Among Women Podcast #140 features Dawn Eden and her book offering hope and healing for sexual wounds

Among Women 140* turns our attention to the tender subject of recovery and healing from the wounds of sexual abuse, especially those sustained in childhood. My guest this week is Dawn Eden, author of My Peace I Give You: Healing Sexual Wounds with the Help of the Saints. In this conversation, Dawn shares some of the spiritual richness she found after coming into the Catholic Church as a convert, and how the prayers, sacraments, and saints of the church offer solace and renewal for those who have suffered from sexual wounds. She also describes the stained glassed triptych to the left, in some depth.

This program also features some excerpts from St. Faustina's Diary of Divine Mercy, and in particular, contains a lovely prayer of thanksgiving for the gift of grace found in the sacramental life. You'll also find numerous links and resources on the podcast page, including a free drawing to enter for Dawn Eden's new book.

*Programming note: due to the sensitive nature of this topic, parental discretion is advised. While no abuse is graphically described in this conversation, we wish to protect the innocence of children who may be in earshot of the program.

I'm over at Amazing Catechists... doing my Pat-in-the-Cat thing, and talking about taking faith on vacation

I've written about this subject before, in which I ask Does the Catechism Have Any Wisdom for My Summer Vacation? Go check out my column at Amazing Catechists.

This makes me think... what the end of the Catechism says

A few short summary lines of catechesis on The Lord's Prayer... 

2857 In the Our Father, the object of the first three petitions is the glory of the Father: the sanctification of his name, the coming of the kingdom, and the fulfillment of his will. The four others present our wants to him: they ask that our lives be nourished, healed of sin, and made victorious in the struggle of good over evil.

2858 By asking "hallowed be thy name" we enter into God's plan, the sanctification of his name - revealed first to Moses and then in Jesus - by us and in us, in every nation and in each man.

2859 By the second petition, the Church looks first to Christ's return and the final coming of the Reign of God. It also prays for the growth of the Kingdom of God in the "today" of our own lives.

2860 In the third petition, we ask our Father to unite our will to that of his Son, so as to fulfill his plan of salvation in the life of the world.

2861 In the fourth petition, by saying "give us," we express in communion with our brethren our filial trust in our heavenly Father. "Our daily bread" refers to the earthly nourishment necessary to everyone for subsistence, and also to the Bread of Life: the Word of God and the Body of Christ. It is received in God's "today," as the indispensable, (super-) essential nourishment of the feast of the coming Kingdom anticipated in the Eucharist.

2862 The fifth petition begs God's mercy for our offences, mercy which can penetrate our hearts only if we have learned to forgive our enemies, with the example and help of Christ.

2863 When we say "lead us not into temptation" we are asking God not to allow us to take the path that leads to sin. This petition implores the Spirit of discernment and strength; it requests the grace of vigilance and final perseverance.

2864 In the last petition, "but deliver us from evil," Christians pray to God with the Church to show forth the victory, already won by Christ, over the "ruler of this world," Satan, the angel personally opposed to God and to his plan of salvation.

2865 By the final "Amen," we express our "fiat" concerning the seven petitions: "So be it."

Among Women ReadHER 7.21.12... CUA & Wheaton's collab on HHS, "dating", Olympics, What Women Want

Among Women ReadHER 7.21.12

Prayers for Aurora with the Office of the Dead
By Elizabeth Scalia at The Anchoress
Let us pray, pray, pray.

Philip Ryken and John Garvey: An Evangelic-Catholic Stand on Liberty
By Philip Ryken and John Garvey at the Wall Street Journal
The fight againt HHS mandate continues. In this article the President of Wheaton College (a major Evangelical institution) and the President of The Catholic University of America team up to file suit against the mandate. Stay tuned, and stay informed on this issue - a must for every Catholic. 


You can track all the lawsuits here (not just the Catholic ones.) 


Women Speak for Themselves is a cool initiative... please check it out.


Finally, if you missed Archbishop Chaput's Homily in DC on July 4th, go here and read it.

Bishops Welcome Inclusion of Conscience Provisions in a House Appropriations Bill
Posted at the USCCB
Read it for some encouragement. There's still a long way to go to make this happen.

In Defense of the 'D' Word
By Michael Hammond at the Catholic Portal at Patheos
I sent this to my sons; it's about dating. 

Abducted by Art
By Simcha Fisher at her blog at National Catholic Register
Some stirring commentary on art and comic strips and the state of weight and women. (On a related note, on AW 139 this week, we're talking to Ellen Austin about her comic strip creation, "Gracieland.") 


Should a Six Year Old Girl Be Trying to Look Sexy?
By Tony Rossi at Christopher Close-up
A good question... especially for the parents reading this.


What Women Want
By Barbara Kay at the National Post, reprinted by CERC
More commentary on the previous Atlantic Monthly article on the work/home balance for women.


The Miracle of the Violet
By Maria Morera Johnson at CatholicMom.com
If you pay attention, the little things in life have much to teach us. Over and over again. (This article is also available in Spanish.)


SQPN Announces an All-New Virtual Ticket to the CNMC
Posted at CatholicNewMediaConference.com
Can't make it the CNMC in Dallas? This might be a great option to get all the talks, plus content from previous conferences delivered to you after the event.


Prayer, Faith Guide Maryland Swimmer in Quest for Olympic Gold
By Maureen Boyle in the Catholic Standard
Praying a Hail Mary before each race, and other thoughts.

Get your catechism fix here... with the cutest catechist on the planet to date... son of author and blogger Brandon Vogt.

The F.U.N.Quotient... cuz I usually have the most fun when music is playing...

One for your inspiration...


And one for fun and silliness!

Among Women # 139: Conversation, Conversion & the Comics

Join me for this week's Among Women 139 where I talk about the power of conversations that can lead to conversion, as in the life of St. Joan Delanoue, a French businesswoman-turned-founder-of a religious order. 


Joining me in conversation today is wife, mother, catechist, and creator of a comic strip online, also known as a web-strip, Ellen Austin, who shares her faith, and also has a remarkable knack for seeing life through the eyes of children through her heroine of "Gracieland". 


Plus get all the details about the Catholic New Media Conference, Aug 29 - 31 in Dallas.


Listen or download this episode, AW 139, here.

This makes me think... about marriage and life-long love...

Is it possible that entering into a once-and-for all, no-possibility-of-changing our minds, I-will-love-you-forever-and-you'll-do-the-same, promise to a person of the opposite sex can be an opportunity to see God face to face? Is it possible that eschewing temporary experiences of sex in favor of a lifelong promise to be faithful and loving to the other is fraught with meaning and a doorstep to eternity?

Let's be very clear about what's on the table: nothing less than an act of faith. Here's God's proposal: "if you choose to enter into a lifelong relationship with a person of the opposite sex, and choose to love that person in every moment of every day for the rest of your life, you'll come to know who I am and how I love the people I've created. It will demand all of you; it will demand sacrifice and conversion and transformation. It will demand forfeiting all your selfish desires but discovering beautiful shared desires. It will be a vocational call, summoning from you the difficult process of discerning when and how you will invite children into your world, care for aging parents, contribute to a community, reach out to others in need, build a future. Through it all, I will be with you to guide you, and you will find joy.

--Timothy Muldoon, "The McDonaldization of Sex 5: Sacred Sex", part of a series.

Among Women ReadHER...7.14.12

Among Women ReadHER 7.14.12

Attachment Theory
By Elizabeth Foss in the Catholic Herald
Protect your marriage. Read this very wise advice.


The Gospel and Social Media
By Sr. Mary Ann Walsh on the USCCB Blog
Take notes. 


Is Being Strict the Same as Being Effective?
By Mary Beth Hicks at Family Events
Some parenting wisdom.


Want to Be Motivated?
By Matthew Warner at Fallible Blogma
Cool video, under  2mins.  


A Plea for Really Committing to Adult Faith Formation
By R. Thomas Richard, PhD at Homiletic and Pastoral Review
This is why I went back to school in my 40s. This is sooo needed in the church today.


Father's Don't Abort Your Daughters
By Timothy Dalrymple at Philosophical Fragments
Painful truth: More and more we need to stand up for life... especially a woman's life, a daughter's life. 

The F.U.N. Quotient...

Fun with GPS...

image

Among Women #138 The Two Hearts

Among Women 138 celebrates the two hearts of Jesus and Mary, as I explain the significance of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, and the Immaculate Heart of Mary, in terms of a new parish initiative for the new evangelization, called Hearts Afire, with my guest, Kelly Wahlquist. Plus I enjoy recounting my travels in France at Rue de Bac, where the Chapel of Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal is located in Paris.

A.S.K. = Ask, Seek, Knock = 3 Steps Toward Praying Aloud With Others... a tip for the new evangelization

My latest column over at Patheos is an observation on the active avoidance Catholics apply when it comes to a very basic skill... leading another person in prayer for their sake, or the sake of others. It also offers a brief tutorial with the baby steps on how to overcome it... using a strategy that co-opts some of the words of Jesus: Ask, Seek, and Knock. Here's an excerpt:

I’ve learned that this praying-aloud-thing with another person is a skill that not all Catholics share an enthusiasm for. What I mean is that it is one thing to pray together at Mass, or to pray a rosary aloud with a group, or to pray a formal grace before meals. But it is entirely another experience to pray aloud, somewhat spontaneously, with the people you are with… even when they are Christians themselves, about a subject that is on their hearts and minds. 

Now, I’m not talking about my evangelical Christian friends, who are usually very open to praying-on-the-spot when asked. Their freedom to offer a word of prayer or thanksgiving in-the-moment is something worth emulating. 

Why don’t we Catholics act with the same freedom? 

I hear this thought often: We’re private. My religion is just between me and God. We Catholics love our private prayer… and rightly so. Jesus taught that when we pray we should close our doors and pray to our Father in heaven in secret. And that’s fine. That’s good. Let’s all do more of that, too. 

Maybe all that private prayer is why sharing prayer with another person sometimes feels too intimate… or we fear doing it wrong. But, really, it is nothing to fear because Jesus is there within the breaths of any group prayer… “For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I in the midst of them. (Mt 18: 20.)" 

Others have told me praying with others outside of Church is uncomfortable because we Catholics are raised with the formal vocal prayers of the Church -- all of which are wonderful, beautiful, and majestic -- but not with informal or spontaneous prayer -- that we don’t know any other ways to pray. 

Other times, we’re afraid to do something so spontaneous… we don’t want to be labeled as a Jesus freak, or a religious fanatic. 

From an evangelization standpoint, all these excuses are hard to square in front of Jesus who asked us to be active is in sharing the faith, when he said, “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations…” (Mt 28: 19.)

Check out the rest. And if you like the column, you may subscribe by email or RSS here. 

This makes me think... about the new evangelization...

The way you share the message will be unique as you are. You don't have to be a writer or preacher to share the good news... God has wired you to share His message in distinctive, wonderful ways that reflect His heart and His design for you.

--Holley Gerth, God's Heart for You.