What does the Church teach contraception and artificial birth control?
Catechism References: CCC 2366-2370 ; YC 420-421
Age 5 and Under: Everybody is a gift! God made us to love one another. We receive and give love to each other through the gift of our human bodies (e.g. When a friend paints me a picture with his fingers, he gives me love. He is a gift!).
Age 5-8: When we give a gift to others, we don't just give something wonderful in a box with wrapping paper and lots of sticky tape. When we give a gift, we also give ourselves! We give with our bodies and we receive with our bodies, the same way that Jesus gives himself to us through the Eucharist. When we give and receive gifts, we grow closer to one another with our bodies (e.g. It is a gift when I hold my little brother's hand, or when I play with my sister and keep taking turns until the game is over.).
Age 9-12: The love that a man and woman promise each other in marriage is different from the love they give anyone else. God gives a married couple the special gift of participating fully in his life and love. In marriage a husband and wife fully give themselves to one another, just like the self-giving relationship Christ has with his Church. Children are the special gift of marriage. Children are a living sign of their parents' love and union and they add to the family of God.
Age 12-15: In marriage, a husband and wife are promising to give their entire life and their entire self to each other. This gift is meant to symbolize the way Christ gave himself for the Church. Artificial contraception prevents that total gift of self for the couple by holding back the gift of their fertility given to them by God. Children are a gift from God and must be treated as a gift rather than something bad.
Age 15 and Up: God created man and woman and has a plan for their sexuality. Through marriage, a couple is able to be an image of God's own love and His love for us. Spouses promise each other a relationship that is faithful, fruitful, free, and total. Through artificial contraception a couple is intentionally avoiding the fruitful and total gift aspect of this promise by holding back their fertility. Children are a gift from God and should be treated as such. However, there are times when it is the responsibility of parents to be prudent and space pregnancies. During these times, couples must recognize the natural signs of their fertility and practice periodic abstinence when necessary to space the pregnancies, all the while being open to the gift of new life from God should he so bless the couple. All sexual acts should be within marriage and be a faithful, fruitful, free, and total gift.