Teaching students about contraception encourages them to give in to the “culture of pleasure” and is tantamount to abuse, according to Gozo Bishop Mario Grech.

“The education system may be abusing students if instead of helping them to control their sexual energy it teaches them about contraception,” Mgr Grech said when addressing a conference in Gozo on the theology of the body.

When love is depicted as erotic love that abuses the human body, he added, true love is being abused.

“True love should lead a person to give and not possess,” Mgr Grech said, insisting that society was abusing human sexuality.

At the start of his brief address the bishop condemned sexual abuse of minors whether perpetrated by lay people, priests or members of religious orders.

“Sexual abuse cases should be reported to the competent authorities, particularly the police,” he said, seeming to anticipate a new Bill announced today that will oblige all institutions to report child abuse allegations to the police.

His remarks also come just one day after the men who were abused by priests as orphans at St Joseph’s Home, Sta Venera, announced the Church’s Response Team had found enough evidence for their case to be sent to the Vatican for adjudication.

The conference was organised to commemorate the 25th anniversary from the opening of Dar Ġużeppa Debono, a Gozitan home for unmarried mothers kicked out by their families.