The Diocese of Rockville Centre Bishop John Barres has written a pastoral letter to Nassau and Suffolk counties 1.5 million Catholics reminding them not to use contraception.

The bishop says artificial birth control is "destructive of love" and "introduces a lie into the marriage."

The church contends marriage is a contract that includes the possibility of children.

Bishop Barres' letter marks the 50th anniversary of Pope Paul VI’s landmark encyclical on human life.