London, England, Feb 7, 2005 / 22:00 pm
The British organization Catholic Action Group has launched a boycott of the Catholic Agency for Overseas Development (CAFOD) Feb. 1.
The British development organization has suggested that condoms may be an acceptable way of combating the spread of AIDS in the developing world where the Church’s values of abstinence and fidelity may not be realistic.
Catholic Action Group sent an e-mail to 700 Catholic priests throughout England, informing them of the campaign. It said that it would “quite happy to stop this current campaign when and if CAFOD issues a clear and unambiguous statement … that they do not condone the use of condoms in any circumstances or (only) if the Magisterium officially rules on this issue with a clear statement.”
The e-mail stated that a number of parishes in the country support the campaign, but some bishops are divided on the issue.