Category: Faith (Page 3 of 3)

Going All Natural: 7 Reasons NFP is for Me

February 27, 2013 / Nicole Padley / 2 Comments

Pat and I have been knee deep in wedding planning. After weeks and weeks of searching online, calling people, leaving messages and setting up times to visit we can finally rest in the fact that progress has been made. We have a church, a priest, a DJ, a photographer and yes FINALLY…we have a venue. Cue the hallelujahs and heavenly hymns.

Just as every good Catholic couple planning their nuptials, we have recently begun our Natural Family Planning classes.

Contrary to many who might feel uneasy or uncomfortable in a situation like this, Pat and I were rather excited to begin learning about NFP. I mean, after all, we get to talk about sex and what could be bad about that?

Aside from the fact that artificial contraception directly goes against our moral beliefs, we were looking forward to all the positives of going all-natural on this one. Positives? Like what you ask.

While there are plenty of people who know a whole lot more about this Natural Family Planning than I do…here are a few of the reasons I am stoked to get to it naturally.

1. I’m marrying for keeps.

I’m not sure about you, but I plan on this whole wedding/marriage being a one-time thing. Just as the countless others who take that leap of faith and walk down the aisle I hope and pray for a joyful, fulfilling and life-giving marriage. I want Pat to always cherish and love me in the way he does now. Likewise, I hope to always respect and honor Pat as my husband just as I strive to now. From all that I’ve read and heard about NFP I can only conclude that this type of family planning will support our hopes for marriage as this method promotes conversation between spouses about the future of their family.

2. Why pay for sex?

Simply stated, depending on the method you use NFP is free once you’ve learned the basics. I’m choosing to work with my body’s natural fertility to either postpone or plan a pregnancy. No trips to CVS to fill a prescription and pick up some condoms. I don’t know about you but a shopping spree sounds much more appealing to me than buying rubbers.

3. I’m going green.

I’ve never been one to jump on the bandwagon, but when it comes to personal health I’m on board. For all you vegans, vegetarians, carnivores or whatever else floats your boat…take a look at NFP.

A recent blog I stumbled upon (www.iusenfp.com) gives a good explanation of some of the harms associated with hormonal contraceptives. “One of the active ingredients in most hormonal contraceptives is estrogen which has been classified by the World Health Organization as a Class 1 carcinogen. What’s a Class 1 carcinogen, you ask? It’s a chemical with sufficient evidence proving its carcinogenicity to humans. Other chemicals that share this distinction are arsenic, asbestos, silica dust, and tobacco. Another chemical that is in Depo-Provera (the shot) is depo-medroxyprogesterone acetate (DMPA) which has been linked with a 2.2 increase in breast cancer.”

Using Natural Family Planning helps save the #environment. #sustainable #ecofriendly

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4. It works.

That’s right folks Natural Family Planning is not the rhythm method your grandmother used in the 1930s and 1940s. NFP works with all women’s cycles: irregular or not. In fact compared to other popular forms of birth control NFP does quite well in measures of effectiveness. NFP measures at a 99% effectiveness rate comparing with the Pill at 99% and condoms at 97%.

Now, of course, it must be stated that these measures of effectiveness are based on proper use.

If you forget to talk the Pill one day and have sex you are taking a chance with pregnancy.

If a condom breaks or you choose not to use one, you are taking a chance.

Likewise, if your charting at peak ovulation time and decide to have sex, you are taking a chance.

5. Why kill the mo-jo?

The answer is I don’t. According to its own warning label, the Pill can cause a decrease in a women’s libido, leading her to lose interest in sex altogether. Don’t believe me just research it yourself. Countless sources repeat this over and over again. http://www.health.com/health/condition-article/0,,20326842,00.html

6. If it ain’t broke don’t fix it.

I don’t view my fertility as a problem to be fixed or an illness to be cured. Obviously, I’m a woman and just as all women I was created with ovaries. These ovaries of mine seem to work just fine so can someone please tell me why I would want to mess with my body if it is working just as it was created to work?

While maybe not today at some point in the future I would like to have children with this man I’m about to marry. So I personally would prefer not to mess with my fertility. This way when we do want to start a family there is nothing stopping us. Natural Family Planning is 100% reversible. On any given month Pat and I will be able to decide whether to postpone our family or get to making babies. On the other hand most hormonal birth control recommends that you stop use 3-4 months before you desire to get pregnant. 3-4 months and that is assuming all goes according to plan.

7. I snagged a stud like Pat by staying away from the Pill.

I realize that this final point doesn’t directly relate to why I’ve chosen to use NFP. However, it does reinforce my decision to keep in natural. A short video chalked full of interesting info. Enjoy!

How the Pill Affects Your Dating Choices and Attraction Level (Video) #Contraception

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Intrigued? Read more about Natural Family Planning:

http://IuseNFP.com

http://www.janetesmith.com

http://nfpsite.aldred.org

http://americanpregnancy.org/preventingpregnancy/fertilityawarenessNFP.html

http://www.ccli.org/nfp/

http://nfp.marquette.edu

http://www.creightonmodel.com/

Wikipedia on NFP

Photos credited to IuseNFP.com

5 Catholic News Sources for Honest Reporting

February 11, 2013 / Patrick Padley / 0 Comments

With the surprise announcement of Pope Benedict XVI’s resignation, I thought I would share the top five places I go to for unfiltered, honest, non-secularized Catholic news. These fives news sources for me allow me to not get skewed information regarding the Church or any major news regarding Catholicism.

Vatican News – The official news site of the Vatican offers the faithful brief news articles on the Pope and the Church, videos of His Holiness and multiple news outlets. They tweet @newsva_en
National Catholic Register – The National Catholic Register began in Denver in the late 1920s as the Denver Catholic Register. Exchanging several hands, it eventually was purchased by EWTN from the Legionaries in January 2011. The paper prides itself on being a daily news outlet that is faithful to the Magisterium and professional in presentation. Amongst many supposed Catholic media companies, the NC Register remains a resource for faithful Catholics seeking to understand their Church and their world. It hosts a myriad of correspondents and gives opinion through their various and well-known bloggers. Follow NC Register on twitter @NCRegister
Catholic News Services – The mission of Catholic News Service is the mission of the Church itself — to spread the Gospel through contemporary means of communication. Serving since 1920 as a news agency specializing in reporting religion, is the primary source of national and world news that appears in the U.S. Catholic press. Their website is a little outdated, but decent reporting. You can find them on twitter @CatholicNewsSvc
Rome Reports – Rome Reports is a great source for Catholic news videos. Updated on a regular basis, Rome Reports is faithful to the Church and reliable for up to date videos on Catholic news and papal events. Check out their twitter @romereports
Zenit – Zenit has some of the most comprehensive Vatican News coverage. When the Holy Father issues an Encyclical or Document it is on line within 24 hours. It also prints important news on the international Church and comes in several languages. Follow them on twitter @zenitenglish

Stay away from the following:

National Catholic Reporter – Lovingly called the National Catholic Fishwrap by popular blogger Father Z and others, the supposed Catholic newspaper is a festering wound of heresy and dissent. I call it the National Catholic Distorter.

Mainstream Media “Faith Blogs” – Sites like the Huffington Post on Religion and the CNN Belief Blog are complete froth and generally only host those religious thinkers who are either atheists or angry ex-members of a given religion.

What are your favorite Catholic news sources?

[Note: this blog post was originally posted on PatrickPadley.com]

Opportunity to be Grateful

January 22, 2013 / Nicole Padley / 0 Comments

As a young lady who recently ventured through the jungles of singledom myself, my heart goes out to all those good-hearted women and men searching for their vocation and trying to date. It can be rough out there. Dating is hard enough, but trying to date as a Christian in a world that is consumed by sex, money and selfish desires is a beast all its own.

Just the other day I was on a plane heading to one of my missionary teammates’ wedding when I overheard a gentleman sitting next to me complaining to his friend that “sometimes I just like to go out without her, have a few beers with the guys and check out other women.” He was speaking about his long time girlfriend, who he wasn’t sure he wanted to marry.

Now before I pick this apart, I must say that I do agree with half of his statement. Men should be men and be able to have man time without feeling guilty. I believe the same to be true for women. At its best, this type of fellowship can make us better people. I think back to some advice a professor once gave me. He told me that as a woman you can tell a man when he is not being a good man, but you can not teach him how to be a better man. He can only learn that from other men and vice versa.

With that said, this man’s overall attitude toward his girlfriend saddened me. It was obvious by his comments that he viewed relationships in a completely different light than I do. At one point later in the conversation he advised his friend, “marriage is when two people can be together, make the least amount of compromise and still be happy.” Of course because compromise would mean we take the risk of actually becoming more selfless creatures.

Now I’m not trying to bash this guy. After all who knows the experiences he has had that has brought him to his current opinion on this point? Either way it is this type of outlook that our world seems to grip so tightly, that disheartens me and at the same time reminds me how incredibly blessed I am to have found a man like Patrick.

He is a man who loves God more than me, a man who cherishes me and might be more anxious than I am to plan our wedding. What a gift, a completely undeserved one at that? But for as much as Pat loves me and as incomprehensible as that love can be at times I know that God loves me more, which is super crazy.

This is my hope for our culture that all may know the love of Christ and let that love dictate their relationships with others. Praise God for good men and women, healthy relationships and opportunities that remind me how blessed I truly am.