Pope Francis I = Completely Smitten

I have never understood when people have been so infatuated with a pope...don't' get me wrong. I've always had a strong love and admiration of them...but NOW I understand. I'm completely taken with Pope Francis I. Totally smitten. Giddy almost. And the fact that the secular media is so distraught that he is actually a faithful Catholic and upholds Catholic teaching...ICING ON THE CAKE!!!

Catholic Stance on the Definition of Marriage

My dad, who is an ordained deacon, preached about the Catholic stance of the definition of marriage this past weekend.  Listen to it or read it here.  It was incredibly brave as it is such a touchy subject and the sad news is, a lot of clergy shy away from preaching the truth of our faith.  He's done it before when he preached about abortion and contraception a while back ago and I talked about it here.

It's kind of sad that I think it is so amazing when he or other clergy step out and preach about these topics.  It should be the norm.  It should be done every week...or at least much more often.  It should be so normal that it is not shocking and that the clergymen (and their family members in this case) do not have to worry about what the backlash will be. 

But, that's not how it is...so for now, I will continue to be proud when they do - especially when it's my very own pop!!  And I will continue to pray that they would have the strength and conviction to preach the Church's teachings that we know to be true and good and from God Himself.

My Chick-Fil-A Confusion

I was so excited to eat at Chick-Fil-A today to show my support but hubby may or may not be having a kidney stone so our plans are still up in the air.  I am just so baffled by this whole thing though.  As I was watching the news a minute ago, someone said they would not eat there because of Chick-Fil-A's policies.  Then I read this statement in a story about a politician who may or may not have used their official position to state her opinion on the issue.

“I support businesses that are open and inclusive -- that reflect the viewpoint of New York City, the most in diverse city in the world. That said, businesses that follow our laws have a right to open here,” said Quinn during the announcement of the city starting a career center for veterans.

Read more: here

Maybe I'm slow - and that's usually the case - but I don't understand what "policies" they are talking about.  Or how Chick-Fil-A is a business that is not open and inclusive.  I thought the issue was that the owner gave his money to the movement to keep the definition of marriage as between one man and one woman.  How does that affect the businesses policies?  Do they hire gay workers?  Yes.  Do they serve gay customers?  Yes.  How are they not being "open and inclusive"?  Do they block the doors when a gay person tries to walk in the door?  No - not that I've ever heard of anyway.  Now that would be a story...and a problem.  

I just don't get what the fuss is about.  There are tons of companies who DO support gay marriage.  I don't feel the need to boycott them.  I don't feel the need to call them haters and accuse them of not including people who believe in Christian values.  I don't think they are not being inclusive of me as a Christian.  

Again, like I said, I'm pretty slow.

A Contraception Quote and Broadcast from Archbishop Fulton Sheen…

Very interesting article.  I'm not very familiar with the Venerable Archbishop but I know that he was one of the first to further Catholicism through media.   I really like what he has to say about contraception. Makes so much sense!

A Contraception Quote and Broadcast from Archbishop Fulton Sheen…

Sharing NFP - Helpful Information

I love this article - Do's and Don'ts of Sharing NFP.

Don’t condemn their current or past choices. Our culture embraces contraception as something we are entitled to, a basic right. They may be choosing contraception because they don’t know that there is another way.  

This one is easy for me.  I used to use artificial contraception so who am I to talk?  Throwing the first stone and all of that.

Don’t judge. Using NFP doesn’t automatically make one a saint. We all have our own sins and struggles to overcome. Remember: “Let the one among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone.” 

 This one is hard for me.  I tend to think that anyone else that uses NFP is perfect and that it means they are SUPER Catholics.  I don't know how many times I've thought to myself, "But they use NFP" when I hear of them acting a certain way or of their marriage having problems etc.  Then I have to remind myself that SO DO I and I'm far from a SUPER Catholic - I'm barely even a kind of good one.

 Do talk about your cycle. When someone asks for a tampon in the bathroom because she was surprised by a period, mention offhand how you love the predictability you get from charting. 

 Believe it or not, just because I blog about it (or used to, I know, it's been a while) doesn't mean it's easy for me to actually talk about it in person.  I throw it in here and there after I know people for a while, but if they start to ask more questions about it or seem negative towards it, I quiet down a bit.

Go and read the rest of the article.  Good stuff!