NFP Awareness Week
July 25-31, 2010
Trust, God Has a Plan for Your Marriage
Natural Family Planning Awareness Week is a national educational campaign of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. The image at the right is the poster they developed for this year’s campaign.
The dates of Natural Family Planning Awareness Week highlight the anniversary of the papal encyclical Humanae Vitae (July 25) which articulates Catholic beliefs about human sexuality, conjugal love and responsible parenthood. The dates also mark the feast of Saints Joachim and Anne (July 26), the parents of the Blessed Mother. For further information, contact nfp@usccb.org.
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NFP couples know very well how much misunderstanding there is out there about modern Natural Family Planning -- even 40+ years after its development! It’s time more people knew the TRUTH about NFP! We invite you to explore the following information and share it with others.
Why Natural Family Planning?
- Safe, healthy, effective method of family planning
- Increases/keeps alive romance and courtship in your marriage
- Increases cooperation, reverence and respect for your spouse
- Strengthens your marriage bond
- Often increases your faith and trust in God and in your spouse
- Experience an increased willingness to seek God’s plan for your family
- Avoidance of harmful side effects of unnatural forms of birth control
- Credibility and confidence in teaching abstinence to your teenage children
- Personal insight into the meaning of sexual intercourse as a renewal of your marriage covenant
- The fruits of perseverance, tolerance, faithfulness, self-control, diligence, joy, faith, and commitment
- Financial savings $$
Differences Between NFP and Contraception
Natural Family Planning |
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Contraception |
Is in harmony with fertility |
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Interferes with fertility |
Treats fertility as a gift |
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Treats fertility as a disease |
Maintains integrity of sexual union |
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“Dis”integrates sexual union |
Fosters increased communication |
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Requires little/no communication |
Promotes marital bonding |
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May promote feelings of being used |
Couple remains in communion w/ Christ |
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Separates couple from Christ & His Church |
Encourages the couple to revisit the decision to avoid or achieve pregnancy |
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Assumes avoiding pregnancy |
Can change use of the method to avoid or achieve pregnancy at a moment’s notice |
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Requires discontinuing the method to achieve pregnancy |
Is open to God’s will for life |
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Is closed to beginning a new life |
Protects the love & life nature of marriage |
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Interferes with love & life nature of marriage |
Is healthy and brings awareness of the woman’s reproductive abnormalities for treatment |
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May cause side effects requiring treatment |
