Please join me in supporting our good friends Greg and Jennifer Willits and their Rosary Army Apostolate by supporting this year’s Rosary Army Giving Campaign.

Are you going to be taken up in the Rapture? Deacon Tom invites you to live in the NOW of the Eucharist rather than worrying about the End Times.

This week’s Mary Moment is a reflection on the wedding at Cana as Sarah Reinhard taps into Mary’s title Mother of Divine Providence.  You can read more of Sarah’s reflections on this title, including the history, at her column at Today’s Catholic Woman.

Links for this Episode:

• www.Kimand Jason.com
• There’s An Adult In My Soup
• Preorder The Handbook for Catholic Moms
• Yoursphere
• Current CatholicMom.com Contests – Pregnancy Product Giveaway
• CatholicMom.com Book Club
• The Catholic Company
• Lisa’s Facebook Profile, SQPN Connect Page, Plurk, Twitter
• Catholic Mom Logo Store

Subscribe to the feed | Subscribe with iTunes

I’m so happy to announce that my terrific friends over at The Catholic Company have gone above and beyond to make my new book, The Handbook for Catholic Moms: Nurturing Your Heart, Mind, Body and Soul, available for pre-order on their website here.  There is so much I want to share with you about this book, but today I am actually playing “beat the clock” to complete final edits.  Please visit The Catholic Company for an introductory preview of the book and to read what some of those who have already read it are saying.  If you could also share this information on your personal blog or email it to a friend, I would be grateful and indebted to you!

Check out The Handbook for Catholic Moms today.

The Solemnity of Christ the King

Click on the links below to download each item

• Sunday’s Gospel
• Coloring Page
• Mass Worksheets – 7-10, 11-14
  
• Current CatholicMom.com Contests
• Word Search – Puzzle, Solution
• Crossword – Puzzle
  Solution: Across – 1.  King;  3.  voice;  Down – 1.  kingdom;  2.  Jews
  
• Lesson Plan

Extra activities:

• Advent at CatholicMom.com
• 2009 Printable Advent Chain
• Advent Wreath File Folder Game
  • Advent Wreath Game Board
  • Advent Wreath Cards Younger
  • Advent Wreath Coloring Sheet
  • Advent Wreath Directions
  • Advent Wreath Directions Younger
  • Advent Wreath Question Cards
• Current CatholicMom.com Contests
• Puppet/skit scripts at CatholicMom.com
• Teaching Catholic Kids - Great Resources from Our Sunday Visitor
• To Teach – Great Resources from USCCB – Charity in Truth (Caritas In Veritate)

Pre-K Lesson Plans:

We will be providing weekly Pre-K lesson plans this year. These do not coincide with the Sunday Liturgy of the Word, but are specifically created for Catholic Pre-K learners.

• Advent
• Thank You God! (Terrific for Thanksgiving!)
• Joshua and Jericho
• Moses
• Joseph and His Wonderful Coat
• Prayer – I Can Talk to God
• Noah’s Ark
• Adam and Eve
• God Made Me and I’m Special
• Creation Day Seven – On the Seventh Day God Rested
• Creation Day Six – Animals on Land and Man
• Creation Day Five – Creatures in the Seas and Sky
• Creation Day Four – Sun, Moon and Stars
• Creation Day Three – Seas, Lands and Plants
• Creation Day Two – God Created the Sky
• Creation Day One – God Created Light

Religious Education Resource Articles:

• Timelines
• Story Sequencing Activities
• Assessing Student Progress
• Using Technology in Your Classroom
• How to Keep Disruptive Behavior Down to a Minimum
• Organize Your Materials
• Introductory Letter to Parents
• Lesson Planning
• Discipline in the Classroom
• Helping Hands Chart
• Special Needs Students – Information to Gather from Parents
• Preparing Your Religious Education Classroom

Featured Products:

Thank you for your support of CatholicMom.com

Advent, Christmas Epiphany in the Domestic Church – Great activities to celebrate these important liturgical seasons with our families, students, and parishes.

A proud wife and mother of five children (both biological and adopted, ranging in age from 4-17 years old), Mary Kay Hoal faces the same challenges every parent does: keeping her kids safe; raising them to be good, happy and well-balanced people; and providing them with the tools and support to create their own future.  While Mary Kay readily admits that she didn’t “get” the whole online social networking phenomenon at first, she quickly recognized its importance in her kids’ lives. After researching the disturbing landscape of social networking sites—including endless inappropriate content and thousands of predators targeting youth—Mary Kay’s mission became clear: raise the bar.  Yoursphere is a terrific online community where kids and teens connect, share and inspire — all in a place the puts Internet safety first. Parents can relax while kids and teens have fun.

A visit to a U. S. military cemetery near Florence Italy is the fodder for this week’s Deacon Moment with Deacon Tom Fox. Tom suggests we applaud all our veterans and to pray for them on this, their special day.

Sarah Reinhard’s struggling with prayer, and her Mary Moment reflection this week includes a quote from Mother Teresa’s Secret Fire: The Encounter That Changed Her Life and How It Can Transform Your Own, by Joseph Langford, and thoughts on tapping into Mary’s desire to help us succeed.

This episode of Catholic Moments is sponsored by CatholicMatch.com, the Leading Catholic Singles Community.  Share your feedback at 206-339-9272, comment here on the blog or email lisa@catholicmom.com.

Links for this Episode:

• Yoursphere
• Mary Kay Hoal’s Blog
• Current CatholicMom.com Contests – Pregnancy Product Giveaway
• CatholicMom.com Book Club
• The Catholic Company
• Lisa’s Facebook Profile, SQPN Connect Page, Plurk, Twitter
• Catholic Mom Logo Store

Subscribe to the feed | Subscribe with iTunes

Teddy Bear hat by Shannon of Organic Mama's Shop

Nursing Bracelet by Shannon of Organic Mama's Shop

Visit Shannon’s Organic Mama’s Etsy Shop

Enter our November Pregnancy Product giveaway for your chance to win!

I just finished a terrific novel and simply had to pause and share my review with you.  The book in question is Through the Open Window by Catholic author Anne Faye. Here’s what I shared on Amazon:

If you’re looking for a great read that will uplift, edify and inspire you, look no further than Through the Open Window by Anne Faye.

The book’s heroine, Lucy, is looking to lead a simple, contented life employed as a children’s librarian in a new town where she doesn’t know a soul. Beyond her better judgment, Lucy decides to sign up for “NaNoWrMo” – a real world phenomenon called National Novel Writing Month. Committing to the task of writing 50,000 words of fiction during the month of November connects Lucy with Mike, an eclectic (and gorgeous) Art professor who leads the local NaNoWriMo group at Lucy’s library.

As the words of Lucy’s novel begin to pile up towards her goal, we watch her personal story begin to unfold. We learn about the heartbreak and tragedy that caused her to begin a new life. We watch as her growing friendship with Mike has to withstand a few tests and challenges. We see Lucy take timid steps toward a faith life she has dismissed in anger. When a very sad dilemma develops in Lucy’s family, we watch as she must walk away from the life she is just rebuilding.

Ultimately, Lucy’s novel and her own life come to a satisfying conclusion that will have the reader wiping away a few tears and looking for a sequel to this very engaging story.   Author Anne Faye definitely has a way with words and creates characters you will quickly grow to know and love. Hope for more soon from this talented writer!

Purchase Through the Open Window and support CatholicMom.com.

Video Link

Cohabitation has become as commonplace as seeing Angelina Jolie’s face on tabloid covers in the checkout aisle these days. “Everybody” seems to be doing it, and “everybody” seems to think it’s a good idea. In fact, more than 62% of young adults believe it would be a good idea to cohabitate before marriage.

On the surface, cohabitation seems logical. Divorce rates are skyrocketing worldwide, yet you want lifelong love and lasting happiness when you get married. You’d test drive a car before buying it, so why not take your relationship around the block to make sure everything works well before marriage?

Unfortunately, shopping for cars and spouses do not require the same techniques. Research has overwhelmingly shown that the only reasons anyone would ever want to cohabitate are…

1. You think commitment is overrated

If you think commitment is an overrated virtue in a relationship; that partners should be allowed to cheat on each other; and if you girls don’t mind living indefinitely with a guy without hope of a marriage proposal, then cohabitation would suit you well.

Cohabitation kills motivation and incentive for men and women to commit exclusively to each other in a relationship. Studies show that those who cohabitate before marriage are three times more likely to engage in an extramarital affair.

Cohabitation particularly affects a man’s ability to commit. According to the Family in America Report (March 2004), young men unwilling to cohabitate are 133% more likely to marry.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church explains why cohabitation is not good preparation for faithfulness in marriage:

#2391: “Human love does not tolerate ‘trial marriages.’ It demands a total and definitive gift of persons to one another.”
#2390: “…The expression ‘free union’ is fallacious: what can ‘union’ mean when the partners make no commitment to one another, each exhibiting a lack of trust in the other, in himself, or in the future? … These situations offend against the dignity of marriage; they destroy the very idea of the family; they weaken the sense of fidelity [and]… are contrary to the moral law.”

So what’s missing in cohabitation that causes a commitment failure? The wedding ring: that small piece of jewelry placed on the finger that symbolizes “til death do us part.”

2. “Achy Breaky Heart” is your favorite song

If you enjoy bonding romantically with a person and then breaking up and getting your heart broken, then cohabitation is definitely the way to go. Cohabiting relationships are usually brief, and they often cause a string of successive relationships, each starting with a lower level of trust.

Studies have found that only 1/6 of cohabiting relationships last as long as three years. It’s also common for those who cohabitate to become what experts call “serial cohabitors” – those who enter into a series of cohabiting relationships. The greatest danger of repeated romantic bonding and breaking up, according to Barbara Dafoe Whitehead of the National Marriage Project, is “once this low-commitment, high autonomy pattern of relating is learned, it becomes hard to unlearn…the experience of dissolving one cohabiting relationship generates a greater willingness to dissolve later relationships.”

Sure sounds like a great way to prepare for divorce later in life.

3. You can’t stand hearing Bobby McFerrin sing “Don’t Worry Be Happy”

If you don’t want to be happy in life, by all means, cohabitate! Cohabiting couples report lower levels of happiness and higher levels of depression than married couples.

According to the National Fatherhood Initiative, “annual rates of depression are three times higher” for cohabiting couples compared to married couples. Cohabiting unions “have more disagreements, fight more often, and report lower levels of happiness and fairness than their married counterparts”. Cohabiting men and women also reported “significantly more alcohol problems than married or single men and women.”

On the other hand, if you want to be happy, follow God’s plan for true happiness. The Bible promises happiness to those who follow His will for our lives:

“Hear instruction and be wise…Happy is the man who listens to me, watching daily at my gates, waiting beside my doors. For he who finds me finds life and obtains favor from the Lord” (Proverbs 8:33-35).

“Blessed is every one who fears the Lord, who walks in his ways! You shall eat the fruit of the labor of your hands; you shall be happy, and it shall be well with you” (Psalm 128:1-2).

4. Your favorite TV show is Divorce Court

If you love watching couples scream at each other in front of their friendly neighborhood judge, and would like to experience the same splitting headaches in your own relationship, then you’re a perfect candidate for cohabitation.

While 62% of young adults agree that living together before marriage is a good way to avoid eventual divorce (according to a 2001 Gallup survey), the reality is cohabitation actually increases your probability of divorce by at least 46% (c.f. 1992 National Survey of Families and Households). [Note: this is a conservative estimate. Some studies found cohabitation increases one’s probability of divorce by as much as 75-80% (c.f. National Marriage Project, 2002)].

Thanks to the mistakes of our parent’s generation, who issued in the sexual revolution in the 60s, you and I already have about a 50% probability of divorce without any other factors involved. Add a much higher risk factor to that figure by cohabiting, and we might as well start auditioning for Divorce Court right now!

One reason for the correlation between cohabitation and divorce, according to David Popenoe and Barbara Dafoe Whitehead, is the increased levels of selfishness and reduced level of commitment: “People’s tolerance for unhappiness is diminished, and they will scrap a marriage that might otherwise be salvaged.” Furthermore, a study conducted by the National Survey of Families and Households found that “no positive contribution of cohabitation to marriage has ever been found.”

5. You find black eyes attractive

Cohabitation is dangerous for the physical well-being of women and children. Women in cohabitating relationships are more likely to report physical and sexual abuse. Some researchers found that “aggression is at least twice as common among cohabitors as it is among married partners.” Canadian and U.S. studies also identified that “women in cohabiting relationships are about nine times more likely to be killed by their partner than women in marital relationships” (Todd Shackelford, Aggressive Behavior, p. 27, 2001).

On a recent radio broadcast I hosted on the topic of cohabitation, a police officer from a college campus in Phoenix called in to confirm that the above correlation between cohabitation and abuse are true. “We get calls for domestic issues all the time,” the officer said, “and nine times out of ten it’s a live-in boyfriend and girlfriend situation.”

Cohabitation is also dangerous for children living in a home with cohabitors. According to the 2000 Census Bureau, 41% of all unmarried-couple households include a child under 18, and three quarters of children born to cohabiting parents will see their parents split up before they turn 16. Children living in cohabiting households with “step-fathers” or “mom’s boyfriends” are at a higher risk of sexual abuse and physical violence, including lethal violence, than children living with married biological parents (c.f. R. Gelles and J. Lancaster, eds., Child Abuse and Neglect: Biosocial Problems, 1992). So unless you want to see your child become the next Eminem, don’t bring him or her into a cohabiting relationship.

6. Just for Girls: you want to marry a guy who can’t talk

Ladies, if you enter a cohabiting relationship with a man before marriage, and engage in pre-marital relations, you will kill his ability to verbally communicate with you later in marriage.

As we all know, God designed men and women differently – us women got the lion’s share of verbal communication skills and guys are wired more physically than we are. During courtship, a man has a chance to learn how to express his thoughts and feelings to a woman – he learns to verbally communicate with her.

If a couple becomes physically active during the time when they should be learning how to verbally express love for each other, the girl will spend the rest of the relationship waiting for her man to talk to her, when in reality her relationship has become a re-make of Cool Hand Luke: “What we have here is a failure to communicate.”

Lack of communication is one of the major reasons listed on divorce filings today.

7. You like to vacation in unusually hot places

All of the social, emotional, and physical issues aside, cohabitation also directly affects your relationship with God and your eternal destiny. When we disobey God’s law and engage in a relationship that contradicts the Creator’s design for man and woman, we sin and turn our back on God’s love and His plan for our lives.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church clearly explains the immorality and eternal consequences of cohabitation:

#2353 “Fornication is carnal union between an unmarried man and an unmarried woman. It is gravely contrary to the dignity of persons and of human sexuality which is naturally ordered to the good of spouses and the generation and education of children.”

#1755: “There are some concrete acts – such as fornication – that it is always wrong to choose, because choosing them entails a disorder of the will, that is, a moral evil.”

#2390: “[These situations] are contrary to the moral law. The sexual act must always take place exclusively within marriage. Outside of marriage it always constitutes a grave sin and excludes one from sacramental communion.”

The Bible also clearly outlines the eternal effects of unrepented cohabitation. St. Paul wrote: “Do not be deceived; neither fornicators nor idolaters . . . will inherit the kingdom of God” (1 Corinthians 6:9-10).

Because mortal sin turns the mind and heart away from God, it’s not surprising that researchers have found that couples who cohabitate are “less religious” than married couples. (c.f. Linda Waite, “The Negative Effects of Cohabitation”.)

“But I don’t want my relationship to end in divorce!”

Of course, those couples who choose to cohabitate before marriage aren’t doing so because they love Divorce Court. They’re cohabiting because they desire true love – they want to safeguard that their future marriage will last a lifetime. Research shows that many cohabiting couples come from broken homes or divorced families, and they’re looking for ways to avoid their parents’ mistakes.

Unfortunately, our society isn’t presenting the brutal truth about the effects of cohabitation to our generation. That’s why it’s so important for us to search the Bible, the teachings of the Church, and solid research from the social sciences to learn how to best prepare for lifelong love.

Just remember: taking the car around the block doesn’t help when it comes to relationships. Saying “I Do” is the best way to increase your chances that you will.

Reading Recommendation:

If you or any single friends you know have questions about the issue of cohabitation and its potential effects on your life and relationships, I cannot recommend this book highly enough: How to Avoid Falling in Love with a Jerk, by Dr. John Van Epp

References Used:

* “Should We Live Together? What Young Adults Need to Know about Cohabitation before Marriage: A Comprehensive Review of Recent Research.” 2nd Edition. David Popenoe and Barbara Dafore Whitehead. National Marriage Project of Rutgers University, 2002.
* “The State of Our Unions: The Social Health of Marriage in America.” David Popenoe and Barbara Dafore Whitehead. 2002. National Marriage Project of Rutgers University.
* “The Family in America Report”, March 2004.
* National Fatherhood Initiative. Selected Policy Statements. 2000 Report.
* Linda J. Waite, “The Negative Effects of Cohabitation.” The Communitarian Network, Volume 10, Issue 1, Winter 1999/2000.

* Stephen Wood, “Extinguishing Real Love Before Your Marriage Begins”. Chapter 5 in The ABCs of Choosing a Good Husband (and Wife). Family Life Center International, 2007.

Stephanie can be reached at stephanie@catholicmatch.com

What is it like at your parish before liturgy starts? Is it a quiet, sacred church? Or is it noisy and neighborly? Deacon Tom discusses this by sharing about a recent Saturday evening at his parish in Arizona.

Do you want a Mary Vitamin in your inbox?  Sarah Reinhard shares a quote from a recent Mary Vitamin and encourages you to sign up to receive your own.

This episode of Catholic Moments is sponsored by CatholicMatch.com, the Leading Catholic Singles Community.  Share your feedback at 206-339-9272, comment here on the blog or email lisa@catholicmom.com.

Links for this Episode:

• Wee Believers
• Sean Clive – The First Day
• Current CatholicMom.com Contests – Rosary Workout Book Contest, CatholicMatch.com Membership Contest
• CatholicMom.com Book Club
• The Catholic Company
• Lisa’s Facebook Profile, SQPN Connect Page, Plurk, Twitter
• Catholic Mom Logo Store

Subscribe to the feed | Subscribe with iTunes

Thirty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time

Click on the links below to download each item

• Sunday’s Gospel
• Coloring Page
• Mass Worksheets - 7-10, 11-14
  
• Current CatholicMom.com Contests
• Word Search – Puzzle, Solution
• Crossword – Puzzle
  Solution:  Across:  4.  tribulation;  5.  elect;  Down:  1.  Mark;  2.  Father;  3.  Fig
  
• Lesson Plan

Pre-K Lesson Plans:

We will be providing weekly Pre-K lesson plans this year. These do not coincide with the Sunday Liturgy of the Word, but are specifically created for Catholic Pre-K learners.

• Joshua and Jericho
• Moses
• Joseph and His Wonderful Coat
• Prayer – I Can Talk to God
• Noah’s Ark
• Adam and Eve
• God Made Me and I’m Special
• Creation Day Seven – On the Seventh Day God Rested
• Creation Day Six – Animals on Land and Man
• Creation Day Five – Creatures in the Seas and Sky
• Creation Day Four – Sun, Moon and Stars
• Creation Day Three – Seas, Lands and Plants
• Creation Day Two – God Created the Sky
• Creation Day One – God Created Light

Religious Education Resource Articles:

• Assessing Student Progress
• Using Technology in Your Classroom
• How to Keep Disruptive Behavior Down to a Minimum
• Organize Your Materials
• Introductory Letter to Parents
• Lesson Planning
• Discipline in the Classroom
• Helping Hands Chart
• Special Needs Students – Information to Gather from Parents
• Preparing Your Religious Education Classroom

Extra activities:

• Current CatholicMom.com Contests
• Puppet/skit scripts at CatholicMom.com
• Teaching Catholic Kids - Great Resources from Our Sunday Visitor
• To Teach – Great Resources from USCCB – Charity in Truth (Caritas In Veritate)

Featured Products:

Thank you for your support of CatholicMom.com

Jotham’s Journey: A Storybook for Advent – In this widely popular, exciting story for the advent season, readers follow ten-year-old Jotham across Israel as he searches for his family. Though he faces thieves, robbers, and kidnappers, Jotham also encounters the wise men, shepherds, and innkeepers until at last he finds his way to the Savior born in Bethlehem.

Prize Pack 1:

• 1 copy of Erin O’Brien’s Complete Pregnancy Fitness DVD set
• 1 Bella Band
• 1 copy of the complete Laugh and Learn DVD package including Laugh and Learn about Childbirth, Breastfeeding, and Newborn Baby Care;  1 Laugh and Learn T-shirt; 1 copy of Sheri Bayles’ Laugh and Learn about Childbirth book
• 1 copy of Prayerfully Expecting: A Nine-Month Novena for Mothers to Be by Donna Marie Cooper O’Boyle
• 1 copy of Margo B. Smith’s CD “Sending Up A Prayer”
• 1 Nursing Bracelet from OrganicMama’s Etsy Shop

Prize Pack 2:

• 1 copy of Erin O’Brien’s Complete Pregnancy Fitness DVD set
• 2 boxes of Organic Preggie Pop Drops
• 1 copy of the complete Laugh and Learn DVD package including Laugh and Learn about Childbirth, Breastfeeding, and Newborn Baby Care; 1 Laugh and Learn T-shirt; 1 copy of Sheri Bayles’ Laugh and Learn about Childbirth book
• 1 copy of Prayerfully Expecting: A Nine-Month Novena for Mothers to Be by Donna Marie Cooper O’Boyle
• 1 copy of Margo B. Smith’s CD “Sending Up A Prayer”
• 1 Hand knit “Teddy Bear” newborn hat from Organic Mama’s Etsy Shop

Visit Kate Wicker at Momopoly for a detailed review of the Complete Pregnancy Fitness DVD set.  Visit Anne McClure at Catholic Mommy Brain for reviews of the Bella Band, Laugh and Learn package, and Prayerfully Expecting.  For additional information and products by Shannon and Organic Mama’s visit their adorable Etsy shop.

To enter to win this contest, you must leave a comment on this post with a valid email address (which won’t be published or shared) before Midnight PST on November 30, 2009.  I’ll draw two random winners and announce the winners when the contest has ended.

Editor’s Note – A HUGE Thanks to Anne McClure of Catholic Mommy Brain for coordinating this giveaway!

I know that you are concerned about the media’s negative influences on our nation’s children. As former Senator of Pennsylvania, I remain passionately involved in issues that concern American families. And as a Dad, I know firsthand the challenge of trying to raise good kids in a culture saturated with offensive media that undermines the values Karen and I want to instill in our kids.

America’s children spend an average of 4 hours a day watching TV and on the Internet. Contrast that with the typical 15 minutes a day kids spend talking to parents or the weekly hour in Church. The media’s power to shape our children’s hearts and minds is staggering.

As I travel across the country, parents ask me, “Isn’t there something that can be done so we can watch the shows we want to watch without exposing our children to scenes and commercials we don’t want them to see?” The answer is “yes.”

There is a solution that I’d like to share with your readers. More importantly, I’d like their feedback and their input.

After I left the Senate, I joined Mpower Media, an independent company founded by Steve McEveety (producer of The Passion of the Christ) and Ken Ferguson (former Chief Operating Officer for National Geographic Television). Mpower’s unique vision is to give parents the control over TV and Internet content according to their own standards, so that families can enjoy popular shows–without the offensive scenes or commercials.

Imagine. No more erectile dysfunction commercials during football games.  No more surprise sex scenes or graphic violence. No more offensive scenes or websites.  Children can watch the popular shows they want, and parents get peace of mind, confident that their children are protected – even when they are not there.

Our market surveys tell us that millions of families want to learn more about the Mpower Box. I am turning to you, because we want to know what your readers think.  We would love to hear how real families who share our values react to the Mpower technology.

This 2 minute video shows the difference Mpower can make for families and our culture.  Please feel free to post this video on your website and get the word out to your readers that we are very interested in hearing from them – they can contact us through our website.

I hope you’ll take a few moments to view the video and explore the Mpower website.  I have obviously not been able to preview this product aside from exploring their website, so I have no idea about the costs associated with the product.  But as a mother of teenage young men, I see the value in creating a safer viewing environment for my family.  I’m curious about your reaction to Mpower – feel free to chime in here in the comments.  Would you purchase a product like this for your home?

MeFertil Tutorial from SignalFive on Vimeo.

Learn more at www.TobiasMag.com.

Our Lady of Kibeho: Mary Speaks to the World from the Heart of Africa.

We will have additional information for you on Our Lady of Kibeho during the month of November.  The following is a lovely prayer, shared by our friend Brian Kravec of the Immaculee Committee at St. Patrick’s Parish in Merced.

Prayer to Our Lady of Kibeho

Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of the Word,
Mother of all those who believe in Him
and who welcome Him into their life,
we are here before you to contemplate You.
We believe that you are amongst us,
like a mother in the midst of her children,
even though we do not see You with our bodily eyes.
We bless You, the Sure Way that leads us to Jesus the Saviour,
for all the favours which You endlessly pour out upon us,
especially, that, in your meekness, You were gracious enough
to appear miraculously in Kibeho, just when our world needed it most.
Grant us always the light and the strength necessary to accept,
with all seriousness, Your call to us to be converted,
to repent, and to live according  to your Son’s Gospel.
Teach us how to pray with sincerity,
and to love one another as He loved us,
so that, just as You have requested,
we may always be beautiful flowers
diffusing their pleasant fragrance everywhere and upon everyone.
Holy Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows,
teach us to understand the value of the cross in our lives,
so that whatever is still lacking to the sufferings of Christ
we may fill up in our own bodies for His mystical Body,
which is the Church.
And, when our pilgrimage on this earth comes to an end,
may we live eternally with You in the kingdom of Heaven.
Amen.

* Imprimatur:
* Gikongoro, the 25th of March, 2006-05-29
* + Augustin Misago – Bishop of  Gikongoro

Like many of you, I have admired Dr. Coleen’s work on her terrific Ave Maria Radio program, “The Doctor is In”.  But there is much more to know and love about this terrific wife and mother of five.    Her professional bio from TMG Speakers gives a great overview of the breadth of her expertise:

Coleen Kelly Mast, an author, public speaker and radio talk show host, is a pioneer in the field of chastity education. Dr. Mast currently hosts a popular call-in radio advice show, The Doctor Is In produced and syndicated by Ave Maria Radio for more than 100 stations of the Catholic Radio Association, EWTN and Sirius Satellite Radio. She provides Catholic-flavored practical solutions to callers who seek her advice on a variety of personal, spiritual and family problems.

Mast holds an Honorary Doctorate in Humane Letters from Quincy University, a Masters Degree in Health Education and Secondary teaching certificates in four specialty fields: Theology, Health, Physical Education and Science. She has taught at the elementary, junior high and high school levels and has been involved in Family Life Education since 1975.

Mast has written both the ‘Love and Life’ and ‘Sex Respect’ chastity education programs, which include books, seminars and videos for teachers, teens and parents. Mast’s programs have been sold in 23 countries and all 50 states. She has appeared on Oprah, Geraldo, Mother Angelica Live, 60 Minutes, andat Steubenville High School Youth Conferences. Mast has debated the Presidents of SEICUS and Planned Parenthood on television and debated ACLU representatives on public radio.

She assisted with the writing of the USCC Bishops 1992 document on Human Sexuality Education Guidelines, and in 1997 Mast was one of four people from the United States invited to the Vatican by the Pontifical Council for the Family for an in-depth study of the ‘Truth and Meaning of Human Sexuality’ document when it was released. Based on those teachings and the need for additional parent catechesis today, her ‘Love and Life’ Parent and Teen Series was updated for 2006 complete with Imprimatur and published by Ignatius Press.

She has been married for 30 years to Kent Mast. They have five children and live in Illinois.

Several times a month, I find myself referring parents who contact me to Coleen’s website at www.SexRespect.com.  Her resources, aimed at providing a Christian moral framework for sexual abstinence, are a life saver for families struggling with the pressures placed on today’s teens by their peers and society.  While I’ve never had the pleasure of meeting Coleen Kelly Mast in person, I remain a tremendous fan of her work and thank Matthew Warner for the opportunity to introduce this Catholic speaking champion to our readers.