us with the key to building a culture of life: respect for the very act that brings about new life.

—F
R
. F
RANK
P
AVONE
National Director of Priests for Life

Patrick Coffin represents a new generation in rebellion against the rebels of my generation, standing against the 1960s battle cries, “Keep the Pope out of my bedroom!” (This was self-flattery: What made them think he wanted to be there?) Having once accepted the principles that separated procreation from union and love within sex, Coffin came to see the tragedy developing in his generation.
Sex au Naturel
describes the many intertwined but knotted and confused strands of thought about sexuality that are strangling the life out of society. By unraveling teachings on sexuality in the Church, Scripture and tradition, as well as in useful science, medicine and social trends, the knots come loose and the reader is surprised by one startled point of Christian sexual freedom after another.

—F
R
. M
ITCH
P
ACWA
, S.J.
Host of
EWTN Live

Patrick Coffin presents the theological case against contraception in a manner both lively and clear. Anyone who would like to really grasp the meaning of
Humanae Vitae
could not find a better starting place than here.

—F
REDERICA
M
ATHEWS
-G
REEN
Author of
Facing East: A Pilgrim’s Journey into the Mysteries of Orthodoxy
Commentator for National Public Radio’s
All Things Considered

Opinion surveys report that, while most Catholics believe most Catholic doctrines, they overwhelmingly reject the Church’s teaching on the immorality of contraception. Why? I think it is because no one ever explained it to them clearly and convincingly. (When did you last hear Catholic sexual teaching explained well from the pulpit—or at all?) In this book Patrick Coffin succeeds in doing what many have failed to do—or have not even tried to do. He makes old truths new and not just new but winsome and liberating. He takes up every challenge to the Church’s teaching, makes that teaching accessible to everyone, and shows that sex au naturel is best understood as sex au supernatural.

—K
ARL
K
EATING
President of Catholic Answers

Patrick Coffin’s
Sex au Naturel
is a fantastic work that explains Church teaching on sex and marriage in a language accessible to the average reader. Particularly insightful is his chapter on birth control in the Bible, which gathers several Bible passages to show that children are a blessing from God.

—P
ETE
V
ERE
, J.C.L.
Coauthor of
Surprised by Canon Law
(volumes 1 and 2)

I have read with great satisfaction Patrick Coffin’s book,
Sex au Naturel
, and I endorse it unreservedly. His research has been plainly prodigious and the scope of his work is encyclopedic.

—B
ERNARD
N. N
ATHANSON
, M.D.

Emmaus Road Publishing
827 North Fourth Street
Steubenville, Ohio 43952

 

© 2010 Patrick Coffin
All rights reserved. Published 2010
Printed in the United States of America
13 12 11 10 1 2 3 4 5 6

 

Library of Congress Control Number: 2010920525
ISBN: 978-1-93018-58-6

 

Scripture quotations are taken from the
Catholic Edition of the Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright 1965, 1966
by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the
Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission.
All rights reserved.

 

Excerpts from the English translation of the
Catechism of the Catholic Church
for the United States of America copyright © 1994,
United States Catholic Conference, Inc.—Libreria Editrice Vaticana.
English translation of the
Catechism of the Catholic Church:
Modifications from the Editio Typica
copyright © 1997, United States Catholic Conference, Inc.
—Libreria Editrice Vaticana. Noted as “CCC” in the text.

 

Cover design by
Devin Schadt

 

Cover compilation and layout by
Theresa Westling

 

Nihil Obstat:
I have concluded that the materials
presented in this work are free of doctrinal or moral errors.
Bernadeane M. Carr, STL
8 November 2009

 

Imprimatur:
In accord with 1983 CIC 827 § 3,permission to publish this work is hereby granted.
Robert H. Brom
Bishop of San Diego
8 November 2009