126. In other words, to regard contraception as necessary or even helpful works from a confused premise. At its roots, a happy marriage — the kind that endures over a lifetime — has more in common with the generous, patient, self-giving powers of celibacy than what Pius XII called “a refined hedonism.” Recently, Pope Francis referred to the Holy Family in highlighting the qualities of generosity and interior freedom that enable a good marriage:

Joseph was a man who always listened to the voice of God, he was deeply sensitive to his secret will, he was a man attentive to the messages that came to him from the depths of his heart and from on high. He did not persist in following his own plan for his life, he did not allow bitterness to poison his soul; rather, he was ready to make himself available to the news that, in a such a bewildering way, was being presented to him. And thus, he was a good man. He did not hate, and he did not allow bitterness to poison his soul…. And Joseph thereby became even freer and greater. By accepting himself according to God’s design, Joseph fully finds himself, beyond himself. His freedom to renounce even what is his … and his full interior availability to the will of God challenges us and shows us the way.