Narrative of the Pre-Cana Seminar

FACADE OF STA CRUZ CHURCH IN MANILA

Santa Cruz is located on the right bank of the Pasig River, on the northern portion of the City of Manila, near the mouth of the river, in between the districts of Tondo and Quiapo. The district belongs to the 3rd congressional district of Manila in the Philippines.

The Jesuits built the first Roman Catholic Church in the area where the present Santa Cruz Parish stands on June 20, 1619. The Jesuits enshrined the image of the Our Lady of Pilar in 1643 to serve the pre-dominantly Chinese residents in the area. The image drew a lot of devotees and a popular cult grew around it.

On June 24, 1784, the King of Spain gave the deeds to about 2 km² of land that was part of the Hacienda de Mayhaligue to the San Lazaro Hospital which served as a caring home for lepers in Manila at that time.

At the Santa Cruz Parish, a small park was built that linked the area into the headquarters of the Spanish cavalry, the building that once was the College of San Ildefonso, operated by the Jesuits. The district in the Spanish times also had a slaughter house and a meat market and up north was the Chinese cemetery.

The Franciscan fathers were given the responsibility to care for the lepers of the city and specifically the San Lazaro Hospital. A Fr. Felix Huertas developed San Lazaro into a refuge for the afflicted and it became a famous home for those afflicted in the north side of the Pasig River. (wikipedia.com)

Sunday mass at the Sta Cruz Church

 At the Sta. Cruz Church, pre-Canna seminars are given every third and fourth Sundays of the month. On the 4^th week of January, we registered to attend the seminar on Sunday.  During the seminar, there were three couples that attended the pre-Canna seminar as well. According to the key organizer, Mr. Arturo Catbagan, the seminar that we had attended was the part two of the seminar.

only one couple was there on time

Before the seminar began, we were told that there are three couples who would be attending the Pre-Canna seminar. These couples would, of course, wed at Sta. Cruz Church. The time lapsed yet we have not started since one of the couple had not arrived yet. This made one of the organizers of the seminar furious; when the delayed couple had finally arrived, she told them that the soon-to-be wedded couple should take note of the time and that should they be late on their wedding date, the Church will skip the bride’s walk down the altar. According to her, the Church observes strict regulations when it comes to punctuality.

Mr. Arturo introduced Mr. Amado Alejandro, the invited speaker, to discuss the topic of “Natural Family Planning” or the “Billing’s Method”.  According to him, the Philippines is not overpopulated, in fact, the problem that we have is urban congestion. Further, he claimed that family planning sets the direction of the family from the beginning.

 the male reproductive system

The Roman Catholic Church does not accept artificial contraceptives.  The different types of contraceptives are: Pills, Condoms, IUDs, Tubal Ligation, Vasectomy, and the Withdrawal Method.  Based from his discussion, most of these artificial contraceptives are abortifacient, additionally, these artificial contraceptives reportedly cause illness. An example Mr. Alejandro gave was the use of IUDs by women. 

 the female reproductive system

According to him, IUDs are harmful to the female reproductive system and may cause sterility to the women. Also, regular consumption of oral contraceptives makes the uterus of the woman become a harmful environment for the embryo, hence, leading to miscarriage. Ectopic pregnancy can also be an outcome of artificial contraceptives. Mr. Alejandro stated that ectopic pregnancy occurs when the embryo implants itself on the fallopian tube. Moreover, medical studies suggest the thinning of the inner walls of the uterus is due to the artificial contraceptives.

The couples were quite surprised as they absorb this piece of information. One of the couples asked why the Withdrawal Method is frowned upon by the Church. Well, according to Mr. Alejandro, the withdrawal method does not serve as a 100% contraceptive method. He further stated that abstinence is still the way to go to avoid pregnancy.

a clear image of the Billing's Method

The Natural Family Planning, which is propagated by the Church, was greatly recommended by the speaker. In particular, he discussed the “Billing’s Method” as the most effective natural family planning method. Conversely, he cited that the “Rhythm Method” and the “Temperature Method” are not 

Mr. Alejandro teaching the Billing's Method

effective; they cannot guarantee that conception will not occur. At this point, a couple raised their inquiry, stating that the City Hall did provide some documents and a seminar regarding the family planning. However, she mentioned that the City Hall did not mention the “Billing’s Method” at all.

“Billing’s Method” observes the symptoms of the menstrual cycle of the females. This method states that there are four main stages of the menstrual cycle; first, the menstruation, the pre-ovulation, the ovulation, and lastly, the post-ovulation stage. The general rule of this method is that during the menstruation and ovulation days, the females are fertile, meaning, the chances for pregnancy is high. Further Mr. Alejandro shared that it takes about 11 to 16 days after peak (last day of ovulation), and then the menstrual cycle will occur.

the whole cycle of the Billing's Method

Mr. Alejandro supported Sister Max Sweeny on her statement that, “the gender of the offspring will depend on the chromosome from the male.” With that said, he elaborated that if it takes 2 to 3 days for the sperm to reach the egg cell, then the gender of the baby will most likely be female, on the other hand, if the egg cell is fertilized within 24 hours, then the gender of the baby will be male.

The discussion ended with Mr. Alejandro explicating the importance of breastfeeding. He said that the oxtocin and prolactin of the females would be really active after giving birth. It is ideal that the mothers will breastfeed the baby for 6 months since the nutrition the child will be receiving from breastfeeding is far greater than any supplements available in the market.