Malcolm Gladwell
This article in The New Yorker explores the history of the Pill, while delving into John Rock – its inventor’s – deeply held religious beliefs. It leads us to ask questions about what “normal” is and the muddled world of science. From Ed.
John Rock was christened in 1890 at the Church of the Immaculate Conception in Marlborough, Massachusetts, and was married by Cardinal William O’Connell, of Boston. He has five children and nineteen grandchildren. A crucifix hung above his desk, and nearly every day of his adult life he attended the 7 A.M. Mass at St. Mary’s in Brookline. Rock, his friends would say, was in love with his church. He was also one of the inventors of the birth control pill, and it was his conviction that his faith and his vocation were perfectly compatible.