My Path to Sanctity
By: Kimberly Hahn
Where I am, I am to be.
This is my path to sanctity,
Though toil and strife—the affairs of life —
Draw my attention away from Thee.
I begin again, afresh, anew.
Today I choose to follow you.
Though others’ demands require my hands
Clasped in prayer to open and do.
I want to make each task a prayer,
Each word—each thought—your love to share.
Though sins abound
Forgiveness I’ve found,
As the cross you’ve made for me I bear.
I ponder, at the close of day
On the manifold graces that came my way.
Through trials and pain and joy, I exclaim,
Where I am, I am to be.
This is my path to sanctity!
Wednesday, November 25, 2009
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
The Bigger Picture
My thought for the day:
What if I allow myself to put the outcome in God’s hands and just live intensely in the present, absorbing and embracing life as it happens? It’s not indifference or admitting defeat; it’s seeing the bigger picture.
Blessings everyone.
Monday, November 16, 2009
Pray for our Bishops - US Bishops' Fall General Assembly begins today
The US Bishops' Fall General Assembly begins today and runs through Thursday, November 19th in Baltimore. As mentioned before (Nov 4 post) one of the things the Bishops will discuss is a document called "Life-Giving Love in an Age of Technology." Please pray that the Holy Spirit will guide our Bishops, not only in this discussion, but in all aspects of their Fall General Assembly.
If you're interested in watching some of this meeting, Telecare will cover the public sessions of the U.S. Bishops’ meeting, airing coverage Monday, November 16, from 1-6 p.m., Tuesday, November 17, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Wednesday, November 18, 9-11 a.m. If no TV station in your area is carrying Telecare's coverage, the USCCB will also provide coverage. The USCCB Web page will post document, vote tallies and link to live streaming at http://www.usccb.org/meetings/2009Fall.The USCCB Office of Media Relations will provide Web coverage of the meeting via Twitter (www.twitter.com/usccbmedia) on Facebook (www.facebook.com/usccb) and on the USCCB Media Blog (http://usccbmedia.blogspot.com). The Twitter handle will provide updates of the meeting’s proceedings in real time, while the blog and Facebook posts will include longer reports and photos.
Come Holy Spirit!
If you're interested in watching some of this meeting, Telecare will cover the public sessions of the U.S. Bishops’ meeting, airing coverage Monday, November 16, from 1-6 p.m., Tuesday, November 17, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Wednesday, November 18, 9-11 a.m. If no TV station in your area is carrying Telecare's coverage, the USCCB will also provide coverage. The USCCB Web page will post document, vote tallies and link to live streaming at http://www.usccb.org/meetings/2009Fall.The USCCB Office of Media Relations will provide Web coverage of the meeting via Twitter (www.twitter.com/usccbmedia) on Facebook (www.facebook.com/usccb) and on the USCCB Media Blog (http://usccbmedia.blogspot.com). The Twitter handle will provide updates of the meeting’s proceedings in real time, while the blog and Facebook posts will include longer reports and photos.
Come Holy Spirit!
Saturday, November 14, 2009
Our new Bishop! ~ Welcome Bishop Rhoades
(Bishop John Michael D'Arcy & our new Bishop, Bishop Kevin Rhoades)Well...the rumors have been confirmed. We have a new Bishop!
Just this evening I was chatting with friends of ours from the Catholic Young Adults Group in State College about how we were getting a new Bishop soon. One of my girlfriends, who now lives in Hershey mentioned that they too had just found out that they would be losing their Bishop (the Bishop of Harrisburg). Imagine my surprise when 30 minutes later I can home, checked online and found out that our new Bishop in Fort Wayne-South Bend is Bishop Kevin Rhoades...who was up until now the Bishop of Harrisburg. Small world.
Initial reactions are very positive. Several friends of mine have worked with him within the diocese or know him in other capacities and have nothing but wonderful things to say about him. Thanks be to God! So we will continue to pray and to look forward to his installation on January 13, 2010. Welcome Bishop Kevin Rhoades!
Bishop Rhoades was born November 26, 1957, in Mahanoy City, Pennsylvania. He studied for the priesthood at St. Charles Seminary, Overbrook, Pennsylvania, and the Gregorian University and was ordained to the priesthood in 1983. He became rector of St. Mary’s Seminary, Emmitsburg, Maryland in 1997, and was named Bishop of Harrisburg in 2004. He holds Licentiates in Canon Law and Sacred Theology from the Gregorian University.The Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend has a population of 1,262,788 people, with 157,703, or 12 per cent, of them Catholic. [More information on the diocesan website.]
Late-breaking: new bishop of Fort Wayne-South Bend soon?
The following thoughts were posted on American Papist and I thought they were worth passing along. We all have felt that we would be hearing an announcement of our new Bishop soon...but for me, as exciting as it is, there is still some sadness. Bishop D'Arcy has been so supportive of all that we are trying to do in the Diocese regarding fertility, and Hannah's Tears. He has been an incredible blessing. And now that I see that we could know, even today, who the next Bishop is, I am amazed even more at how much he has been doing in what are now probably his last weeks as Bishop. As the article below says, one source "noted a flurry of recent activity undertaken by Bishop D'Arcy, which would also imply that he is wrapping up the last of his unfinished business." Having been blessed to be a part of several aspects of this "flurry of recent activity"...the Bioethics Conference (Sept 11, 2009), having our Pastor, Bill Schooler elevated to Monsignor (Nov 8, 2009)...and knowing that our phone meeting between me and Bishop (Nov 5, 2009) was also made a priority in the "last weeks"..wow, it's an honor, and I am amazed at how Bishop D'Arcy does not intend to go out quietly, but rather making the most of his position of authority until the very end. I realize that I haven't reflected on my meeting with him and I hope to soon, but for now, it's time for football!
Happy Saturday everyone! Please pray for our new Bishop, whoever he may be. That the Holy Spirit would inspire the selection and that he too would have a heart for fertility/infertility and be willing to work with me/us to make the conference and future plans a reality.
Our Lady of Guadalupe, pray for us.
At the risk of crying "bishop!" one too many times, I'm being told this afternoon that Bishop John D'Arcy of the diocese of Fort Wayne - South Bend, Indiana has summoned the priests of his diocese for a "once in a generation" announcement tomorrow.
At a local Mass in the diocese celebrated today, the celebrant mentioned the rising rumors that the new appointment would be announced soon.
Bishop D'Arcy himself admitted in a statement posted to the diocesan website this Wedesday that his successor "cannot be too far away." He spoke in a way that could suggest he already knows who that individual will be.
Finally, Vatican-rumor blog Whispers in the Loggia noted a flurry of recent activity undertaken by Bishop D'Arcy, which would also imply that he is wrapping up the last of his unfinished business.
Saturday morning announcements of new bishops are not unheard of. Tomorrow will tell.
For the record, my bet is Bishop Thomas Paprocki, as it was over a month ago.
~ Thomas Peters
Happy Saturday everyone! Please pray for our new Bishop, whoever he may be. That the Holy Spirit would inspire the selection and that he too would have a heart for fertility/infertility and be willing to work with me/us to make the conference and future plans a reality.
Our Lady of Guadalupe, pray for us.
At the risk of crying "bishop!" one too many times, I'm being told this afternoon that Bishop John D'Arcy of the diocese of Fort Wayne - South Bend, Indiana has summoned the priests of his diocese for a "once in a generation" announcement tomorrow.
At a local Mass in the diocese celebrated today, the celebrant mentioned the rising rumors that the new appointment would be announced soon.
Bishop D'Arcy himself admitted in a statement posted to the diocesan website this Wedesday that his successor "cannot be too far away." He spoke in a way that could suggest he already knows who that individual will be.
Finally, Vatican-rumor blog Whispers in the Loggia noted a flurry of recent activity undertaken by Bishop D'Arcy, which would also imply that he is wrapping up the last of his unfinished business.
Saturday morning announcements of new bishops are not unheard of. Tomorrow will tell.
For the record, my bet is Bishop Thomas Paprocki, as it was over a month ago.
~ Thomas Peters
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
The Thrill of the Fruit Box
I would never have thought that the highlight of my week would be the arrival of the Organic Veggie/Fruit box! This week is especially exciting because it is the first week we have ordered only Fruit! I have no idea what do with several of the items (a whole coconut, pomegranate, Fuyu persimmons...what the heck are those anyway?) but can’t wait to figure it out. And unpacking it this afternoon, it was so pretty, I had to take a picture and figured I’d post to for you all to see. Heck, why not? :) All this for $35 bucks. Wow. We are going to be one happy little fruit bat Younger family! (if you live in the area and want to know more about B&B Organics, let me know...happy to connect you with them! They’re great!
2.5 Lbs Bananas * 1/2 Gallon Apple Cider * 2 Lbs Lemons
* 1 Pomegranate * 1 Lb Kiwi Fruit * 1.5 Lb Red Grapes
* 1 Pineapple * 4 Lbs Oranges * 1 Mango
* 3 Lbs Fuji Apples * 1 Coconut * 2 Grapefruit
* 2 Fuyu Persimmons
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
An Evening of Creighton Model NFP and NaPro Technology for Medical Professionals
It’s been four days since we hosted the Dessert Party and Evening of Creighton Model NFP and NaPro Technology and I’m only now able to really process it all. So much has happened in the past weeks to lead up to the event and I have been so tired since it, that I haven’t really been able to put into words how well it went to what it was like. But I’ve had the weekend to sleep and recover and because so many wonderful things did happen, I really do want to spend some time sharing the experience with all of you.
As a friend said, “This evening was an unqualified success.” It really was. I laughed and told someone that you know the Holy Spirit is in charge when you can get nine doctors together on the same evening! It’s hard enough to get ONE to come someplace, but NINE? Come Holy Spirit! There were 20 of us total for the evening, a beautiful mixture of medical professionals (doctors, nurses, physician assistants, fertility care practitioners, etc) in a variety of fields (Family Medicine, OBGYN, Orthopedic Surgery, Pharmacy), with varying years of experience (from 20+ years in the field to others in their first year of residency), and we were about a 50/50 split between those who were already affiliated with Creighton Model NFP and NaPro Technology and those that were either interested in learning more so they could become affiliated, or those who were open to learning about what Creighton and NaPro were all about. We got together around 7:30pm and had about 45 minutes of social time with drinks and desserts before heading into the presentation portion of the evening. Dr. Parker, my NaPro OBGYN from Ohio was in town and had agreed to present Creighton/NaPro and his personal journey and we were so blessed that he did. It was a powerful and very moving story of his journey to an NFP only practice. It was certainly an evening of hope. Presenting medically sound, scientifically-supported authentic women’s health care that has incredible documented results not only in the areas of postponing pregnancy (99.5% effective..the same or better than the pill) but also in the area of achieving pregnancy. Especially in the areas of infertility, the results are amazing (pregnancy rates that are 30-40% greater than IVF treatments...and a fraction of the cost). It was wonderful to hear Dr. Parker share the information from an OBGYNs perspective, and relate to his medical colleges the history of where he had been, why he decided to look into Creighton/NaPro, and what brought about his conversion to a Natural Family Planning Only practice.
Following his presentation, we had some questions and conversations as a group and I really appreciated the courage of the medical professionals present to ask the questions that were most on their minds. I cannot tell you how much I appreciate their willingness to come to the event, to be open to learning more and to asking the questions which are most pressing in their minds. It was a beautiful evening! I think we were done around 9:45, but the last guests left the house at 11:45pm!!! They just kept conversing, swapping business cards and networking! People just didn’t seem to want to leave! I think that we could all sense that something special was happening.
There were so many aspects of the evening that struck me, I’ll list just a few:
· The opportunity to network. The Creighton docs supporting those interested in learning more, and especially those in residency...that they would have contacts who have “gone before them” and can help give them a hand a long the way. The doctors who had been “in the business” for awhile, reaching out to the residents to encourage and support them.
· Hearing one of the young residents talk about how they wanted to have an NFP-only practice when they were done with residency. It was so exciting to know that there is fresh blood coming in to the NFP-only medical community!!!
· Dr. Parker talking about his family and six children saying, “We have to get past the mentality that I have six children because the Creighton Method failed [in preventing pregnancy]. I have six children because the method worked.” And this is a huge point when talking to those that do not respect large families. They can’t imagine why anyone would want more than one or two children...so clearly the youngest four children in the Parker family must have been accidents where the Creighton method failed. On the contrary he said. He has six children because each one was wanted and the method helped he and his wife to conceive them. This really is a huge point.
· Dr. Parker talking about how he had resisted making the decision to no longer prescribe birth control and do sterilizations, (and thus move to an NFP-only practice) because he didn’t want to force his morality on his patients….Then one day he realized, why was he allowing his patients to force their morality on him? He was allowing them to dictate what he did. If they still wanted birth control or something else, they could always go find it somewhere else...he had to make the choice to be faithful to what he knew to be true.
· Dr. Holly, a Family Medicine Doctor/Creighton Medical Consultant from Fort Wayne connecting with Dr. Parker. Previously, Dr. Holly had referred his patients to Omaha to Pope Paul VI Institute to see Dr. Hilgers. But now that he’s met Dr. Parker, perhaps he will be able to refer some of his patients to them? It’s a lot closer and the wait time for surgery is about half that of what it is to get into Omaha! These are the types of connections that were awesome to watch Friday night.
· Dr. Parker talked about how it was the prompting and encouragement of his patients that lead him to look into Creighton/NaPro. He said that patients would come bring him information about Creighton/NaPro and he would put it in his white coat pocket, and then later dump it on his desk, of course never reading it. Finally he agreed to go to Omaha and look into it all further. At the end of the first night, he was moved to tears and the conversion had begun. What struck me about this was that it was the encouragement, prompting and insistence of the patients that really made the difference for him. Why is this important to me? Because I think those of us who are in the Creighton/NaPro family really do owe it to our medical professionals to encourage them to look into this. Why don’t more doctors know about this? Because no one has told them. Creighton/NaPro certainly isn’t being taught in medical school (why? I have no idea.), and thus, we have to stand in that gap. We need to host events like this, help make introductions, and foster a community. If you are interested in hosting an event similar to ours in your community, let me know and I’ll help you set it up!
· I was struck by pressures that doctors face when they decide to stop prescribing birth control and go to an NFP only practice. Instead of understanding that doctors are doing this to promote better health in their patients (see Dr. Parker’s letter to patients), many look at them as if they are somehow denying care to the women they see. How contrary that is to the truth. If every woman knew about birth control what she deserved to know (see What a Woman Should Know about Birth Control), I don’t think many would be on it anymore. And I say this not from a moral or religious or ethical point of view, but merely from a health point of view. If women could truly see that Creighton Model NFP is JUST AS or MORE SO effective than the pill (Creighton is 99.5% effective), that it costs a fraction of the cost (I pay $2.00 for six months of charting supplies), that it is HEALTHY for them, and that using Creighton would actually strengthen their marriages!!!! … if women truly grasped this, it would change our world forever! But yet somehow, there is this cloud and fog over the concept of NFP. I think many mistakenly view it as old fashioned, scientifically-lacking and confuse it with the Calendar Method or the Rhythm Method which were not effective at all. Creighton is different. There is a reason they talk about it “Unleashing the Power of a Woman’s Cycle.” It deserves to be looked into by doctors and patients alike. And for those of us who already understand the power, beauty and truth of NFP, we must pray that others will be open to learning more and to understanding, and especially for our doctors...that they would have the courage to be faithful to the truth and to their calling as instruments of God’s healing! Especially close to my heart are those married couples who are both doctors...when one is ready to embrace NFP-only and the other is still resisting...we must continue to pray for them in a special way.
· Dr. Parker sharing that I was the 9th woman he had done this surgery on, and that 6 of the nine were already pregnant...he shared his hopes that I would be the 7th shortly. Me too. :)
The evening really was incredible. Those are just a few of the highlights and I probably could keep on going! Doctors came from Fort Wayne and Michigan (driving 2+ hours to get here), the Co-Directors for the Office of Family Life came as well to encourage learn and support….it really was an amazing evening. As we were wrapping up the evening, numerous guests thanked me profusely for hosting the evening and said, “we have to do this again.” Don’t worry folks...another is already in the planning! :) My prayer is to do something similar to this every 3 months, to keep networking, to keep learning, to keep encouraging, to keep supporting, to keep growing together in truth.
Thank you to all of you who prayed for this evening and for those that would come. The real work is now beginning as the medical professionals return to their practices and consider how they will respond to all that they heard and experienced! My prayer is that we will soon have a NaPro Center for Women’s Health here in South Bend. You think I’m crazy? Why not? With God all things are possible! :)
As a friend said, “This evening was an unqualified success.” It really was. I laughed and told someone that you know the Holy Spirit is in charge when you can get nine doctors together on the same evening! It’s hard enough to get ONE to come someplace, but NINE? Come Holy Spirit! There were 20 of us total for the evening, a beautiful mixture of medical professionals (doctors, nurses, physician assistants, fertility care practitioners, etc) in a variety of fields (Family Medicine, OBGYN, Orthopedic Surgery, Pharmacy), with varying years of experience (from 20+ years in the field to others in their first year of residency), and we were about a 50/50 split between those who were already affiliated with Creighton Model NFP and NaPro Technology and those that were either interested in learning more so they could become affiliated, or those who were open to learning about what Creighton and NaPro were all about. We got together around 7:30pm and had about 45 minutes of social time with drinks and desserts before heading into the presentation portion of the evening. Dr. Parker, my NaPro OBGYN from Ohio was in town and had agreed to present Creighton/NaPro and his personal journey and we were so blessed that he did. It was a powerful and very moving story of his journey to an NFP only practice. It was certainly an evening of hope. Presenting medically sound, scientifically-supported authentic women’s health care that has incredible documented results not only in the areas of postponing pregnancy (99.5% effective..the same or better than the pill) but also in the area of achieving pregnancy. Especially in the areas of infertility, the results are amazing (pregnancy rates that are 30-40% greater than IVF treatments...and a fraction of the cost). It was wonderful to hear Dr. Parker share the information from an OBGYNs perspective, and relate to his medical colleges the history of where he had been, why he decided to look into Creighton/NaPro, and what brought about his conversion to a Natural Family Planning Only practice.
Following his presentation, we had some questions and conversations as a group and I really appreciated the courage of the medical professionals present to ask the questions that were most on their minds. I cannot tell you how much I appreciate their willingness to come to the event, to be open to learning more and to asking the questions which are most pressing in their minds. It was a beautiful evening! I think we were done around 9:45, but the last guests left the house at 11:45pm!!! They just kept conversing, swapping business cards and networking! People just didn’t seem to want to leave! I think that we could all sense that something special was happening.
There were so many aspects of the evening that struck me, I’ll list just a few:
· The opportunity to network. The Creighton docs supporting those interested in learning more, and especially those in residency...that they would have contacts who have “gone before them” and can help give them a hand a long the way. The doctors who had been “in the business” for awhile, reaching out to the residents to encourage and support them.
· Hearing one of the young residents talk about how they wanted to have an NFP-only practice when they were done with residency. It was so exciting to know that there is fresh blood coming in to the NFP-only medical community!!!
· Dr. Parker talking about his family and six children saying, “We have to get past the mentality that I have six children because the Creighton Method failed [in preventing pregnancy]. I have six children because the method worked.” And this is a huge point when talking to those that do not respect large families. They can’t imagine why anyone would want more than one or two children...so clearly the youngest four children in the Parker family must have been accidents where the Creighton method failed. On the contrary he said. He has six children because each one was wanted and the method helped he and his wife to conceive them. This really is a huge point.
· Dr. Parker talking about how he had resisted making the decision to no longer prescribe birth control and do sterilizations, (and thus move to an NFP-only practice) because he didn’t want to force his morality on his patients….Then one day he realized, why was he allowing his patients to force their morality on him? He was allowing them to dictate what he did. If they still wanted birth control or something else, they could always go find it somewhere else...he had to make the choice to be faithful to what he knew to be true.
· Dr. Holly, a Family Medicine Doctor/Creighton Medical Consultant from Fort Wayne connecting with Dr. Parker. Previously, Dr. Holly had referred his patients to Omaha to Pope Paul VI Institute to see Dr. Hilgers. But now that he’s met Dr. Parker, perhaps he will be able to refer some of his patients to them? It’s a lot closer and the wait time for surgery is about half that of what it is to get into Omaha! These are the types of connections that were awesome to watch Friday night.
· Dr. Parker talked about how it was the prompting and encouragement of his patients that lead him to look into Creighton/NaPro. He said that patients would come bring him information about Creighton/NaPro and he would put it in his white coat pocket, and then later dump it on his desk, of course never reading it. Finally he agreed to go to Omaha and look into it all further. At the end of the first night, he was moved to tears and the conversion had begun. What struck me about this was that it was the encouragement, prompting and insistence of the patients that really made the difference for him. Why is this important to me? Because I think those of us who are in the Creighton/NaPro family really do owe it to our medical professionals to encourage them to look into this. Why don’t more doctors know about this? Because no one has told them. Creighton/NaPro certainly isn’t being taught in medical school (why? I have no idea.), and thus, we have to stand in that gap. We need to host events like this, help make introductions, and foster a community. If you are interested in hosting an event similar to ours in your community, let me know and I’ll help you set it up!
· I was struck by pressures that doctors face when they decide to stop prescribing birth control and go to an NFP only practice. Instead of understanding that doctors are doing this to promote better health in their patients (see Dr. Parker’s letter to patients), many look at them as if they are somehow denying care to the women they see. How contrary that is to the truth. If every woman knew about birth control what she deserved to know (see What a Woman Should Know about Birth Control), I don’t think many would be on it anymore. And I say this not from a moral or religious or ethical point of view, but merely from a health point of view. If women could truly see that Creighton Model NFP is JUST AS or MORE SO effective than the pill (Creighton is 99.5% effective), that it costs a fraction of the cost (I pay $2.00 for six months of charting supplies), that it is HEALTHY for them, and that using Creighton would actually strengthen their marriages!!!! … if women truly grasped this, it would change our world forever! But yet somehow, there is this cloud and fog over the concept of NFP. I think many mistakenly view it as old fashioned, scientifically-lacking and confuse it with the Calendar Method or the Rhythm Method which were not effective at all. Creighton is different. There is a reason they talk about it “Unleashing the Power of a Woman’s Cycle.” It deserves to be looked into by doctors and patients alike. And for those of us who already understand the power, beauty and truth of NFP, we must pray that others will be open to learning more and to understanding, and especially for our doctors...that they would have the courage to be faithful to the truth and to their calling as instruments of God’s healing! Especially close to my heart are those married couples who are both doctors...when one is ready to embrace NFP-only and the other is still resisting...we must continue to pray for them in a special way.
· Dr. Parker sharing that I was the 9th woman he had done this surgery on, and that 6 of the nine were already pregnant...he shared his hopes that I would be the 7th shortly. Me too. :)
The evening really was incredible. Those are just a few of the highlights and I probably could keep on going! Doctors came from Fort Wayne and Michigan (driving 2+ hours to get here), the Co-Directors for the Office of Family Life came as well to encourage learn and support….it really was an amazing evening. As we were wrapping up the evening, numerous guests thanked me profusely for hosting the evening and said, “we have to do this again.” Don’t worry folks...another is already in the planning! :) My prayer is to do something similar to this every 3 months, to keep networking, to keep learning, to keep encouraging, to keep supporting, to keep growing together in truth.
Thank you to all of you who prayed for this evening and for those that would come. The real work is now beginning as the medical professionals return to their practices and consider how they will respond to all that they heard and experienced! My prayer is that we will soon have a NaPro Center for Women’s Health here in South Bend. You think I’m crazy? Why not? With God all things are possible! :)
"For human beings this is impossible, but for God all things are possible."
~Matthew 19:26
~Matthew 19:26
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