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1. I have understood this issue in maybe a slightly different way.
   Firstly, prostitution is morally disordered but it is permitted everywhere in the world in order to forestall a much more serious disorder, viz. sexual assault on women.
   I think you will find this in St Augustine. There are many of the male species who believe that their sexual drives are not free!!
   Thus, Pope Benedict is arguing that if you are already a prostitute with HIV you will be committing a more heinous crime by transmitting death to your clients. A husband with HIV is already a prostitute.

   Posted By: Alex Reichel, Oyster Bay

2. Perhaps Bishop Fisher has been misquoted, because it is clear from Pope Benedict's own words that he is not 'against condoms altogether.'
   Why such a fuss about what was said? Because it seems so reasonable, whereas the Church is usually considered irrational about anything to do with latex?
   It comes as a surprise because we’re not used to authorities saying in public anything but 'no' to condoms. They usually avoid the more complex questions because the public too wants a simple 'yes' or 'no'.
   Consider the question this way: If someone has sex outside a married relationship (perhaps even outside a heterosexual relationship), is it better done with or without a condom? It's obviously better (morally, I mean) to do it with a condom because, as the Pope pointed out, the person is obliged in that situation not to risk infecting or being infected.
   If the intercourse is heterosexual, the person is further obliged not to risk conceiving a child that will not be brought up in a stable family, and may indeed not be brought up at all. Though the Church has always been clear about the immorality of the intercourse, Pope Benedict has done us all a favour by stating that the use of a condom can in such circumstances be understood as a moral advance.
   It's like asking the question; If police are going to fire at demonstrators, is it better for them to use metal bullets or rubber bullets?
   I'd recommend the rubber every time! - Washington, DC
   

   Posted By: Dan Madigan

3. The interview en route to Africa that caused all the furor was in fact grossly misreperted.
   The Pope was not opposed to condoms to prevent HIV on moral grounds - he opposed them because they did not work!(Lots of good data on that.)
   He then discussed the misunderstanding of human sexuality that led to this outcome.
   However, this was not an area of discussion that most of his critics were prepared to engage - much easier to create a straw man argument.

   Posted By: Tony Kerigan Ontario,Canada

4. Unfortunately, in one sense, our prelates are correct.
   Traditional catholic normative ethics tends to see things in terms of absolutes - black and white.
   This ruling by the Pontiff is seen by Cardinal Pell and Bishop Fisher as a shift in norms, perpetuating the Catholic addiction to categorise these matters as being either sinful or not.
   However, there is another perspective - that I believe is equally 'catholic'.
   What we need to do is to give up this medieval addiction to normative ethics and put our concerns about 'acts' (and 'behaviors' = acts + circumstances) into the secondary place it deserves.
   So, in this case - a male prostitute who is HIV-positive should wear a condom to protect the 'innocent' party.
   Rather - we should be adopting a morality of od personal responsibility and answerability! Bernard Haring in his moral theology emphasised this move away from the paternalism of Catholic normative ethics to one where each adult was personally answerable (antwortlichkeit) and personally responsible (verantwortlichkeit) for their moral decisions.
   When one shifts from 'normative morality' to an 'ethics of responsibility' (which could very well be an interpretation of what Benedict XVI said) it is easy to see why the goal ('end', character of the person I am trying to become) of responsible parenthood can easily justify the use of a condom to manage fertility. Epieikeia ('sweet reasonableness') triumphs again, maybe...)
   One small step for Christian ethics, one giant leap for the Catholic faithful. At least it is a beginning...

   Posted By: Yuri Koszarycz - Indooroopilly, brisbane

5. It seems overnight (leading to Wed 24 Nov Aust time) the Vatican and Pope Benedict have made acceptable 'the use of condoms for HIV prevention more widely'.
   Vatican spokesman the Rev Fr Federico Lombardi said overnight that he asked the Pope whether he intended to refer only to male prostitutes: Benedict replied that it really didn't matter, the important thing was the person in question took into consideration the life of the other.'
   The Pope is saying that condom use is a lesser evil than passing HIV onto a partner, even when pregnancy is possible.
   'This is a game-changer,' said the Reverend James Martin, a Jesuit editor and writer. 'By acknowledging that condoms help prevent spread of HIV between people in sexual relationships, the Pope has completely changed the Catholic discussion on condoms.'

   Posted By: CraigMacD Ryde

6. I am not sure that anything has changed since the remarks by Father Lombardi. The actual italian is here: http://www.vatican.va/news_services/or/or_quo/text.html#12
   My translation of the item follows:
   Translation - (I have concentrated more on the exact meaning rather than a word-by-word translation. Words in [ ] are inserted by me to give greater clarity to the thought expressed in the article.
   
   Note from the Director of the Holy See Press Office
   
   For a more humane and responsible sexuality
   
   At the end of chapter 11 of his book “Light of the world”, the Pope answers two questions with regard to the fight against AIDS and condom use; questions which relate to the discussions that followed after the Pope’s few words uttered on the subject during his trip to Africa in 2009.
   The Pope clearly states that he then did not want to take a general position on the issue of condoms, but he wanted to state emphatically that the problem of AIDS cannot be solved only by the distribution of condoms, because so much more has to be done: to prevent, to educate, to help, advise, and to stay close to people - both those who are not sick, as well as those who are infected.
   The Pope notes that even ouside the Church a similar awareness has developed - the so-called ABC theory, (Abstinence - Be Faithful - Condoms), in which the first two elements (abstinence and [marital] fidelity) are seen as much more crucial and fundamental to the problem of AIDS; while the use of condoms is seen as a last resort [loophole], when the other two elements are missing. Therefore, it must be clear that the use of condoms is not a solution to the problem.
   The Pope is quite aware in insisting, that concentrating only on condom use is tantamount to trivializing sexuality, which loses its meaning as an expression of love between individuals - rather becomes akin to a 'drug'. Combatting against this trivialization of sexuality requires 'great effort because sexuality is perceived, and can exert, its positive effect on the totality [completeness] of the human person.'
   In the light of this broad vision and profound understanding of human sexuality and contemporary issues, the Pope reaffirms that 'naturally the Church does not consider condom use as a real [authentic] and moral solution' to the problem of AIDS.
   With that, the Pope has not reformed or changed the Church's teaching, but rather is putting it in perspective in reaffirming the value and dignity of human sexuality as an expression of love and responsibility.
   At the same time, the Pope has deliberated on an exceptional circumstance in which sexual expression represents a genuine risk to the lives of others.
   In this case, the Pope does not morally condone the exercise of immoral [disordered] sexuality, but rather believes that the use of condoms [in this case] to reduce the risk of infection is 'a primary responsibility' - a 'first step towards a more human sexuality', rather than exposing the other to mortal danger.
   In this, the Pope's reasoning certainly cannot be defined as a revolutionary turn-around.
   Many moral theologians and influential church figures have supported and continue to support similar positions; however, it is true that, up to this time, we had not heard so clearly from a Pope [about such an issue], even though [given] in a colloquial and not a magisterial sense [form].
   Benedict XVI has boldly made an important contribution in clarifying and deepening a long-debated question. It is an original contribution, because on one hand it maintains loyalty to moral principles and shows clarity in refuting as the illusory 'trust in the condom' [he also] on the other hand has shown a comprehensive and insightful vision of a humanity that is often spiritually and culturally poor, [moving it] carefully and in small steps - even though only initial and still unclear [confusi] - toward a more humane and responsible exercise of sexuality.

   Posted By: Yuri Koszarycz - Indooroopilly, brisbane

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