Those in favour of contraception argue that artificial birth control is morally the same as 'azl and therefore to be accepted. Despite varying viewpoints, the emphasis remains on procreation within the family as a religious duty. There is unanimous rejection of sterilization and abortion. Hinduism actively encourages a prolific procreation within marriage but there is no prohibition against birth control in the Hindu religion. India was the first nation to establish a governmental population strategy based on birth control measures.
Common concerns unite all major religious traditions on the issue of birth control.
The critics of family planning in each tradition fear that contraceptive use will encourage immorality and illicit sex, while further, many non-Western faiths fear that liberal contraceptive policies encourage a Western model of living that would destroy the family and family values. Feminist commentators have viewed prohibitions on birth control as a means to control female sexuality and independence. Bibliography Most of the literature on contraception and religion is contained in sociological, health or environmental studies on population control. Catholic and Islamic opinions of birth control are the most comprehensively covered in the secondary literature. S. Cromwell Crawford includes an extensive section on birth control in a Hindu context.