Delia & Condoms

From what I have surmised from Delia Gallagher's writings, she seems to interview a lot. A lot. Which means either she is a very good listener (because only good listeners can REALLY interview), or she is so incredibly and impossibly GORGEOUS that interviewees would just sit there, stare at her (as I would have done), and answer any question she throws at them. I would say both...

Excerpts from a March 2003 article written by our beloved Delia for Zenit:

Code: ZE03110623
Date: 2003-11-06

War on AIDS

"People think condoms mean 'safe sex,'" said the cardinal. "But the facts do not bear this out."

Nonetheless, Cardinal Lozano Barragán surprised me by saying there are instances in which condom use could be justified.

"The doctrine of the Catholic Church is very clear," he said. "To defend one's life against an aggressor, one can even kill. So a wife, whose husband is infected with AIDS and who insists on marital relations with her, and might therefore pass on the virus which would kill her, can defend her life by using a condom."

Would this apply also in cases of rape? I asked.

"Yes," said the cardinal. "Do you know how they fight battles in Congo? They send soldiers infected with AIDS to violate the women and thereby infect them and kill off entire populations. In those cases, the women have the right to defend their lives by using condoms. And they do.

"We must be very precise," continued the cardinal. "This doesn't mean condom use is justified in any other sense but defending one's life from unjust aggression."

First of all, I would imagine that Delia maintained a straight face all throughout the interview – and I commend her for it. I would have burst out laughing at the mere mention of the word “condom” by an elderly man in a black dress and a red beanie hat.

Secondly, once I get over my initial silly laugh, I would continue laughing – at the frivolity of it all. Condom as a defensive weapon? Images of Trojan packets shipped to Iraq dance in my head.

But enough silliness; there’s nothing funny about the AIDS epidemic – and it doesn’t have to be confined in Africa. Condom stops the spread of the HIV virus – that’s a scientific fact. It also helps avoid unwanted pregnancies. People have been having sex - within and outside of marriage - since the beginning of time, that’s also a fact. We’d all be healthier and happier if those who should use a condom actually use one.